L’association des juifs en Belgique (AJB) : Des « notables postiers de la solution finale »

Résumé 0

The AJB was an union of Jews in Belgium, of which membership was mandatory. It was created by a German edict dated November, 1941. The complete opening of the AJB archives is quite recent, and has led to new research. This research challenges the paradigm which creates an opposition between schedule Jewish elites who “collaborated” amongst themselves and a Resistance movement which would have dominated AJB history after September 1942. Leaders of these groups were obliged to manage whole sections of the daily life of the communities affected, building a network of schools, and providing the basic necessities of thousands of people in need. This included prisoners held in internment camps in Belgium and Northern France, as well as those deported from the Malines camp, a check point on the way to Auschwitz.