The Kennesaw State University Department of Museums, Archives and Rare Books (MARB) presents exhibitions, public programs, collections, and educational services supporting KSU’s mission and encouraging dialogue about the past and its significance today. The Museum of History and Holocaust Education, as a unit of MARB, has developed a series of online modules, including this one, for university students to explore pivotal moments from the history of World War II and the Holocaust.
This online unit focuses on displaced persons (DPs) after World War II and how they rebuilt their lives. Displaced persons both repatriated and resettled in various places around the world, and in the process, Jewish DPs pushed forward the idea and eventual creation of a Jewish state. Highlighting a diverse selection of sources, this unit tells the story of Europe's largest displaced persons crisis.
Image: DPs on a train leaving Berlin, 1945. Courtesy Time Magazine
Essential Questions
Using the primary source material and content in this online unit, respond to the three essential questions found below. In your responses, include evidence from the content in this online unit. Please refer to the directions provided by your instructor on submitting your responses to these essential questions as well as to the questions posed throughout this unit.
- In what ways did Displaced Persons Camps (DP Camps) become cultural centers and rebuild community life?
- How did DP Camps and their purpose change overtime?
- How did DP Camps facilitate the creation of the State of Israel?
Image: German woman leaving Auchen, 1945. Courtesy Time Magazine
Table of Contents
- Repatriation After World War II
- UNRRA and the Allied Forces
- Daily Life in DP Camps
- President Truman and the Harrison Report
- Rebuilding Community in DP Camps
- Repatriation of Displaced Persons
- Displaced Persons Act and Resettlement
- Zionism, Brihah, and Sh'erit ha-Pletah
- Final Destinations of Displaced Persons
- Research Assignment
Repatriation After World War II
At the end of World War II, much work was needed to rebuild life, countries, and infrastructure. Along with this, the Allied forces had to assist 7-11 million displaced persons in repatriation (returning to their home countries) and resettlement.
There were a complex set of factors that led to the displacement of individuals during World War II. While many were forcibly removed because of discriminatory laws that required "resettlement" to ghettos, concentration camps, and killing centers, others were displaced due to the destruction of war. Often, when people were forcibly resettled by the government, their homes were given to high-ranking officials, or taken over by neighbors.
Following the end of the war, displaced persons lived in camps while determining where to rebuild their lives. DP Camps were often former concentration camps, work houses, and army bases set up by Allied forces. In 1943, before the war was over, countries across the world began preparing for repatriating DPs, but they didn't account for the displaced persons who would later refuse repatriation and instead demand resettlement.
Image: American Liberation of Dachau concentration camp, 1945. Courtesy The Atlantic
UNRRA and the Allied Forces
In 1943, fourty-four nations came together to establish the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA). It became part of the newly founded United Nations organization in 1945. UNRRA's goals were to provide clothing, shelter, medical supplies, and to act as an agency to help connect DPs with family and friends with the Central Tracing Bureau.
Click the button below to read the agreement for UNRRA:
As you read, consider the following questions:
- What were the main goals of UNRRA?
- How were the goals to be implemented?
- What countries were involved?
Image: Roosevelt signs the UNRRA Agreement, 1943. Courtesy FDR Library
Watch the film below, "World War II UNRRA Film" and consider the following questions:
- Does this film lean more towards propaganda or an informational video?
- What portrayal does this film give to the United States and the UNRRA?
Thank you for previewing our online unit, "Displaced Persons Camps: Rebuilding Life After War." If you would like to request the full version of this module or to view a complete list of our online offerings, please follow the link below:
Image: Courtesy the Museum of History and Holocaust Education
This digital lesson was curated and designed by Sophia Dodd from the University of Georgia in collaboration with staff from the Museum of History and Holocaust Education at Kennesaw State University.