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Abstract:

This chapter explores the experiences of Jewish women scholars who were forced into exile during the 1930s and 1940s, contending with dual prejudices based on their gender and Jewish identity. As they sought to rebuild their lives and careers abroad, these scholars faced not only anti-Semitic discriminations and persecution but also the deeply entrenched gender inequalities within academic and funding systems. Though international solidarity networks, such as the Emergency Committee in Aid of Displaced Foreign Scholars and the Rockefeller Foundation, provided crucial assistance, the emphasis on academic "excellence" and the implicit selection criteria within these funding systems often favored male scholars. In this context, women’s transnational networks, such as the International Federation of University Women (IFUW) and its American and British branches, offered unique support for Jewish women scholars navigating these challenges. Through a gendered, transnational perspective, the chapter traces three phases of these women’s exile journeys: their motivations for emigration, the strategies they employed to secure escape, and their experiences of adaptation in host countries. The concept of "permanent transience" (Aciman 1999) further illuminates how these scholars navigated the liminal space between their pasts and their new identities, characterized by rootlessness, instability, and continuous adaptation. This study contributes to exile studies by centering the experiences of women, drawing on their autobiographical writings and ego documents,, and emphasizing the resilience of Jewish women scholars who, despite limited resources and significant barriers, continued to navigate their professional lives and, for some, made important contributions to their fields.