Money and power were far more attractive to some American businesses during the Holocaust than boycotting the Nazi regime. Companies like IBM and Ford Motor Company helped fuel Hitler's reign of terror when they could have done something to stop it. What could Hitler have done without the help of these companies? Why did these companies choose to continue helping the Nazis in the tragedies of the Holocaust? The prospect of great business opportunities within the Nazi regime led major American corporations to seek the opportunity to expand, ignoring how they actually affected the fate of an entire race of people. Background American companies like IBM and Ford had good relations with Germany during the 1970s and early 1930s. These companies are both accused of aiding the Nazis throughout the Holocaust. IBM made a machine called the Hollerith machine. This machine was used by the Germans to track and identify Jews during the Holocaust. This technology was only being developed by IBM at that time and Hitler knew he could use their help for his master plan. Most European countries used this machine to carry out their censuses (Eisenstadt). Hollerith machines were manufactured by DEHOMAG or German Hollerith Machine Company. This company was a subsidiary of the American company IBM since 1922 (Eisenstadt). Henry Ford also played a role in American businesses that contributed to the emergence of the Holocaust (Eisenstadt). The car manufacturer Ford also had a German subsidiary. The company manufactured military vehicles and weapons of war for the Nazis before the war. Was fattening the CEO's pockets the reason an American company would make war equipment for an enemy company? Greed plays a big role and shows how these Americans middle of paper... the spirits of those who were murdered will live on forever. Works Cited Black, Edwin. IBM and the Holocaust: the strategic alliance between Nazi Germany and America's most powerful corporation. New York: Crown, 2001. Print.Eisenstadt, Merry M. "Stock Maven® - Business and the Holocaust - Articles | Excerpts."Stock Maven® - Business and the Holocaust - Articles | Excerpts. Washington Jewish Week, September 17, 1998. Web. February 6, 2014 http://www.stockmaven.com/ibmstory.htm Eisenstadt, Merry M. "Stock Maven® - Business and the Holocaust - Series Part Two: Accounted for Persecution; IBM's Role in the Holocaust by Merry Madway Eisenstadt." Stock Maven® - Business and the Holocaust - Part Two of the Series: Counted for Persecution; IBM's Role in the Holocaust by Merry Madway Eisenstadt. Washington Jewish Week, September 17, 1998. Web. February 6, 2014. http://www.stockmaven.com/ibmstory2.htm