Washington, DC – Eighty years ago today, the United States refused dockage to a ship called the St. Louis carrying more than nine hundred Jewish refugees. When the U.S. turned those nine hundred men, women, and children away, their ship was forced to return to Europe.
Hundreds of the St. Louis’ passengers then died in the Holocaust.
This evening, HIAS and partners will remember the individuals who sought and were denied safety aboard the St. Louis, and call on the U.S. to do more to protect today’s refugees at a 6pm vigil on Capitol Hill.
At the time of the St. Louis’ voyage, some Americans expressed their shame at our government’s decision to turn away Jewish refugees. This week, the Des Moines Register reprinted a Letter to the Editor by Lilian C. Reitan from 1939, “A Christian Plea for Wandering Jews.” Ms. Reitan wrote:
If we turn aside those unhappy souls now, something tells me that some day we, too, may plead for mercy, and when we don’t get it, we may die just as tortured and without pity. We will either help these people or be known for what we really are, calloused, inhuman, un-Christian and un-American.
In a new letter to the editor also published by the Des Moines Register Faith Williams, Senior Manager of Government Relations for the National Council of Jewish Women, and co-chair of the Interfaith Immigration Coalition, points out that today, “the U.S. is committing the very same mistake we made when we sent hundreds of Jews back to their deaths in 1939.” About the current refugee resettlement policy of the United States, she writes:
In 2019, millions of people across the globe are fleeing war, genocide, and other brutality based on religion, ethnicity, or other traits…. The U.S. commitment to refugees is a drop in the bucket, compared to the global need. Still, President Trump slashed the number of refugees we protect by 75%.
And, the Religious Action Center for Reform Judaism explains in a new blog post that the same sentiments that drove our government to reject these refugees eight years ago are also present in modern-day discourse:
The Roosevelt administration’s decision to turn away the St. Louis passengers was directly connected to a rise in xenophobia and anti-Semitism across Europe and North America. Many believed refugees would pose a national security threat, create competition for scarce jobs, or become an economic burden
It is imperative that today’s leaders learn from the tragedy of the St. Louis. Immigration and refugee policies must be founded on principles of justice, compassion, dignity, and human rights.
Simultaneously, organizations assisting refugees along the U.S. southern border are being recognized for their humanitarianism today with the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award. The 2019 Human Rights Award Laureates are: Angry Tias and Abuelas of the Rio Grande Valley, Detained Migrant Solidarity Committee (DMSC), and La Unión del Pueblo Entero (LUPE).
The Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award “honors an individual or group of individuals who stand up to oppression at grave personal risk in the nonviolent pursuit of human rights.”
Scott Wright, Director of the Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach, said:
The three border groups honored this year by the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award – the Detained Migrant Solidarity Committee (a partner of the Columban Mission Center in El Paso, Texas), Angry Tias and Abuelas of the Rio Grande Valley, and La Unión del Pueblo Entero (LUPE) – represent the conscience of our country.
These organizations are creating a culture of welcome and encounter that celebrate the dignity, gifts, and diversity that migrants and refugees bring to our communities. They show us how we should have treated the St. Louis passengers fleeing Nazi persecution of Jews in 1939, and how we should be welcoming those who are seeking refuge today – with justice, compassion, and love.
Resources
- Learn more about the 2019 RFK Human Rights Award Laureates here.
- Read the full letters to the editor by Faith Williams (2019) and Lilian C. Reitan (1939) here, and the Religious Action Center blog post here.
- Get information about the HIAS Capitol Hill vigil here.
- Read “With the U.S. turning its back on refugees, my family’s history seems impossible to repeat,” by Gershom Gorenberg in the Washington Post here.
The Interfaith Immigration Coalition is made up of 52 national, faith-based organizations brought together across many theological traditions with a common call to seek just policies that lift up the God-given dignity of every individual. In partnership, we work to protect the rights, dignity, and safety of all refugees and migrants.
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