German Society for Racial Hygiene

German Society for Racial Hygiene was a group of people in Germany in the early 1900s who believed that through science and careful planning, they could make sure that Germany had a population with the best possible "qualities," or traits. The members of this group studied genetic science to understand how certain physical and mental traits could be passed on from parents to children. They thought that understanding this could help them create a perfect society with strong, healthy, intelligent people – and that the idea was similar to what animal breeders do with their animals, to make them better. The problem is that they also thought that some groups of people were not as valuable or important as others, and they assumed that favoring certain groups might lead to a better society. This is why they supported laws that did not allow people of certain races, religions, or backgrounds to have certain rights, such as the right to marry. This is seen as a bad idea now, because it was wrong to think of people as better or worse based on what group they were from, and it led to a lot of unfair treatment and terrible suffering.