Ny avhandling: Svenska judars agerande under andra världskriget
18 November 2015
Tidigare forskning har sett svensk-judiska reaktioner på nazisternas terror som passiva eller överdrivet försiktiga. Men i en ny avhandling visar Pontus Rudberg att svenska judar bistod judar i Europa på många olika sätt under hela perioden från Hitlers tillträde som rikskansler och fram till andra världskrigets slut.
“Samtid och framtid skall döma oss efter måttet av den hjälp, som vi, innevånare i ett fritt och lyckligt land, lämnade våra trosfränder i en tid av svåraste hemsökelse.”
De svenska mosaiska (judiska) församlingarnas uttalande kort efter Novemberpogromerna 1938 var mer rättvisande än någon då kunde föreställa sig. Pontus Rudbergs avhandling handlar just om den i forskningen känsliga och omdebatterade frågan om judiska reaktioner på nazisternas förtryck och massmord på judar. Hur agerade de svenska judarna för att hjälpa judar i Europa under åren 1933–45 och hur ska deras agerande förstås?
Avhandlingen fokuserar särskilt på hjälpverksamheten hos Mosaiska församlingen i Stockholm och visar de hjälpformer som församlingen engagerade sig i samt analyserar agerandet utifrån olika begränsningar och möjligheter som den svenska flyktingpolitiken, finansieringen av verksamheten och församlingens samarbete med internationella hjälporganisationer. Tidigare forskning har tenderat att se svensk-judiska reaktioner på nazisternas terror som passiva eller överdrivet försiktiga. Pontus Rudbergs avhandling korrigerar den bilden genom att visa att de svenska judarna oförtröttligt agerade på en mängd olika sätt för att bistå judar i Europa under hela perioden från 1933 till 1945.
Svenska judar bidrog till mottagande, omskolning och utbildning av flyktingbarn och ungdomar. De gjorde påtryckningar för att få både den svenska och den amerikanska regeringen att öka flyktingmottagandet och intervenerade för att stoppa deportationer, skickade hjälpsändningar till judar i ghetton och koncentrationsläger samt var inblandade i direkta räddningsaktioner.
Avhandlingen visar att den begränsade omfattningen av resultaten av hjälpverksamheten snarare berodde på Sverige och andra staters restriktiva flyktingpolitik, de svensk-judiska organisationernas begränsade ekonomiska resurser samt påtryckningar från utländska organisationer än på svenska judars försiktighet och rädsla.
Avhandlingen The Swedish Jews and the Victims of Nazi Terror, 1933-1945 försvaras den 20 november.
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