Izzy Greenbaum’s Act of Civil Disobedience Against the German American Bund

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In 1939, 26-year-old Izzy Greenbaum attended a rally organized by the German American Bund, a pro-Nazi group, at Madison Square Garden in New York City. As the Bund’s leader, Fritz Kuhn, delivered an anti-Semitic speech, Greenbaum rushed the stage shouting “Down with Hitler!” Greenbaum was arrested but his act of civil disobedience disrupted the Bund’s attempt to normalize its fascist ideology through spectacle and pageantry.

Why it matters

Greenbaum’s protest highlighted how democracies can erode gradually when citizens remain silent in the face of extremism. His actions revealed the fragility of democratic norms and the importance of individual resistance, even in the face of intimidation and violence.

The details

Greenbaum, a plumber’s helper from Brooklyn, was no activist. But as Kuhn’s speech grew increasingly hateful, Greenbaum could no longer remain silent. He rushed the stage, disrupting the Bund’s choreographed event. Greenbaum was arrested and faced a fine, but his act of defiance stripped the Bund’s pageantry of its illusion of unity and patriotism.

• On February 20, 1939, Greenbaum attended the German American Bund rally at Madison Square Garden.
• Greenbaum rushed the stage and interrupted Kuhn’s speech that same day.

What’s next

Greenbaum’s act of civil disobedience did not immediately topple the German American Bund, but it revealed the fragility of their movement. Within months, Kuhn was prosecuted and imprisoned for embezzlement, and the Bund collapsed under scrutiny and legal accountability.