AMERICAS AND THE HOLOCAUST

QUICK BACKGROUND OF THE HOLOCAUST

Jews were forced into ghettoes and required to wear the Star of David

Nazi plan was to exterminate all 11 million Jews in Europe

SS (Schutzstaffel) guards began to round-up Jews for “evacuation”

CONCENTRATION CAMPS Concentration and Death camps were mostly

in Poland2 reasons

Extermination could be hidden form German people

Most of Europe’s Jews lived in Eastern Europe

Arrival at camps brought two choices for SS guards Those who were strong enough were sent

to work Those who were not sent to work, were

sent to die in gas chambers

GAS CHAMBERS Victims were killed in “showers”

It took 15 minutes for Zyklon B to work After the 15 minutes the bodies were searched

for hidden valuables and gold tooth fillings were removed

After this the bodies were crematedThe SS could kill up to 10,000 people daily

with little trace left

TARGETS OF THE HOLOCAUST In USSR, SS would round up Jews and

have them dig huge trenches and then mow them down with machine guns In Kiev alone, over 30,000 Jews were

massacred in one day Jews were not the only targets

Homosexuals, political prisoners, mentally handicapped, Russian prisoners of war, gypsies were also targeted

WHO HELPED? What was done to

help these victims?There were many

individuals who helpedThere were few

governments that stepped in Denmark smuggled most

of its Jews to neutral Sweden

Hungary and Italy attempted to protect their Jewish community

WHAT DID THE USA DO?

The US was slow to act on behalf of European Jews in need of a place to flee.

As early of 1942 there were public reports of the atrocities taking place against the Jews and other “undesirables”.

Despite this knowledge the US used no military strategies to eliminate the camps or its supply lines

Jewish immigration was tied up with extended bureaucratic delays.

IN RESPONSE TO HITLER’S FINAL SOLUTION In a December 13, 1942 radio broadcast

listened to by millions, popular newsman Edward R. Murrow described

“a horror beyond what imagination can grasp . . . there are no longer ‘concentration camps’—we must speak now only of ‘extermination camps.’”

CONDEMNING HITLER On December 17, 1942, the United

States joined ten other Allied governments in issuing a solemn public declaration condemning Nazi Germany’s “extermination” of the Jews.

The American Congress and the British Parliament stood in silence on that date to mourn what was happening to the Jews and pray for the strength needed to defeat the Nazis.

ROOSEVELTS REACTION Roosevelt believed

that the surest way to stop the killing of innocent civilians was to defeat Hitler’s Germany as quickly and decisively as possible.

Critics say that FDR’s “win the war” approach did not address the possibility that significant numbers of Jews could be rescued.

US TAKES ACTION In 1944 Roosevelt set up the War Refugee

Board “It takes months and months to grant the

visa and then it usually applies to a corpse,”- Secretary of the Treasury Henry Morgenthau Jr.

WAR REFUGEE BOARD (WRB) FDR established the War Refugee Board

to help rescue and assist the many people who were condemned to death camps.

It relocated many refugees in need, although it was late in inception.

It saved 200,000 Jews and 20,000 non-Jews, however 1 million still died

This action was seen as “too little, too late”.

CRITICS ARGUE THAT IF FDR HAD ACTED EARLIER, AND MORE BOLDLY, EVEN MORE LIVES COULD HAVE BEEN SAVED.

Read through the documents and answer the following question based on your understanding of the information:

Analyse the main factors that led to FDRs establishment of the WRB.

CREATE AN ESSAY OUTLINE PAPER 3 Practice Remember to address all aspects of the

markbands.

Assess the effectiveness of US policy in relation to European Jews before and during the Second World War.