Connolly's+Page

**The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Introduction** Students of the Holocaust frequently ask, "Why didn’t Jewish people flee Germany when the Nazis took power?" Framed in the context of several broader issues, the story of the //St. Louis// offers a historical case study through which to address this question. The broader contextual issues include: German anti-Jewish policy in 1938 and 1939; the international response to the growing refugee crisis; the plight of refugees in German-occupied western Europe; and United States immigration and refugee policy during the 1930s and 1940s. Using documentary evidence, Museum researchers have reconstructed the individual stories of many //St. Louis// passengers. This information will help students understand the complex issues mentioned above, especially the difficulties that Jewish refugees faced when fleeing Nazi Germany and how United States government policies influenced the fates of refugees. Links to Visit:** [|The Story]
 * [[image:stintr04.gif caption="The St. Louis passengers greeted with great jubilation the news that France, Great Britain, Belgium, and the Netherlands had agreed to provide them with temporary refuge away from Nazi Germany. For many, however, it marked not the end but the beginning of an even more tragic journey. "]]

[|The Search] 1. How did the United States respond to the refugee crisis and why? 2. What was life like for refugees in Vichy France and German-occupied western Europe? 3. What made it difficult for refugees to escape from the Nazis in German-occupied or German-allied western Europe? 4. What documents did a refugee need in order to enter the United States, and what did he or she need in order to leave countries in Europe? 5. What factors affected the ability of refugees to successfully complete the visa application process? 6. What makes it difficult to know exactly what happened to some victims of the Holocaust? 7. What kind of documentation is required to achieve a reasonable degree of certainty about an individual’s fate?
 * Using the links above to gather research, answer the following questions in the DISCUSSION forum above:**