Voyage of the St. Louis
In late spring 1939, the desperate plight of German Jews seeking refuge from Nazi Germany attracted international attention. On May 13, some 937 passengers, almost all of them Jews, boarded the German passenger liner MS St. Louis in Hamburg for what became an ill-fated voyage to Cuba.
On reaching Havana, Cuban authorities permitted only 28 passengers to disembark. Unknown to those aboard, Cuba’s president had invalidated the other refugees’ landing certificates. Despite the efforts of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, a relief organization, to negotiate a resolution, on June 2 the ship was forced to leave Cuban waters. Sailing close to the Florida shore in the hope of landing, the passengers desperately but unsuccessfully cabled U.S., Cuban, and other international officials requesting safe haven.
Forced back to Europe, the refugees were granted temporary refuge in France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Great Britain. When Germany invaded Western Europe in May 1940, the majority of the former passengers once again fell under Nazi rule. Of these, more than 250 died during the Holocaust.
Location: Opening Floor
Learn more about the themes covered on this floor of the exhibition