State Department Memorandum of Conversation Regarding the SS St. Louis
6/8/1939
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On May 13, 1939—three months before World War II—the SS St. Louis, a ship carrying 937 German Jews fleeing Nazi persecution, sailed from Hamburg for Cuba. Other ships had made the same journey, and their refugee passengers had disembarked in Havana. But the Cuban government, responding to corruption and anti-Semitic political pressure, ordered the enforcement of new visa requirements when the St. Louis arrived.
Twenty-two passengers who met the new requirements were allowed to land. The remaining passengers were forced to remain on board the ship. Negotiations with the Cuban government led by the American Joint Distribution Committee—a private Jewish organization—broke down, despite pressure from the U.S. government, as can be seen in this Memorandum of Conversation written by the U.S. Ambassador to Cuba, J. Butler Wright.
Tremendous public attention focused on the St. Louis. The ship’s passengers even cabled the White House, but the matter was referred to the State Department. America’s immigration laws did not permit their entry into the United States since they did not have U.S. visas. American diplomats were able to help resettle the refugees in Great Britain, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Denmark. But many later fell into Nazi hands during the war.
Twenty-two passengers who met the new requirements were allowed to land. The remaining passengers were forced to remain on board the ship. Negotiations with the Cuban government led by the American Joint Distribution Committee—a private Jewish organization—broke down, despite pressure from the U.S. government, as can be seen in this Memorandum of Conversation written by the U.S. Ambassador to Cuba, J. Butler Wright.
Tremendous public attention focused on the St. Louis. The ship’s passengers even cabled the White House, but the matter was referred to the State Department. America’s immigration laws did not permit their entry into the United States since they did not have U.S. visas. American diplomats were able to help resettle the refugees in Great Britain, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Denmark. But many later fell into Nazi hands during the war.
This primary source comes from the Collection FDR-Welles: Sumner Welles Papers.
Full Citation: State Department Memorandum of Conversation Regarding the SS St. Louis; 6/8/1939; File: Wright, J. Butler, April-June 1939; Office Correspondence, 1920–1943; Collection FDR-Welles: Sumner Welles Papers; Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, Hyde Park, NY. [Online Version, https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/state-department-memorandum-ss-st-louis, April 18, 2024]Rights: Public Domain, Free of Known Copyright Restrictions. Learn more on our privacy and legal page.