Social marginality freed some bystanders to resist joining group devaluation

Evidence

In the midst of violence and passivity, some people in Germany and Nazioccupied Europe endangered their lives to save Jews. To do so, helpers of German origin had to distance themselves from their group. Some rescuers were marginal to their community: They had a different religious background, were new to the community, or had a parent of foreign birth (London, 1970; Tec, 1986). This perhaps enabled them to maintain an independent perspec­ tive and not join the group’s increasing devaluation of Jews. — Leonard S. Newman and Ralph Erber (eds.), Understanding Genocide, 176

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Group marginality enabled some Germans to resist joining communal devaluation of Jews — Leonard S. Newman and Ralph Erber (eds.), Understanding Genocide: The Social…, 176