Refugees and Rescue

Richard Breitman is Professor of History at American University and author of Official Secrets: What the Nazis Planned, What the British and Americans Knew. He lives in Bethesda, Maryland.Barbara McDonald Stewart has taught at George Mason University and is author of United States Government Policy on Refugees from Nazism, 1933–1940. She lives in Vienna, Virginia.Severin Hochberg, a historian formerly at the Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, teaches at George Washington University. He lives in Washington, D.C.

"These newly discovered documents . . . show an American president more interested, more horrified and ultimately more involved in these issues in the period leading to the war than previously believed.June 7, 2009"—David Shribman, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette"This is the fascinating diary of James McDonald, later to become the first United States emissary to the State of Israel. The volume provides keen and thoughtful insight into the political machinations of 1935-1945, when McDonald served the League of Nations and later American President Roosevelt in various positions regarding the plight of refugees.June 2009"—Jewish Tribune"Refugees and Rescue is a remarkable account that sheds new light on the plight of European Jews during the horrific decade from 1935 to 1945.Autumn 2009"—The Hudson River Valley Review"New evidence presented in this book challenges widely held opinions about Franklin D. Roosevelt's views on the rescue of European Jews before and during the Holocaust. May 6, 2010"—Menorah Review"The papers of James Grover McDonald represent a major resource for the research of one of the greatest humanitarian crises of the twentieth century. . . . The editors of the present volume have . . . considerably illuminated, both for the scholarly community and the public, how Americans and their leaders coped with the Third Reich.Spring 2010"—Wolfgang G. Schwanitz, Jewish Political Studies Review"[The book] . . . sheds considerable light on [James McDonald's] tireless efforts to secure refuge for Jews fleeing Nazi persecution . . .Vol. 40, no. 1"—Journal of Palestine Studies"The book . . . will undoubtedly reignite the charged debate over whether Roosevelt could have done more to rescue millions of Jews, Gypsies, gay people, dissidents and others who died in Nazi death camps."—Patricia Cohen, New York Times"[Advocate for the Doomed] is a compelling look at one man's efforts to do something about a looming catastrophe. At times the book is inspiring—McDonald's prescience and energy are simply amazing. But because we know what is soon to happen to Europe's Jews, we share his frustration that no one seems to be listening. We feel what it was to be an advocate for the doomed."—The Wall Street Journal, reviewing a previous edition or volume"More than most politicians, McDonald understood the radical nature of Nazi anti-semitism and sought to move not only the international community on behalf of Germany's Jews, but also the U.S. State Department, where he found indifference, if not worse. . . . This is an invaluable document in understanding the period that witnessed the Nazi 'seizure of power.'"—Choice, reviewing a previous edition or volume"[Advocate for the Doomed] is a compelling look at one man's efforts to do something about a looming catastrophe. At times the book is inspiring—McDonald's prescience and energy are simply amazing. But because we know what is soon to happen to Europe's Jews, we share his frustration that no one seems to be listening. We feel what it was to be an advocate for the doomed."—The Wall Street Journal"More than most politicians, McDonald understood the radical nature of Nazi anti-semitism and sought to move not only the international community on behalf of Germany's Jews, but also the U.S. State Department, where he found indifference, if not worse. . . . This is an invaluable document in understanding the period that witnessed the Nazi 'seizure of power.'"—Choice

• AcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. From Germany to the Soviet Union: August 19352. Nuremberg Laws: September 19353. Deterioration on All Fronts: October 19354. How to Resign? November 19355. Dramatic Protest: December 19356. Aftermath: 1936–19377. Refugee Politics and Diplomacy: 19388. Toward War and Catastrophe: 19399. Refugees as Spies: 194010. Close Relatives as Hostages: 194111. Refuge in Latin America12. The War and the Holocaust: 1942–1945Conclusion by Richard BreitmanIndex