The escape of the Danish Jews during the Holocaust was a remarkable achievement that still interests and inspires many people today. Join Professor Dean Krouk for an examination of some of the unique circumstances that characterized the Nazi occupation of Denmark, which has been considered a more “relaxed” occupation relative to other Nazi-occupied countries.
What made this occupation more “relaxed,” and what did that mean in practice during the war years? When and why did the occupation intensify? How have later Scandinavian historians discussed and debated the occupation of Denmark?
This talk will provide an important context for the undeniable heroism of ordinary people in this famous instance of rescue/escape.
DATE: Thursday, March 27, 2025
TIME: 7:00 – 8:15 p.m.
LOCATION: Jewish Museum Milwaukee
COST: Members $5 | Nonmembers $8
Dean Krouk is a professor in the department of German, Nordic, and Slavic at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he teaches courses in modern Scandinavian history and literature, including a course about the Second World War in the Nordic countries. He is the author of the books Fascism and Modernist Literature in Norway and The Making of an Antifascist: Nordahl Grieg between the World Wars. In addition, he has translated and written an introduction to an award-winning book by the Norwegian historian Bjørn Westlie, My Father’s War: Confronting Norway’s Nazi Past.
A historic photo of the headquarters of the Schalburg Corps in Copenhagen, Denmark. Picture is post-1943, World War II. The building is the occupied lodge of the Danish Order of Freemasons.