Youth Aliyah

The first German Youth-Aliyah group walking to Kibbutz Ein Harod

Youth Aliyah (Hebrew: עלית הנוער) (Aliyat Hano'ar) is a Jewish organization that rescued 22,000 Jewish children from the Nazis during the Third Reich. Youth Aliyah arranged for their resettlement in Palestine in kibbutzim and youth villages that became both home and school.

History

Recha Freier, a rabbi's wife, founded the organization in 1933. The idea was supported by the World Zionist Organization. Recha Freier supervised the organization's activities in Germany, and Henrietta Szold in Jerusalem.

Henrietta Szold was originally skeptical of Freier's proposal that German youngsters be sent to pioneer training programs in Palestine after completing elementary school. She believed that Germany offered better educational opportunities for Jewish children. However, Hitler's rise to power and the enactment of the Nuremberg Laws convinced her otherwise. On March 31, 1936, even German elementary schools were closed to Jewish children.^[1]

After a brief period of training in Germany, Youth Aliyah youngsters were placed on kibbutzim for two years to learn farming and Hebrew. Kibbutz Ein Harod in the Jezreel Valley was one of the first cooperative settlements to host such groups.^[1]

Just before the outbreak of World War II, when immigration certificates to Palestine became difficult to obtain, Youth Aliyah activists in London came up with an interim solution whereby groups of young people would receive pioneer training in countries outside the Third Reich until they could immigrate to Palestine. Great Britain agreed to take in 10,000 endangered children, some from Youth Aliyah groups.^[2]

After the Holocaust and World War II, emissaries were sent to Europe to locate children survivors in Displaced persons camps. Children's homes in eastern Europe were moved to Western Europe, fearing that evacuation from Communist countries might be difficult later on. A Youth Aliyah office was opened in Paris.^[3]

Later, Youth Aliyah became a department of the Jewish Agency. ^[4] Over the years, the organization has brought young people to Israel from North Africa, Central and Eastern Europe, Latin America, the Soviet Union and Ethiopia. ^[4]

Awards

• In 1958, Youth Aliyah was awarded the Israel Prize for its contribution to education. ^[5]

Directors

Directors of Youth Aliyah after the establishment of the State of Israel include Meir Gottesman (1978-1984), Uri Gordon and Eli Amir.

See also

• Aliyah
• Kindertransport
• List of Israel Prize recipients

References