The Silent Heroes Memorial Center commemorates Jewish men and women who resisted National Socialist persecution, and those who helped them to do so. The example set by these helpers—often referred to as “silent heroes”—shows that it was in fact possible to support people at risk in National Socialist Germany and German-occupied Europe.
The permanent exhibition presents information about the persecution and plight of Jews facing imminent deportation and about how some of them decided to resist the threat to their lives by going underground. It covers the conditions of their lives in hiding and the actions and motivations of the men and women who helped them.
The focus is on seven examples of rescue attempts in various European countries. The exhibition showcases non-Jewish and Jewish helpers and rescue networks, successful and failed rescue attempts. It also looks at persecuted Jews, who had to make an active decision to resist the National Socialist policies of persecution and murder.