More than 80 years after Jewish refugees fled to Shanghai during World War II, an exhibition in New York City shines a light on their experiences, which, experts and advocates say, carries profound lessons today.
The exhibition “Shanghai, Homeland Once Upon a Time — Jewish Refugees and Shanghai” opened to the public Tuesday in downtown Manhattan. The display commemorates the period from 1938 to 1941 when more than 20,000 Jews traveled thousands of miles from Europe to escape Nazi persecution and establish a life in China.
The refugees were able to find safety in Shanghai during a time when other countries refused to aid them. Experts and advocates say that their story is a chilling reflection of the necessity for others to accept and humanize those escaping persecution and oppression.
“Hatred still exists of all kinds,” Elizabeth S. Grebenschikoff — whose mother, Betty, lived as a refugee in Shanghai for over a decade and is featured in the exhibit — told NBC News. “My mom would say … ‘If you are not an upstander, if you are not standing up for justice and fairness, then you are doomed to be a bystander.’”
The exhibit, hosted by the Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum and scheduled to run until Aug. 14 at Fosun Plaza at 28 Liberty St., includes more than 200 photographs and 30 pieces of memorabilia, in addition to videos and personal stories from Jewish refugees and their descendants. It’s hosted by the Shanghai People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, and the Shanghai Fosun Foundation and is in part supported by the Consulate General of the United States of America in Shanghai and the Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in New York.
Kevin Ostoyich, professor of history at Valparaiso University in Indiana, who’s interviewed many Jewish refugees, explained that Shanghai ended up being a “last resort” of sorts for Jewish refugees in the late 1930s as the city did not require an entry visa due…
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