Term Paper on "America's Failure to Act During the Holocaust"

Term Paper 5 pages (1874 words) Sources: 6 Style: APA

[EXCERPT] . . . .

America's Failure To Act During The Holocaust

The common perception and image of America and the Allies during the Second World War is one of liberating the world from tyranny and oppression. The image has to a great degree been tarnished by recent historical studies and research findings. There have been many questions asked about the apparent reticence of the Americans and the British to intervene and help the victims of the Holocaust.

The received wisdom about the Holocaust among most Americans is that the United States and the rest of the civilized world turned away Jews seeking to escape Nazi Germany before World War II, and then sat idly by while the Third Reich murdered nearly 6 million of them during the course of the war. (Desch M. 2006)

These assertions pertain to the fact that the Allies had knowledge of the holocaust and of the German concentration camps long before the end of the War. Questions have been raised as to why Allies and America did not do more to prevent these crimes or at least retard their progression? Answers to these questions have led to a certain amount of controversy and have not reflected well on the policies or government of the time.

Scholarship leaves little doubt that knowledge of the crimes against Jews in Europe was well-known to the Allies at an early date. "Numerous historians have demonstrated that the West possessed verifiable contemporaneous accounts of the wanton murder of Jews in the Polish campaign of 1939, their relocation into ghettoes in the following year, and their slaughter in the fields of Russia in 1941." (Abzug R.) There is also substantial evidence that President Roosevelt, as well as the British government, was aware of the situation of the Jews in Nazi camps as early as 1943.

The question that this obviously raises is why was nothing substantial done with this knowledge? Studies also point out that knowledge of the Jewish predicament was not only limited to government and selected organizations but was relatively general and known to the public. There are numerous reports from newspapers and magazines of the time of massacres and population relocations. This exacerbates the question as to why there was no decisive action taken. "Time after time... officials in London and Washington had the opportunity to act more aggressively against Nazi genocide and to rescue refugees even while prosecuting the war. Time after time, they refused." (Abzug R.) Wyman (1984), for example, states that by 1944 the Allies had detailed maps of Auschwitz and Birkenau, and that this made strategic bombings a possibly. He asserts that the railway line to the camps could have been bombed which would have saved thousands of lives. However, both the U.S. Army Air Force and the British Air Force both refused. (Desch M. 2006) There are may other sources which show that the American and British were well aware of the problem. As early as 1942 the representative of the World Jewish Congress in Switzerland, Gerhart Riegner, heard about a German plan to annihilate the Jews of Europe. His source was a German industrialist with access to top Nazi circles. Riegner immediately took the information to the American consulate in Geneva, where he asked the Vice-Consul Howard Elting Jr. To send the information to Washington and other Allied governments.

News of Extermination Reaches U.S.)

The again leads to the central question: why was there no effort at least to reduce or retard the Nazi extermination of the Jews? A possible answer to this question lies in a complex array of interconnected political and policy issues that are also related to views and perceptions that were evident before the start of the Second World War.

It is significant that one of the reasons given for the lack of action on the part of the Allies was that the British, in particular, impeded rescue plans because they feared that it would "... unload an even greater number of Jews on to our hands..." (Abzug R.) David Wyman in the Abandonment of the Jews: America and the Holocaust, 1941?45, also focuses on the issue of anti-Semitism as an aspect that influenced the lack of action on the part of the American government. He also emphasizes the aspect of universal moral responsibility.

The Holocaust was certainly a Jewish tragedy. But it was not only a Jewish tragedy. It was also a Christian tragedy, a tragedy for Western civilization, and a tragedy for all humankind. The killing was done by people, to other people, while still others stood by. (Abzug R.)

There is also the accusation that even leaders of the Jewish community in the United States did little to deal with the problems. To support this view, Holocaust survivor, Elie Wiesel has stated that "... It was an amazing display of detachment, of laissez faire, demonstrating an attitude shared, in fact, by the leaders of the free Jewish communities."... (Abzug R.)

The anti-Semitic as well as anti-immigration views in America were to go a long way to influencing public opinion and public policy in the country. Anti-Semitic feeling was"... never higher in England and America than during World War II, further compromising efforts toward action." (Abzug R.) This was to affect policy and made many public officials reticent to act in way that would stir up anti-Semitic sentiment. (Desch M. 2006) Aligned with this were the extremely strict and uncompromising immigration policies in the United States. It is also suggested by scholars that these strict immigration policies were largely designed to prevent the immigration of Jewish people to America.

Historically the anti- Semitic attitude that showed itself in America has many antecedents. There is a general concurrence that the years 1899-1939 represent a highpoint in anti-Semitism in western societies. (Brustein W.I. And King R.D. 2004) in an article entitled Anti-Semitism in Europe before the Holocaust, William I. Brustein points out that Breckenridge Long, who was appointed by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt as Assistant Secretary of State with jurisdiction over immigration and refugee problems during World War Two, was responsible for "... For limiting Jewish emigration to the United States before and during the war." (Abzug R.)

On the other hands there are many counter arguments to the above assertions. One argument is that many Jews were in fact allowed to immigrate to the country; for example, "...150,000 Germans, mostly Jews, came to this country legally between March 1938 and September 1939..." (Desch M. 2006) Another argument is that the situation was more complex than it seems and that possible solutions such as bombing the concentration camps were not practically feasible. Some critics argue that the Allies were focused on the defeat of the Nazis as the best way to free the Jews. A further counter argument is that immigration restrictions were necessary to prevent the United States form being infiltrated by possible spies and saboteurs.

However scholars such as Wyman (1984) do not agree with these views. Wyman states that there can be no reasonable argument for the almost total lack of concern about the holocaust from the American government at the time. "...almost no one in Washington, New York, or anywhere else, spent any appreciable amount of time on the problem of the Holocaust, and even less money and effort." (Ambrose S.) in his work the Abandonment of the Jews: America and the Holocaust, 1944-1945, the author explores the complex political events and inner workings of the government at the time. He also criticizes the Christian church in America. "... For the most part, America's Christian churches looked away while the European Jews perished" (p. 320).

Wyman asserts that the State Department "...was not interested in rescuing Jews" and "The War Department did next to nothing for rescue" (p. 314). He also notes that niether the Office of Strategic Services or the Office of War Information became involved as they considered Jewish problems too politically controversial. The general view that he presents is one of political influence from many quarters that was complicit with anti-Semitism in the country. He also states that, "Most American intellectuals were indifferent to the struggle for rescue... Jewish intellectuals remained as uninvolved as non-Jews" (p. 320). In essence Wyman presents a view that has become more prevalent in recent years; that the reasons for U.S., inaction was essentially based on political concerns fueled by anti-Jewish sentient in the country. He also states that one of the greatest obstacles that any action to save the Jewish people was the presence of immigration restriction.

In conclusion, the fact that there was little real action on the part of the American government to prevent the holocaust is not disputed by most historians. However, what are in question are the reasons for this inaction or apparent lack of concern. On the one hand the complex factors relating to a period of intense war must be taken into account. As has been discussed there are various arguments put forward that suggest reason for the lack of direct action on… READ MORE

How to Reference "America's Failure to Act During the Holocaust" Term Paper in a Bibliography

Related Term Papers:

Colonial America -- Issues and Answers Essay

Colonial America -- Issues and Answers

Did race determine whom the colonists, would enslave, or was it coincidental that the majority of the enslaved population would be a certain group?… read more

Essay 6 pages (1949 words) Sources: 8 Style: APA Topic: Native American Indians

---

How and Why the Danish Jews Were Saved From the Holocaust Term Paper

Danish

In April 2004, Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen accepted the Lyndon B. Johnson Moral Courage Award from the Holocaust Museum Houston honoring his country's World War II rescue… read more

Term Paper 15 pages (4304 words) Sources: 6 Style: MLA Topic: Religion / God / Theology

---

Gay and Lesbian Torture in Iraq and the International Human Rights Violations Term Paper

Torture and Abuse of Gays and Lesbians in U.S. Occupied Iraq

The United States has always presented itself as a model of fairness and equality. A champion of human rights… read more

Term Paper 25 pages (9056 words) Sources: 30 Topic: Sexuality / Gender

---

Rosie the Riveter Women Working During World War II Related to Paterson New Jersey Research Paper

Rosie the Riveter

"Over 6 million women who had never worked for wages before took jobs, married women's labor force participation doubled, and unions gained 2.2 million women in a… read more

Research Paper 10 pages (3439 words) Sources: 10 Topic: Women / Feminism

---

What Is to Be Done? Term Paper

NThe Effectiveness of Human Rights

As humanity experienced progress, it became absolutely necessarily for society to function in agreement with certain basic laws in order to avoid that chaos. For… read more

Term Paper 5 pages (1570 words) Sources: 6 Topic: Terrorism / Extremism / Radicalization

---

View 100+ more related papers  >>