No support for Jews fleeing Nazi Germany at Evian conference
In July 1938, a conference was held in Evian, France, to address the issue of Jews being persecuted by the Nazis in Germany and Austria
In July 1938, a conference was held in Evian, France, to address the issue of Jews being persecuted by the Nazis in Germany and Austria. Almost nobody in the world was willing to take them in as refugees. From July 6 to 15, 1938, representatives from 32 countries and dozens of humanitarian organizations gathered for a conference in the upscale spa town of Evian on the French side of Lake Geneva. The idea was to address the issue of how to deal with half a million Jews being persecuted in the Third Reich. This was five and a half years after Adolf Hitler's rise to power in Germany and three and a half months after the annexation of Austria. The Nazi regime had not yet begun itssystematic process of mass murder — but the situation for Jewish people had been deteriorating steadily since 1935. After the annexation of 1938, Jews were forced to clean the streets of Vienna on their knees Image: World History Archive/IMAGO The racist Nuremberg Laws, which were enacted in 1935 and stripped Jews of German citizenship, were internationally known — as was the fact that Jews had been excluded from schools, universities and public life, and that those who wanted to leave what was now "Greater Germany" had to relinquish a large proportion of their assets. As early as 1933, shortly after the Nazis seized power, the League of Nations, the precursor to the United Nations, appointed the US national James McDonald to chair the High Commission for Refugees from Germany. He resigned in 1935, despairing at the unwillingness of the world's governments to take the problem seriously. Emigration only after plunder Initially, Adolf Hitler and his government actively encouraged Jews to leave the country — by the time of the Evian Conference, approximately 200,000 had already left Germany. However, the Nazis imposed increasingly stringent financial and administrative restrictions: Jewish people had almost all of their property, real estate and savings confiscated before they left the country — and they had to present a visa or travel ticket to leave.
Jews trying to emigrate wait in front of a travel agency in Berlin in 1939 Image: akg-images/picture alliance The Nazis' goal was clear: They wanted Jews to leave Germany completely destitute. This was not only because the regime profited from the plunder of Jewish property, but also because poor emigrants would be considered a greater burden in the countries they moved to, which was intended to further fuel resentment towards refugees. Roosevelt's initiative The Evian initiative came from US President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The idea was to encourage states participating in the conference to welcome refugees from Germany and Austriaaccording to their population size. There was no intention of obligating states to change their immigration quota or spend more funds for refugees. Postcard depicting the Royal Hotel in Evian, where the conference was held in July 1938 Image: Arkivi/akpool GmbH/picture alliance Even before the delegates arrived at the luxurious hotel where the conference was to take place, the US and the United Kingdomhad already reached an agreement: Washington had promised not to mention the British Mandate of Palestine as a possible place of refuge for Jewish refugees and London in return had promised not to address the fact that the US was not filling its immigration quotas. Sympathy for Jewish refugees and excuses not to take them in The meeting was not attended by heads of state, but by lower-ranking diplomats. One after another, they rose to express their deep sympathy — followed by excuses as to why they could not help. European democracies justified themselves by citing high unemployment and the economic crisis, claiming they had no need for professors, artists, doctors or tradespeople. US delegate, Myron C. Taylor, seen here addressing the Evian Conference on July 7, 1938 Image: United Archives International/IMAGO Canada declared that it was only prepared to accept experienced farmers who had their own capital. The Australian delegate, Thomas White, said: "As we have no real racial problems, we are not desirous of importing one by encouraging any scheme of large-scale foreign immigration." France stated that it had already reached "the extreme point of saturation" regarding refugees.
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