Routledge Stealth Altruism: Forbidden Care as Jewish Resistance in the Holocaust

Though it has been nearly seventy years since the Holocaust, the human capacity for evil displayed by its perpetrators is still shocking and haunting. But the story of the Nazi attempt to annihilate European Jewry is not all we should remember. Stealth Altruism tells of secret, non-militant, high-risk efforts by “Carers,” those victims who tried to reduce suffering and improve everyone’s chances of survival. Their empowering acts of altruism remind us of our inherent longing to do good even in situations of extraordinary brutality. Arthur B. Shostak explores forbidden acts of kindness, such as sharing scarce clothing and food rations, holding up weakened fellow prisoners during roll call, secretly replacing an ailing friend in an exhausting work detail, and much more. To date, memorialization has emphasized what was done to victims and sidelined what victims tried to do for one another. “Carers” provide an inspiring model and their perilous efforts should be recognized and taught alongside the horrors of the Holocaust. Humanity needs such inspiration. Review “As a survivor of the Holocaust I have witnessed and experienced the tremendous efforts the Nazis made to destroy us, not only physically, but psychologically, by trying to take away our dignity, self-esteem, and humanness. But they failed because there are many instances of inmates who have maintained their principles and their dignity, and have committed acts of selfless generosity towards their fellow prisoners. Professor Shostak deserves much credit for identifying this issue and researching it thoroughly.” ―Magda Herzberger, survivor of Auschwitz-Birkenau, Bremen, and Bergen-Belsen “As past director of the Yad Vashem Department that honors thousands of non-Jews who risked their lives and that of their loved ones to help save the lives of Jewish victims, I welcome the extensive research into forbidden care researched by Professor Arthur Shostak. I am especially appreciative of his drawing on survivor memoirs, as these unique stories offer nuanced sensitive material that too often eludes academic notice. Professor Shostak's concept of stealth altruism adds a valuable conceptual tool to the field, as does his chapter on reform recommendations, many of which could soon help get what he aptly calls the ‘Help Story’ added to our long memorialization which focuses only on the Horror Story. I hope the book gets well-warranted attention, as the ‘Help Story’ – that of non-Jews and Jews alike – offers much in humanistic and moral support to us all.” ―Mordecai Paldiel, Ph.D., author of Saving One’s Own: Jewish Rescuers during the Holocaust “[This] work makes a strong case for giving much needed attention to ‘Carers’. In fact, those people who provided acts of kindness and compassion, even at risk of cruelty and death, are the heroes who allow us to maintain our moral balance and our faith in humankind. [Shostak’s] strong research and writing make this very clear, and provide a needed contribution to Holocaust and general humanities literature." ―Jacqueline Silver, Seattle University “Arthur Shostak has spent more than a decade exploring perhaps the single most neglected aspect―the ‘Help Story’ of present Holocaust scholarship. He has provided a very thorough, and, therefore, more balanced account of Jews helping fellow Jews, via stealth altruism. Whether covert, or overt, these ‘tools of the heart, mind, and soul’ often helped keep a fellow prisoner’s ‘moral self’ intact at tremendous risk to oneself.  Shostak believes it is time the Horror Story, of which there is abundant evidence and display, be balanced with, or maybe against, the Help Story. It is crucial that, as we move from personal narratives to communal memory to institutional memory, we get the larger story right.” ―Bill Younglove, Holocaust educator, speaker, and writer "It's about time. When we make the suffering of the Holocaust the central component of Jewish identity and communal Jewish