Abandonment Of The Jews

9 Pages 2203 Words

much accomplished. Some of the steps included press announcements, a national day of mourning, and a meeting with President Roosevelt.
The committee wanted action but had prepared no proposals. All they left with from their meeting with FDR was an agreement that the president would warn Germany of war crimes. This was the only meeting FDR granted to Jewish leaders.
In December 1942 the UN Declaration was signed by the 3 main allies and the governments of 8 occupied countries. It was a strong warning that retribution would come to those responsible for war crimes.
Proposals began to arise to help save the Jewish people. For every proposal there was a reason not to attempt it. The State Department conducted investigations that were always very superficial.
The American Jews pressed for action. The Bermuda conference met in 1943 mainly as a way to quiet the call for action. The conference was between the US and Britain. The State Department limited the power so much that action was almost impossible. After a year the declaration decided at the conference still had not been endorsed. Richard Law saw this conference as a “façade for inaction.”
Wyman discusses how the government set restrictions so that even the small quotas could not be fulfilled. The Intergovernmental committee on Refugees was used to cover allied inaction. One of its leaders actually said, “We hope to operate as little as possible.” “There is very little that can be done with regard to rescue,” was his explanation. I do not see how a committee on refugees would hope to operate as little as possible during the holocaust. Other committees were established such as the Emergency Committee but very little was ever accomplished.
In November 1943 a rescue resolution was introduced. Breckinridge Long of the State Department gave a testimony that opposed such a resolution claiming t...