Evian Conference

The Evian Conference took place in July 1938, in Evian, France, and was a meeting of delegates from 32 countries to discuss the refugee crisis as over 150,000 Jews had already fled Nazi Germany. While numerous delegates spoke of their sympathy for the refugees and condemned Germany’s actions, few countries offered asylum or planned to admit Jewish immigrants. In America, for instance, the population was averse to welcoming large numbers of Jewish refugees during the Great Depression for fear of job competition, draining social welfare, and due to antisemitic and racial prejudices. Germany seized the failure of the Conference as a chance to mock other nations for condemning their policies while doing nothing to help the Jewish refugees.