During the Holocaust, a small number of people risked their lives to save their Jewish friends, neighbors, and in many cases, complete strangers. While most people stood by silently while Jews were persecuted, rounded up and deported to camps and mass execution sites, a precious few stood up to the Germans and their collaborators to help Jews. Despite the challenges of the war and the extreme risk involved, these brave women and men protected Jews and saved lives.

Giving aid to a Jew in any country occupied by Germany or under German influence was illegal. Anyone who undertook rescue broke the law. Therefore, rescuers had to make a conscience choice to disobey the established rules of the state and made a moral decision to save human life. This decision was not easy. In many places, such as Poland and other Eastern European countries, rescuers who were caught were immediately killed, along with the person they were desperately trying to save.

Rescue often began with what seemed like a simple act: a Jewish person asked a friend to stay for a night to hide from an impending round up. This overnight stay could turn into months or years. Life in hiding was extremely difficult for both the rescuer and the rescued: the rescuer had to feed and clothe the Jewish person they were hiding and had to make sure no one knew about the person's existence. Rescue might involve finding the Jewish fugitive false identification papers, so they could "pass" as a non-Jew and circulate out in the open. In some cases, rescue was carried out because the rescuer was in a position of influence (such as a diplomat or an army officer) and had the power to help rather than harm. In all cases, rescue was difficult and dangerous and involved secrecy and courage.

Rescuers came from all walks of life. Rescuers were married and single adults with and without families, as well as young people, teenagers, and children. Rescuers were rich and poor and had many different professions they were businessmen or businesswomen, diplomats, politicians, priests and nuns, farmers, doctors, teachers, and students. Both men and women rescued. Many rescuers were devout Christians or Muslims, others were agnostics or secular. Some rescuers were members of the resistance, already part of underground efforts to fight the Nazis and their collaborators. Some rescuers were also part of underground organizations specifically created to save Jews.

Jews themselves became rescuers, trying to save their families and friends by seeking out hiding places and false identification papers to pass as non-Jews. Some Jews became involved in rescue organizations, despite the particular danger they were in as Jews. Many Jews tried to escape persecution and deportation during the Nazi period. They sought help from friends, neighbors, and strangers.

Rescuers were ordinary men and women who were not predestined by their backgrounds, religious views, or stations in life to become rescuers. They were amateurs at rescue, and they improvised their brave actions as they went along.

Rescue was carried out in every country the Germans occupied and where Jews were persecuted. Rescue was performed in the mountains, in the cities, and in the rural countryside. To see rescue where rescue was performed across Europe, click on the map to the left.

Rescue was dangerous and involved great courage. Rescuers sometimes acted alone, sheltering a Jewish person in their home for days, weeks, months, and even years. The rescuer had to keep their actions secret from neighbors, who might denounce them to the authorities, or from their own family members who were unsympathetic to the plight of the Jews. Rescuers were often approached by Jews seeking help, and this assistance could result from a chance meeting between strangers. The most common form of rescue was providing shelter or a hiding place.

Rescuers sometimes acted as part of organized underground groups. These secret networks worked to smuggle Jews out of camps and ghettos, to procure false identification documents, and to find hiding places.

Some rescuers were in positions of influence or power. They used their positions to save Jews, despite receiving orders from their superiors not to do so. Diplomats, for example, who represented their home countries in areas under German domination, provided visas to Jews so that they might escape persecution and deportation even though they were expressly forbidden to do this.

Rescuers drew on many different character traits that helped them in their rescue work. For instance, cooperation was a crucial aspect of rescue. Teamwork was very important in ensuring the success of rescue operations for example, to maintain secrecy everyone involved had to work together. You can find out more about the different character traits rescuers brought to bear in their actions by clicking here, where you will learn about our Poster Set on Rescue: Traits that Transcend.

This is probably one of the most difficult questions to answer about rescue and rescuers. Rescuers carried out their actions for many different reasons. For most rescuers, helping to save a Jew during the Holocaust was the only right thing to do. For them, the "norm" of the day legalized persecution, hatred, and widespread indifference was not normal at all and they took a stand against it.

Some rescuers performed their actions because they were deeply religious, and saving another human life was an expression of their faith. For other rescuers, their assistance to Jews was based in their profound humanitarian beliefs. Some rescuers saw their actions as a commitment to resistance against the Nazis.

Most rescuers do not believe they did anything extraordinary at this time, and that they did what every person should have done during the Holocaust. However, we know that they were the minority who did perform extraordinary acts, and their actions can serve as a model to us.