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The U.S. and the Holocaust

The U.S. and the Holocaust: Series tells the story of how the American people grappled with one of the greatest humanitarian crises of the twentieth century, and how this struggle tested the ideals of their democracy.

Parts Season 1

  • 1. The Golden Door - Part One

    After decades of open borders in the United States, a xenophobic backlash prompts the passage of laws restricting immigration. In Germany, Hitler takes power.

  • 2. The Golden Door - Part Two

    Antisemitism in Germany continues to rise, causing Jews to flee to neighboring countries and the U.S. As FDR and others struggle to respond, the public is horrified by the events of Kristallnacht.

  • 3. Yearning to Breathe Free - Part One

    Jews in Europe are desperate to escape Hitler’s expanding reach. As World War II begins, Americans are united in their disapproval of the Nazis, but divided on whether or how to act.

  • 4. Yearning to Breathe Free - Part Two

    Charles Lindbergh and FDR wage a fierce battle over American intervention in the war in Europe. As Germany invades the Soviet Union, the mass murder of European Jews begins in secret.

  • 5. The Homeless, Tempest-Tossed - Part One

    The first reports of the Holocaust reach the United States. A group of dedicated government officials form the War Refugee Board to finance and support rescue operations.

  • 6. The Homeless, Tempest-Tossed - Part Two

    As the Allies advance, soldiers uncover mass graves and liberate German concentration camps, revealing the sheer scale of the Holocaust. The danger of its reverberations becomes apparent.

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