T. P. Kaplan and W. Gruner, "Resisting Persecution: Jews and Their Petitions during the Holocaust" (Berghahn, 2020)
In 20 years of studying the Holocaust, it didn\u2019t occurr to me that German officials might, when petitioned by German Jews or by Germans advocating for German Jews, change their minds.\xa0But it turns out that, sometimes, they did. And even when they didn\u2019t, petitioning local, regional or national officials (often all at the same time) could delay deportations or punishments or even function as a form of resistance.\nResisting Persecution:\xa0Jews and Their Petitions during the Holocaust (Berghahn Books) looks at these petitions from a variety of perspectives.\xa0As editors Thomas Kaplan and Wolf Gruner argue, this is a topic that is surprisingly undercovered.\xa0And it\u2019s a topic rich in insight and importance.\xa0The book shows clearly that petitioning was a common practice. It shows clearly that petitions were sometimes granted.\xa0It shows clearly that petitions sometimes led to unexpected and unusual outcomes. And it shows us that studying petitions sometimes opens our eyes to new ways of understanding old topics.\nThe book isn\u2019t the last word on petitions, nor does it pretend\xa0to be. Rather, Kaplan and Gruner open up a new avenue of investigation, one that offers researchers topics to work on for many years to come.\nThomas Pegelow Kaplan is the Leon Levine Distinguished Professor and Director of the Center for Judaic, Holocaust, and Peace Studies at Appalachian State University.\nWolf Gruner is the Shapell-Guerin Chair in Jewish Studies, Professor of History and Founding Director of the USC Shoah Foundation Center for Advanced Genocide Research at the University of Southern California.\nKelly McFall is Professor of History and Director of the Honors Program at Newman University. He\u2019s the author of four modules in the Reacting to the Past series, including\u202fThe Needs of Others: Human Rights, International Organizations and Intervention in Rwanda, 1994, published by W. W. Norton Press.\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices\nSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/genocide-studies