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What services are provided by the American Red Cross Holocaust and War Victims Tracing Center? |
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The Holocaust and War Victims Tracing Center, in Baltimore, Md., is the national clearinghouse for persons seeking:
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The fates of loved ones missing since the Holocaust.
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Documentation of: forced labor, forced evacuation from former Soviet territories, internment in concentration camps, or deportation required for reparations.
The Holocaust and War Victims Tracing Center assists American residents and conducts searches on behalf of individuals living outside the United States for relatives believed to have emigrated to the United States. |
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Is there a charge for American Red Cross tracing and information services? |
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No. American Red Cross Holocaust tracing and information services are free and confidential. |
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Do other organizations provide Holocaust tracing services? |
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Yes. However, while there are other organizations devoted to Holocaust research, documentation, and remembrance, the Red Cross is unique in its mission to use archives located throughout the world to trace missing loved ones. In fact, many well-known organizations such as the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Simon Wiesenthal Center refer people to the Red Cross regularly. Approximately 20 percent of our new cases are the result of referrals from other Holocaust organizations, museums and resource centers. |
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Why is the Red Cross involved in tracing? |
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When countries become signatories to the Geneva Conventions, their governments agree to apply certain protections to non-combatants (POWs, civilians, etc.) during armed conflict. They also agree to help people locate family members separated by armed conflict or natural disaster. Each country is required to establish a single Red Cross society that works with national societies worldwide to trace missing relatives, among other responsibilities. Clara Barton, founder of the American Red Cross, started tracing during the American Civil War when she carried messages between wounded soldiers and their families. |
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When did the American Red Cross begin tracing Holocaust victims? |
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The American Red Cross has been tracing victims of WWII and the Nazi regime since 1939. The impetus for the creation of the Holocaust and War Victims Tracing Center occurred in 1989 when the Soviet Union released a cache of documents to the International Committee of the Red Cross. The documents provided the single largest source of information made available since the end of WWII and included Auschwitz death books and hundreds of thousands of the names of concentration camp victims. Because of the subsequent discovery of additional Holocaust records, the potential to assist survivors and their families continues to grow dramatically. |
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How long will the services of the Holocaust and War Victims Tracing Center be needed? |
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According to the American Gathering of Holocaust Survivors, in the United States alone, there are currently 280,000 Holocaust survivors and family members. With such a large number of potential inquiries, it is difficult to predict when the last Holocaust-era tracing case will reach the Holocaust and War Victims Tracing Center. Based on current interest in our tracing and information services, the number of people who have yet to learn about our program and the continuous discovery of additional documentary information, we believe our work could go on for many years. |
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Does the Holocaust and War Victims Tracing Center serve only Jews? |
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No. The Holocaust and War Victims Tracing Center serves anyone who wishes to obtain documentation or learn the fates of loved ones missing since the Holocaust or WWII. The criteria for accepting a case is that the separation occurred in Europe between 1933 and 1957 as a result of Nazi actions.
It is well known that the Nazis and their collaborators imprisoned or killed more than 11 million people including 6 million Jews who were especially targeted for extermination. Polish Catholics, clergy, gypsies, Jehovah's Witnesses, Ukrainians, Russian soldiers, homosexuals, and the disabled were also targets for forced labor, medical experiments, and murder. |
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If I live outside the United States, where can I go for tracing/documentation services? |
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If you live outside the United States, you should contact the Red Cross or Red Crescent Society in your own country (Magen David Adom in Israel). You can view a list of national societies international Website on the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies Website at www.ifrc.org. Criteria for accepting cases varies from country to country, and your society will be able to direct you to appropriate resources within your country. |
