Austrian Refugee Movements to Czechoslovakia, 1934–39: From Political Exiles to Jewish Refugees
21 March 2017 - 5 PM
Wolfgang Schellenbacher (University of Vienna / EHRI)
The political exile of Austrian Socialists in Czechoslovakia in 1934 is different from other refugee movements in central Europe at that time, most noticeably because of the sympathetic approach of the Czechoslovak government towards those fleeing. In the later 1930s, however, the refugee policies of Czechoslovakia became distinctly more restrictive. By comparing the escape routes and fates of Austrians fleeing persecution for their political beliefs in 1934 with those of Austrians attempting to get into Czechoslovakia to escape anti-Jewish persecution in 1938, the new, anti-Jewish refugee policy of Prague becomes clear.