Introduction

Summary

“It all depended on whom you met after your arrival.” These words, written by Hertha Leab, a German-Jewish woman who had fled Nazi Germany for the United States in 1938, show the importance of outside help given refugees, whether by private individuals, fellow immigrants, relatives, or refugee aid organizations. Hertha Leab, a cosmetician from Berlin, did not find such help: With unfriendly, even hostile relatives and no assistance from any organization, she and her family struggled for a long time with illnesses, isolation, and desperation. With great tenacity, Leab finally succeeded in selling one of her products to other women refugees. With time, her cosmetics became well known among a wider range of customers. Despite all the hardships, including several nervous breakdowns, she made it possible for her family to survive.

The case of Hertha Leab, thoroughly documented in the archives of the Leo Baeck Institute in New York, is a good example of the problems of refugee women of the Nazi period. Traditionally, the history of European refugees of the 1930s and 1940s has been associated with the image of the famous or “illustrious immigrant,” usually a man. Most studies in this field emphasize the lives and experiences of men and do not focus on the lives of refugee women.