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While Jewish persons with stable finances were able to see the winds change, poor Jews often could not afford to expatriate; expatriation and emigration meant leaving property, often without sale, leaving family and friends, for all seldom went at once, and leaving a lifetime of vocation, career, and all the things men hold important. In the beginning of the Third Reich, those most likely to leave were people of means and people in the public eye: some that fled as their posts were taken away include: musicians such as Bruno Walter, Schoenberg & colleagues, psychiatrists: Sigmund and Anna Freud, the artist Klee, and many others from the arts and social sciences. (See Arts & the Shoah)
The Reich & EmigrationEven if one could afford the money, leaving Germany was not made easy. In order to leave Germany, one had to obtain papers from the local police departments, clearing their records; but the police were members of the Nazi Party, and while not all were Anti-Semitic or even in favor of the Reich, most were, and visas and passports and their supporting documents were often denied.Few countries had open immigration for the the Jews; or for any. Israel, which had previously mandated 25,000 legal Jewish immigrations a year, under new limitations made it difficult or impossible to make it the target of an aliyah. (See "The Balfour Agreement") The United States, one would imagine would have been the most welcoming country to receive Jewish immigrants seeking refuge, but this was far from the case. Anti-Semitism was rampant in the US; many of German Heritage considered Hitler a great man and saw nothing wrong with what he was doing. The German Bunds, or Fellowship-Organizations in the U.S. often included many influential people who were in or could sway politics. Indeed while FDR and some others spoke tolerantly of the Jews, very little was done even when we knew of the extent of the Third Reich's "final solution". The legislature of the time had constant debates regarding when and whether to allow immigration of any kind with an impending World War, and Jewish immigration was even less popular with congressman. Reasons for concern with Jewish immigration were the following:
During WWII and before, anti-semitism was rampant in the U.S. While incidents are not often reported in textbooks, violent incidents against Jews actually increased during the war. This was unfortunately no less true among law-makers, who simply did not want to see more Jewish-U.S Citizens. Many Senators and Representatives did not want to enter the War at all: they saw it as a battle of imperialism between two nations we had acceptable foreign relations with: Britain and Germany. Before the war and early in the war, there was a great desire on the part of many to stay out of the war unless directly attacked (which came with Pearl Harbor). To provide refuge to the Jews in the U.s. would have thrown down the gauntlet to enter the war. Many desired that we 'raise the drawbridge' and cease all immigration. As in Europe, especially in Germany, Communism was seen as synonymous for some with the Jewish Community. Since some founders of communism had Jewish backgrounds, e.g. Marx ties were drawn often erroneously equating "bolshevism" with Judaism, hence a reluctance on the side of the less discerning to allow Jewish immigration. Even those who would have allowed refuge for Jews during the war did not because of intensive prevailing politics of anti-semitism: Jewish immigration did not increase support or votes, or support from other Congressman . Politicians like to be re-elected. One Congressman, Claude Pepper from Florida did stand firmly and lobby for opening our borders to Jewish refugees escaping the Nazi regime. Even early he made pleas in Congress to rapidly and widely open Jewish immigration to our country. Some even discussed the setting aside of land in the west for a makeshift homeland.* His views though, went unheeded. He became a requited prophet in Congress far too late: by the time the extent of what Hitler had done and had intended, millions of Jews were already dead, and we were already at war because of an attack on Pearl Harbor.
The Conference of Life & DeathThe issues discussed above were not peculiar to the United States: almost every nation closed their borders to escaping German and Polish Jews. Every nation confronted the same problems: anti-semitism, resources, politics and entry into the war. To welcome refugees escaping tyranny, one has to take on the possibility that tyranny will come to their doors. Few were willing to risk that possibility for a people who have not been welcome in most nations for centuries. |
There were seemingly ways of escape. The Third Reich
did not take over Germany over night: while the Reich was clearly
Anti-Semitic, the Jews in Germany and Europe saw no immediate danger in
the early 1930's which would cause them to flee their country to refuge in
another. As 1933 dawned though, with the Reich gaining power not only in
the electorate but also in parliament, and as Hitler consolidated the
offices of Chancellor & President, new laws began to form which the
German people before, coming out of a weakened Republic, would not have
thought possible. (