The Reimann family has owned Einstein Bros., Krispy Kreme and other chain restaurants for decades; but, the family recently admitted that the conglomerate they own benefited financially by the Holocaust.
The Reimann family hired Paul Erker, an economic historian at the University of Munich, to investigate their ties with the Nazi regime over a time span lasting more than four years. Erker produced an interim report of the investigation that was later published in the German tabloid Bild.
The report says that Reimann Sr. and Reimann Jr. supported the Nazi movement and even donated to the SS two years before Hitler was in power.
According to a New York Times article, the atrocities the employees at their factories experienced were nothing short of mental and physical abuse. Women were made to stand naked in their factory barracks while the ones who refused were sexually abused. Reimann Sr. and Reimann Jr. were also found to have been involved in this abuse, according to detailed reports found in the investigation.
The details of this report were corroborated by the family’s spokesperson Peter Harf.
“We are speechless, we are ashamed, and as white as a sheet,” Harf said. “There is nothing to gloss over, these crimes are sickening.”
The family plans to donate $11 million to a “suitable organization” or charity to make amends for their family’s transgressions. But unfortunately, this is not the first or last company to come forward and admit that some profits came from the Holocaust. Among them are German companies such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Hugo Boss.
There is no monetary value that can be placed on the victims of the Holocaust to remedy the effects of the genocide. However, considering the amount they have gained from it, one would think that some kind of restitution is expected from customers and other citizens alike.
By Isabella Pinel