1. Responses to the Holocaust
Rescuers
Responses to the Holocaust

2. 5 things to consider
The inaction and complicity of the world community reduced the extent to which the Jews could resist
Allies did not bomb death camps despite full knowledge of what was happening
Many non-Jews risked their lives to save the Jews
Though Jews faced repeated obstacleds to their efforts to emigrate from Nazi-occupied countries, some nations sought to rescue Jews (Denmark)
Silently accepted by millions of bystanders

3. Good v. evil
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”
-Edmund Burke

4. Bystanders Most people neither helped nor hindered the Final Solution
Relatively few people helped Jews escape
8.8 million Jews in Europe before Holocaust, 2 million after Holocaust
Countless more could have died without the rescuers

5. Initiated by jews
Hid among the rural population or fled to Switzerland
Placed children with Christians, forged ID papers, helped across to Spain/Switz.
4,000 Jews survived in hiding in Berlin
Tens of thousands survived in Poland, where millions were murdered
100,000 (roughly) assisted/saved by rescuers

6. Avenue of righteous gentiles
Human values of kindness, dignity, and compassion stayed alive during the Holocaust
“Whoever saves a single soul, it is as if he had saved the whole world.”

7. Hitler’s bounty
Hitler offered a bounty for those who turned in Jews who were hiding
A quart of liquor, four pounds sugar, a carton of cigarettes (things not easily found during war time)
A lot of people stole money from each other during this period.

8. Yad vashem
A museum in Israel dedicatied exclusively to the history of the Holocaust
Entrance lined with carob trees, each dedicated to one of the Righteous Gentiles
More than 600 trees—special committee decides: entrants get a certificate, medal with the inscription from last page

9. Varian fry
An unlikely American spy who traveled to France in June 1940 to help smuggle Jews out of Germany
Used the French border
Credited with saving over 2,000 people

10. Oskar schindler Factory owner/operator
Cares very much about efficiency
Doesn’t care if she’s Jewish or not— knows she will work no matter what
Changes based on experience.

11. poland 1.0
Dr. Jan Karski
Contact between Polish resistance and Polish gov’t in exile
Sought to draw attn to Nazi plans to murder Jews
Smuggled into the Warsaw ghetto
Reported to President FDR

12. Poland 2.0 Cardinal Archbishop of Lwow (Catholic)
Ordered clergy reporting to him to act to save Jews
Bartoszewski
Founder of a Catholic underground organization
Provided false documents, hid Jews, also aided Anne Frank and her family in Amsterdam

13. Le Chambon-sur-lignon, France
Most of France supported German policies
Le Chambon-sur-Lignon was a center for smuggling Jews to Switzerland, Spain, and Italy
Helped about 5,000 Jews escape
The Trocme family—leaders of the village
Small numbers of Quakers (am.) helped

14. Denmark
Most notable rescue—entire nation mobilized to rescue 8,000 Jews
Only nation to actively resist Germany’s deportation of its Jews
Ferried 5,900 Jews, 1,300 part-Jews, 700 Christians married to Jews to Sweden
Of the 500 Jews arrested by the Nazis, only 51 died because of Danish gov’t pressure to ensure their treatment and well-being.
Proved that widespread support for Jews worked

15. Why denmark? No history of antisemitism
Nearby Sweden was neutral and willing to accept the Jews that could be saved
Other resistors—Finland, Hungary, Italy

16. Britain, Italy
Britain received thousands of Jewish children from Vienna, Berlin, etc. on the Kindertransports (more tomorrow)
Italy extended aid to the Jews, especially those of Italian descent