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The Forgotten Resistance

Stephan Lehnstaedt

Jews In The Fight Against The Holocaust

The Nazis could conceive Jewish people only as passive victims. But many Jews fiercely resisted this image. However not many people are aware of the fact that 3000 Jews were active in the resistance in Germany alone. Stephan Lehnstaedt gives us a long overdue insight into this little-known aspect of history. He reminds us of an unprecedented fight against dehumanisation – a fight for dignity, culture and the right to live.

‘Hitler wants to kill all the Jews in Europe.... Let us not go like lambs to the slaughter!’ declared the student Abba Kovner in 1941. His resolute stance was shared by thousands of Jews in occupied Europe. They all rebelled against Nazi oppression, harassment and plans for their annihilation – even though their brave actions went unnoticed by the public and researchers for a long time. Now, for the first time, Stephan Lehnstaedt gives us an overview of the different forms of Jewish resistance in the Nazi state and its territories. He tells the story of people who stood up for themselves and others even in the face of death by archiving knowledge or helping people to flee, or through acts of sabotage, uprisings, or armed resistance. This is a long-overdue reminder of a forgotten war which was not only, but primarily, about sheer survival.

  • A long-overdue acknowledgement of a long-forgotten struggle

  • New insights from resistance research

  • The first comprehensive work about Jewish resistance

  • Moving stories of courage and extreme determination