Abstract
Facing vast material and human losses, the survivors of the Holocaust found themselves in great need of social and financial assistance after 1945. The Jewish community in Greece was paralyzed and most of its traditional institutions had ceased to exist.
Although limited humanitarian relief was provided right after the Nazi occupation ended, the development of a sturdy framework for assistance was a long-term process. It is worth noting that in Greece, reconstruction was complicated by the outbreak of the Greek Civil War (1946-1949) and continuing political instability, which in 1953 was suppressed by a radical, semi-authoritarian regime that played down the memory of occupation.
The wartime and postwar memories of Holocaust survivors were nevertheless preserved in autobiographies and in numerous audio-visual recordings made in Greece and elsewhere. This book chapter turns its attention to a wide range of challenging questions about postwar developments.
First of all, what were the survival strategies of Holocaust victims and how did they influence their postwar lives and identities? To what extent did the survivors manage to restore their communal, educational and social institutions, and pursue claims for restitution and reparations? What problems and what kinds of discrimination did they confront in everyday life? What strategies and tools did they use to re-establish themselves? Last but not least, did they succeed in overcoming their traumatizing memories and manage to reconcile with non-Jewish society?