Recha Freier
Encyclopedia
Youth Aliyah
Szold was initially skeptical about the merits of Freier's proposal, as she believed that Germany offered better educational opportunities for Jewish children than Palestine. However, Hitler's rise to power convinced her otherwise. The Nuremberg Laws were enacted in 1935 and on 31 March 1936 German...
organization in 1933. The organization saved the lives of 22,000 Jewish children by helping them to leave Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
for Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
before the establishment of the State of Israel.
Youth Aliyah activities
In 1933, when the Nazis began firing Jews from their jobs because of their Jewish origins, Freier conceived the idea of Youth Aliyah. "The utter senselessness of Jewish life in the Diaspora stood palpably before my eyes," she wrote. She devoted the rest of her life to the rescue of Jewish children and arranging for their transport to PalestinePalestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
. At that point in time Henrietta Szold had refused to take part being as she had no idea of the building danger to the Jews in Germany, and thought it a pity to interfere with their education. However, Hitler's rise to power and the enactment of the Nuremberg Laws
Nuremberg Laws
The Nuremberg Laws of 1935 were antisemitic laws in Nazi Germany introduced at the annual Nuremberg Rally of the Nazi Party. After the takeover of power in 1933 by Hitler, Nazism became an official ideology incorporating scientific racism and antisemitism...
in 1935 persuaded Szold that there was indeed a pressing need for the program.
The man who was Freier's pioneer emissary and agent in rescuing thousands of Jewish youngsters was Solomon Dzubas. Dzubas was married to Rivkah Suesskind, the daughter of Rabbi Freier's assistant, Rabbi Mordechai Suesskind. Dzubas was arrested by the Gestapo in 1938 and sent to Auschwitz where he died. His wife who was also arrested by the Gestapo, died in the Terezin concentration camp. Her parents, the Suesskinds, were shot to death during the arrest. Their two daughters Dvorah and Judith were on the last train he sent off. After Dzubas's capture Recha had to take over the campaign single handed.
Youth Aliyah used controversial and gray zone methods, even illegal methods, to get as many as possible children out alive. Though Youth Aliyah succeeded in saving more than 7,600 children from Nazi Germany, Freier suffered great sorrow all her life for not having saved more.
In 1940 Freier was betrayed by some colleagues. Having been forewarned, she managed to flee Germany alive, taking with her another 40 teenagers. Before immigrating to Palestine, she helped smuggle an additional 90 Jewish children out of Yugoslavia.
In 1957, Freier founded the Israel Composers Fund and sponsored the Israel Testimonium, a music event that took place in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
. She wrote poetry and prose, and some of her poems were set to music by German Jewish composers.
Recha Freier died in 1984 in Jerusalem.
Awards
In 1981, Freier was awarded the Israel PrizeIsrael Prize
The Israel Prize is an award handed out by the State of Israel and is largely regarded as the state's highest honor. It is presented annually, on Israeli Independence Day, in a state ceremony in Jerusalem, in the presence of the President, the Prime Minister, the Knesset chairperson, and the...
for her special contribution to society and the State of Israel.
Commemoration
Kikar Recha Freier, a square in the Jerusalem's Katamon neighborhood, is named after her.External links
- Biography on Berlin-Judentum website - http://www.berlin-judentum.de/englisch/freier.htm
See also
- Youth villageYouth villageA youth village is a boarding school model first developed in Mandate Palestine in the 1930s to care for groups of children and teenagers fleeing the Nazis...
- List of Israel Prize recipients