Negotiating Jewish Belonging in Postwar Slovakia (1945–48)

Abstract

After the Second World War, the Czechoslovak state redrew the boundaries around its national/ethnic community, defining anew who belonged and who did not. This process primarily involved the redefinition of the criteria for citizenship. Jewish survivors were among those who negotiated for the recognition of their citizenship. Since the Czechoslovak government did not grant Jews legal status as a national minority, Jewish survivors could be freely classified as Slovaks, Czechs, Germans, or Magyars. The latter two translated into refusal of citizenship and expulsion. This article discusses how Magyar-speaking Jews in Slovakia struggled to secure Czechoslovak citizenship through dialogue and conflict between their representatives, local administrations, and the central government.

What did it mean to be Loyal? Jewish Survivors in Post‐War Czechoslovakia in a Comparative Perspective

“…She concludes: "As a traitorous stance had the power to kill, loyal conduct had the power to redeem". 62 In my opinion she ascribes too much power to the abilities of marginal Czech and Slovak Jewish organizations and individuals to influence Czech and Slovak authorities at the peak of efforts to cleanse the Czechoslovak territories of all semblance of German and Hungarian culture. The statement of loyalty for the future could not rectify the previous allegedly disloyal deeds.…”

“…23 The Czechoslovak leadership was no longer content with a minority that was loyal in the sense of supporting the regime, but living its own particular life in a national and 21 Láníček, Czechs, Slovaks and the Jews, pp.50f. and [61][62][63] political sense. During the war, the Czechoslovak government began to demand what can be called "active loyalty": a loyalty without preconditions; an unconditional loyalty, accompanied by assimilation.…”