Opinion | The true correlation between the Holocaust and immigration enforcement today

Opinion editor’s note: Strib Voices publishes a mix of guest commentaries online and in print each day. To contribute, click here.

•••

Lately, there has been talk of correlations between the Holocaust and what was been happening in the Twin Cities. So where does it fit?

Essentially, it fits in one place. Illegal immigration. Jewish refugees were fleeing Europe for the Middle East and North America starting in 1880 when the persecution and discrimination began to increase dramatically — to the point of pogroms, where Jews were being killed simply for being Jewish. And for the next 60 years, that persecution and discrimination kept increasing and increasing until “the final solution” happened.

And now ask yourself this. Did every Jew who tried to escape do so legally? The answer is no. Many Jews tried to flee Europe illegally, with most going to the Middle East.

So, what happened to those who did make it to the Middle East? When the British controlled the region, they would try to block the Jewish people from entering and send them to a detainment camp. In 1940, the Brits tried to send 1,800 people without legal visas to the island nation of Mauritius. A Jewish militia detonated a bomb that was intended to keep the ship from leaving port but instead sank it. Thus, the illegals were eventually allowed to enter the region.

And during World War II, the situation became much worse. Yes, we know the stories of those who were able to cross into neutral countries like Sweden, Spain and Switzerland, or via the Kindertransport, which brought children to Great Britain. Others had money, clout, connections and even work visas to enter North America. And then there were those who needed to just escape. In fact, there were those who were detained on their way out of Europe and sent back, in some cases to their deaths. Others drowned at sea. And in two cases, the ships carrying refugees were torpedoed by the Soviets, killing almost everyone on board.

As for the local Arab population, numerous Arab and anti-Zionist leaders did not care what was happening in Europe, since they believed that the entirety of the land belonged to them according to their religion. And, yes, some anti-Zionist Palestinian Arabs did support Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany simply to kick the Brits and the Jews out in hopes to create a single Arab state.

Now, ask yourself this: Was what these Jewish refugees did right or wrong? Because if you believe in the type of law and order that we are seeing in the Twin Cities, then the answer is that they were wrong and should have been rounded up and forced back to Europe, even to face certain death in the Holocaust. This would include those who insist that the land belonged solely to the Arab population and that the Jews were trespassers. However, what the Jewish people did was purely out of survival. They had no other choice.

That is how many of us view many of the people who come to the U.S. illegally today. Does that mean every undocumented immigrant should stay here? Of course, not. However, deciding that should be on a case-by-case basis by a judge and not through thuggery. And, yes, even some legal refugees can be deported if they are considered a threat. For example, a college student who was evacuated from Gaza was forced out of France after she started posting antisemitic remarks online, including pictures of Adolf Hitler with the tagline “Kill All Jews.” She was sent to Qatar.

And, yes, refusing to allow noncombatants out of a war zone like in Gaza should be considered a crime against humanity.

So, yes, please think of what the Jews had to go through and that those who got out of Europe — even illegally — survived instead of being slaughtered.