Hines Primary Sources: Bystanders to the Holocaust
Databases
To locate primary sources, choose a time period, select a primary source document from the choices on the left navigation panel.
Infobase: Modern World History
All primary sources can be filtered by time period.
News reporting from World War II is a primary source. Remember to narrow your search to include the dates you are interested in.
Credible Websites with Primary Sources that feature Bystander Accounts
Bystanders from the United States Holocaust Museum
This resource provides a good description for identifying a bystander which, as noted here, is not always easy to do.
In the Some Were Neighbors Exhibition, the Museum includes bystander testimony.
Other primary accounts are more complicated.
Is this a bystander? Do you believe the letter writer would describe himself as a perpetrator, a victim, or a bystander?
Could doing your job make you a bystander? What does this primary source suggest about the bystanders who might have worked in law enforcement?
Why would someone chose not to act? Does the explanation provided indicate that the professor interviewed was a bystander?
Is this a bystander? Do you believe the man being interviewed would describe himself as a perpetrator, a victim, or a bystander?
Is this a bystander? Why did the speaker make the choice he did?
Additional Digital Archives that can assist you in searching for primary sources that connect to bystanders
Yad Vashem includes a variety of primary source databases
Voices of the Holocaust from the British Museum
JDC Archives can be searched by object, recording, or text. Click on more information about the collection to browse samples.
Newspapers Unfolded - How much did the average American know about the Holocaust?
Calvin College: German Propaganda Archive A broad collection of Nazi propaganda material with english translations.
German History in Documents and Images (GHDI) Primary documents, images, and maps are presented with a brief explanation to provide context. English translations are provided.
Alpha History: Nazi German Documents This collection, created by educators in Australia, offers translations of excerpts of Nazi speeches, documents, and propaganda.