attitude of the American Friends Service Committee to refugees from Nazism 1933-50

Analyses the services rendered by US Quakers to victims of Nazism in the USA and Europe before and after World War II. Known and respected in Germany for their beneficent role in that defeated country after World War I, they initially reacted to the Nazis by silence and apathy. This changed after Kristallnacht (10.11.38). In war years, they integrated refugees into US society with special courses and locating employment opportunities. They acted less effectively after the war in Europe, concentrating more on helping German and Austrian civilians than on helping the continent's one million mostly Jewish DPs. The Society of Friends was nevertheless awarded the 1947 Nobel Peace Prize.