Dymocks removal from sale of editions of Mein Kampf

In response to a request from the ECAJ, Dymocks has removed 55 of the 60 editions of the notorious Nazi book, ‘Mein Kampf’, which their bookstores had previously offered for sale.  All references to these editions have also been removed from the Dymocks website.

“We thank and commend Dymocks for doing the right”, said the ECAJ’s co-CEO, Peter Wertheim.  “Dymocks notified the ECAJ of the action they had taken on Monday night, coinciding with the start of Yom Hashoah. I see this as a fitting tribute to our kedoshim.”  

 Wertheim noted that the remaining five editions contain detailed annotations, refutations and other commentary by recognised scholars.

“We did not seek the removal of these five editions, as these versions highlight the book’s racist falsehoods and murderous import. We believe they act as a corrective to the propagandistic use of this work by racist groups and individuals.” 

Wertheim also said that the ECAJ had since drawn the attention of Dymocks to two further editions of the book listed on the Dymocks website, which bear a different title. “These are currently being investigated by Dymocks”, Wertheim said. 

The copyright on Mein Kampf expired at the end of 2015, and the contents of the book are now freely available online. However, according to Wertheim, “the book will no longer be given the dignity of being listed for sale by one of Australia’s best-known retailers, except for the versions which refute its poisonous ideology.”

Wertheim gave much credit to the Jewish Community Council of Victoria for the detailed research into the precise editions which were on offer by Dymocks, and to the Online Hate Prevention Institute which first raised the issue. “Their efforts in combination with the ECAJ’s advocacy proved to be successful.”