Behind the Bastards Part One: That Time Volkswagen Operated a Slave Plantation in Brazil
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Oct 14, 2025 Maggie Mae Fish, a writer and video creator known for her insightful commentary, joins Robert to unravel Volkswagen's dark transformation from Nazi favorite to owner of a slave plantation in Brazil. They discuss Volkswagen's involvement in the military during WWII, its exploitation of forced labor, and the gruesome realities workers faced in Amazonian camps. The conversation dives into Brazil's political context during military dictatorship, shedding light on how modern slavery persists and the company’s eventual attempts at reckoning with its past.
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Factory Camps At Wolfsburg
- Volkswagen's Wolfsburg plant used concentration camp inmates and Eastern workers to staff its factories during the war.
- VW employees ran camp facilities and only a few, like Dr. Korbel, were later prosecuted.
Delayed Corporate Reckoning And Reparations
- VW's later reckoning began decades after the war, prompted by historians and activists pushing the company to confront its past.
- The company created a reparations fund in 1991 after sustained pressure.
Brazil's Junta Encouraged Amazon Clearcutting
- Brazil's 1964 military dictatorship promoted Amazon development with big incentives for multinationals to clear land.
- Volkswagen Brazil accepted the plan and purchased a vast tract to create Fazenda Volkswagen cattle ranch.