IHRA Book Presentation

On 15 March, "Bystanders, Rescuers or Perpetrators? The Neutral Countries and the Shoah" was presented at the Topography of Terror in Berlin.

IHRA Executive Secretary, Dr Kathrin Meyer, opened the event and the book's editorial team presented and discussed the volume: Corry Guttstadt, (expert on Turkey, historian, translator), Bernd Rother (assistant director of the Willy Brandt Stiftung), Yessica San Román, (director of the "Holocaust and antisemitism“ department of the Centro Sefarad-Israel in Madrid), Thomas Lutz (Topographie des Terrors.)

The volume offers a trans-national, comparative perspective on the varied reactions of the neutral countries to the Nazi persecution and murder of the European Jews. It examines the often ambivalent policies of these states towards Jewish refugees as well as towards their own Jewish nationals living in German-occupied countries. By breaking down persistent myths, this volume contributes to a more nuanced understanding of an under-researched chapter of Holocaust history and also considers the challenges and opportunities related to Holocaust education and remembrance in the neutral countries.

The full publication is free and is available online here.

Image gallery: IHRA Book Presentation at Topography of Terror

Click on one of the images to view the gallery (5 images).

The volume is based on the conference papers of the international conference of the same name which was held in November 2014. The conference was originally funded through IHRA's Grant Programme and received the ‘Yehuda-Bauer Grant’ because of its particular emphasis on the multilateral aspect.

The volume is published by Metropol Verlag.

The first IHRA publication was entitled "Killing Sites- Research and Remembrance' and is available to download here.

Image: Dr Corry Guttstadt