A Brief History of Jewish Refugees in Shanghai
After Hitler came to power in 1933, the situation became increasingly difficult for the Jews in Germany. Anti-Semitic propaganda and reactionary laws made their lives untenable. Still, many were certain that Hitler wouldn’t last. Some were farsighted enough to leave; others were unable to do so for a variety of reasons.
On November 9-10, 1938, all over Germany, Jewish shop windows were smashed, synagogues were burned, and many Jewish men were beaten, arrested, and sent to concentration camps. That night was to be known as Kristallnacht (Night of the Broken Glass). After this occurrence, it became obvious that there was no future for Jews in Germany, and many decided on immediate emigration.
It was not easy in 1938 to find a place that would accept Jews. At the Evian Conference, dealing with the problems of the Jewish people and attended by representatives of many nations, no country — including the United States — stepped forward to open its doors to such refugees. The choices were therefore limited primarily to South America, Madagascar, and Shanghai.
To many, Shanghai seemed like a last resort, with wild stories circulated about this “home of adventurers,” its alien culture, pervasive poverty, and the difficulty of earning a living there. Yet, it was an open city, a treaty port, and required no visa or financial obligation for entry. Forced to make a fast decision, many German and Austrian Jews who could afford the passage chose Shanghai. Later, a number of Polish Jews, mainly students in various yeshivot, also ended up there. Altogether, nearly 20,000 Jews emigrated to Shanghai until Pearl Harbor closed off that option.
Life was difficult for the immigrants, especially after Japan entered the war. Most of them were used to a comfortable middle class existence, and it was a hard adjustment for them. Yet, most made their way in their strange surroundings, scratching out a living and waiting for the war to be over. Children attended one of several schools, older teenagers and adults did whatever jobs they could find, and there was an active cultural and religious life.
In 1943, the Japanese, who had been relatively hospitable to the refugees, issued a Proclamation segregating stateless refugees who had arrived in 1937 and afterward into a crowded Designated Area, eventually referred to as a ghetto. Foreign funds were cut off, food was in short supply, and disease was rampant. These conditions continued for two and a half years until the Japanese surrender.
When the Pacific war ended, many refugees went to work for the American armed forces or for companies originally belonging to British or Dutch interests that had been confiscated by the Japanese and now reopened. Life improved, and most refugees made preparations to leave China. Starting in 1946, and aided by the Joint Distribution Committee and UNRRA, the refugees set out for new homes in the United States, Israel, Canada, and Australia. A very few returned to Europe.
Today, former Jewish refugees look back with gratitude on their time in Shanghai. In spite of traumatic experiences in an enemy occupied city, they had found sanctuary in China and survived, unlike their relatives and friends who remained behind in Europe and perished in the Holocaust.
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