The Holocaust
What Happened to The People After the Camps?
Where Did They Go?
The International Refugee Organization (IRO) took over after the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA) in 1947. There was about 1.2 billion people looking for homes at this time.
For the Jewish people, relocating was tough. They could not go back to their old homes because mobs would try to kill them.
The survivors were forced to stay in refugee camps, whose conditions were not what the people needed at that time. They needed clean homes where they could fulfill basic needs that they were denied in the concentration camps.
These Jewish survivors wanted to relocated in Palestine, but the British were against this immigration and only allowed less than 100 thousand to enter Israel (before Israel declared its independence in 1948).
Emotional and Psychological Health Afterwards
Due to the fact that the survivors were not given to the opportunity to mourn or even acknowledge their suffering led them to break down mentally and emotionally.
"Survivor Syndrome", "Concentration Camp Syndrome" and Post-Traumatic Stress Dissorder"
Characteristics of survivors:
Depression
Irrational anxieties
Sleep disturbances
Survivor guilt
Intrusive memories (Holocaust-related associations)
Suicidal thoughts
Paranoia
Isolation from the community
Excessive worries
Lack or trust
Utilization of survival strategies
etc..
This video tells the story of a woman and her experience with the camps and hiding.
Palestine to Israel
They attempted to sail to Palestine to relocate but British caught most of the ships and created detention camps fro those who tried to leave. This failed as the attempt to enter Palestine continued.
After the British began the withdrawal of military forces from Palestine, Zionist leaders moved to establish a modern Jewish state. (This Jewish state is known as Israel)
Many of the Jewish immigrants fought in Israel's War of Independence in 1948 and 1949.
A child survivor arrives at Haifa port on board the Aliyah Bet ("illegal" immigration) ship "Mataroa." The British denied the passengers entry into Palestine and deported them to Cyprus detention camps. July 15, 1945.
— Central Zionist Archives
By: Maddie Gleeson and Vince Eller
Sources:
Trauma." Peterfelix.tripod.com. Accessed March 26, 2015.
"Postwar Refugee Crisis and the Establishment of the State of Israel." United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. June 20, 2014. Accessed March 26, 2015.
"Psychological Trauma and the Holocaust." United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Accessed March 26, 2015.
Rothschild, Blanka. "Life After the Holocaust: Blanka Rothschild." United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. June 20, 2014. Accessed March 26, 2015.
"What Happened to the Jews After the Holocaust." Holocaust-history.org. Accessed March 26, 2015.