Content note: Swastikas, a caricature of a Nazi speaker, and a list of enemy claims quoted verbatim, including an antisemitic statement and the phrases 'white man's war' and 'Yellow Peril'. This object is shown as it was published. Why
Hitler wants us to believe that: Americans will not be fooled!
A caricatured Nazi speaker rants into a microphone above two columns of swastika-marked claims attributed to Hitler, from democracy is dying to the end of elections. Below, a figure with hands over ears sits between two seated men, labelled as the British and the Americans asleep. The sheet frames its list as enemy propaganda aims, and ends with Americans will not be fooled.
Propaganda techniques used in this poster
- Date
- 1942
- Period
- Second World War
- Made by
- Office of War Information
- Region
- North America
- Country
- United States
- Medium
- Poster
- Issuer type
- State
- Regime
- Roosevelt Administration
- Leader
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Audience
- Domestic public
- Purpose
- Warn or inform
- Themes
- Media and information, War and the military, Home front
- Event
- World War II
- Regime
- Roosevelt administration
- Leader
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Source
- Identified Openly sourced: the speaker is who they say they are
- Source
- U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 44, World War II Posters, retrieved October 4, 2026
- Rights
- Public domain (U.S. government work)
Office of War Information. National Archives and Records Administration, RG 44, 44-PA-996 (NAID 514503).
Text on the object
HITLER WANTS US TO BELIEVE THAT: 卐 Democracy is dying. 卐 Our armed forces are weak. 卐 The "New Order" is inevitable. 卐 Jews cause everybody's troubles, everywhere. 卐 We are lost in the Pacific. 卐 Our West Coast is in such grave danger there is no point in fighting on. 卐 The British are decadent, and "sold us a bill of goods." 卐 Some sort of "peace" can be made with Nazi Germany. 卐 The cost of the war will bankrupt the nation. 卐 Civilian sacrifices will be more than we can bear. 卐 Our leaders are incompetent; our Government incapable of waging war. 卐 Stalin is getting too strong, and Bolshevism will sweep over Europe. 卐 Aid to our allies must stop. 卐 This is a "white man's war"; our real peril is the Japanese, and we must join Germany to stamp out the "Yellow Peril." 卐 We must bring all our troops and weapons back to the United States, and defend only our own shores. 卐 The Chinese, the British, and the Russians will make separate peace with Japan and Germany. 卐 American democracy will be lost during the war: the two-party system is dead; Congressional elections will never again be held. THE BRITISH BZ-Z-Z Z-Z-Z-Z-Z THE AMERICANS BZ-Z-Z Z-Z-Z-Z-Z AMERICANS WILL NOT BE FOOLED! [imprint: ☆ U. S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : 1942—O—476330] [imprint: OFFICE OF WAR INFORMATION, WASHINGTON, D.C.]
