The United States Committee for the Care of European Children (USCOM)United States Committee for the Care of European Children, Report of the Executive Director to the Board of Director

/ref> was a quasi-governmental American body established in June 1940, with the intent to try to save mainly

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

refugee A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution.

children who came from Continental Europe, and to evacuate them to the United States, however, most of the children were British refugees from the blitz. Since the U.S. was neutral until

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...

on December 7, 1941, USCOM was still able to operate in

Vichy France Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its ter ...

from its founding in June 1940, until the

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

occupation of Vichy France in November 1942. USCOM should be contrasted with

CORB Corb or CORB may refer to: Figures in Irish mythology and legendary history: *Corb (mythology), a Fomorian *Mug Corb, sometimes called Mac Corb, a High King *Fer Corb, a High King, son of Mug Corb Others: *Corb (river), a river in Catalonia, Spain ...

, whose purpose was to bring children from Great Britain to the U.S. USCOM was co-founded by First Lady

Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt () (October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the first lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945, during her husband President Franklin D. Roosevelt's four ...

and

Louis S. Weiss Louis Stix Weiss was a name partner of the international law firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, a firm that traces its roots to one founded by Louis's father Samuel W. Weiss in 1875. He was best known as one of banker Marshall Fi ...

. Roosevelt, from her position of influence, continued to strongly support USCOM. In actuality, she was greatly involved in the mission to rescue mainly Jewish European children through all possible relevant agencies. Many other non-Governmental organisations, such as HIAS, the Joint, and the

Quakers Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...

, and individuals such as

Gilbert and Eleanor Kraus Gilbert and Eleanor Kraus were an American couple known for rescuing 50 Jewish children prior to the beginning of World War II. Personal life Gilbert and Eleanor Kraus lived in the Fitler Square neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Gilbert ...

, also worked to save mainly Jewish children and send them to the United States. In Europe, these included the American-based GJCA which worked directly in Germany, and the French Jewish organization OSE.

References

Government bodies Organizations for children affected by war