Question

How did Americans react to reports that over two million Jews had already been murdered as of 1942?

Answer 1

The United States entered World War II in December 1941, after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor. By 1943, the American press carried a number of reports about the ongoing mass murder of Jews. Although the United States could have done more to aid the victims of Nazi Germany and its collaborators, large-scale rescue was impossible by the time the United States entered the war.
KEY FACTS
1
In 1942, the US State Department confirmed that Nazi Germany planned to murder all the Jews of Europe. This information was reported widely in the American press.

2
The United States and the other Allied forces prioritized military victory over humanitarian aid during World War II.

3
In January 1944, President Franklin Roosevelt created the War Refugee Board to carry out a new US policy of proactive rescue and relief for Nazi victims. Its efforts saved tens of thousands of lives.