Fry, Varian

(1907–1967)

   Varian Fry, a New York writer and humanitarian, was employed by the American-based Emergency Rescue Committee for the purpose of smuggling selected refugees, mostly intellectuals, out of World War II France. Based in the Hotel Splendide in Marseilles, Fry established a team of relief workers who boldly proceeded to find refuge for Jews and political refugees. Despite obstacles from the American State Department as well as Vichy bureaucrats, Fry was able to get some 1,800 people to safety. Although the Emergency Rescue Committee had provided Fry with a precise list of noted intellectuals who were to be smuggled out of France, Fry expanded his work to include as many refugees as possible. The list of those saved by Fry included British soldiers and pilots as well as some of Europe’s leading intellectuals: Hannah Arendt, Andre Breton, Marc Chagall, Max Ernst, Wanda Landowska, Jacques Lipchitz, Hans Sahl, and many others. In September 1941, the Vichy government, suspicious of Fry’s activities, forced him to leave the country. Varian Fry is the only American honored as a “Righteous Gentile” at Yad Vashem.