In the Midst of Civilized Europe: The Pogroms of 1918–1921 and the Onset of the Holocaust

In the introduction to this work, Veidlinger (history and Judaic studies, Univ. of Michigan; In the Shadow of the Shtetl) refers to the massacre of over one thousand Jewish civilians in Proskuriv, Ukraine, on February 15, 1919. This was only one of many such atrocities throughout Ukraine and Poland during this era. Between 1918 and 1921, more than 100,000 Jews were killed in pogroms, while others lost their homes and businesses, and many more were forced to flee. Throughout this book, Veidlinger provides a detailed account of these pogroms and demonstrates that they laid the groundwork for the Holocaust by fomenting an environment in which violence and blame were acceptable responses. By the time Nazi Germany occupied Eastern Europe, the region already had a history of persecuting and murdering Jews. The author also shows that the Holocaust was not an unexpected event as is sometimes claimed; in the 1920s, several publications wrote and expressed concern about local pogroms and warned that millions of Jews were in danger of international genocide. Veidlinger honors the victims of pogroms and ensures they are not forgotten in this important work.