ly by and remained silent as Hitler went from denying the Jews of their civil rights to denying them of their means of earning their daily bread. As much as they wanted to remain neutral, the countries of the Western World were finally forced to take a stand on the issue of emigration of Jews from the Reich who were seeking refuge. The United States maintained strict immigration quotas which severely limited the number of Central and Eastern Europeans admitted to the country each year. Even under such extreme circumstances, the US insisted on adhering to these policies and refused to modify them even slightly. Great Britain proved to be merciless as they blocked entry into Palestine and limited the amount of entry permits. The states that had the ability to absorb the immigrants such as Australia, Canada and most countries of South America, accepted agricultural workers but denied entry to professionals, merchants and skilled artisans. There were actually protests in the US and Britain organized against the admission of immigrant doctors.
             The President of the United States initiated the Evian Conference in 1938 in an attempt to find a means that would aid emigrants from Germany and Austria and enable their absorption elsewhere. Thirty-two countries sent delegates with hopes that a solution would be found however, it quickly became clear to all that the even the great powers who had initiated the conference were not willing to take any significant steps towards accepting the refugees. Despite the speeches and the appeals, no one country was willing to commit themselves to practical measures, the smaller countries following the example of the larger ones. An international committee was set up in London for refugee affairs but it lacked funding as well as a place towards where they could direct the refugees. It is evident here that it is not a lack of knowledge that something had to be done, but rather an unwillingness that prevented th...