AlfredWiener

Alfred Wiener was a German-born Jewish scholar and activist who founded the Jewish Central Information Office in Berlin in 1933. He was born in 1888 and educated in law and Oriental studies. Upon the rise of the Nazi party, Wiener recognized the urgent need to collect and disseminate information about the persecution of Jews in Germany. The Jewish Central Information Office, later known as the Wiener Holocaust Library, aimed to document Nazi ideology, antisemitism, and human rights violations.

Wiener's work involved meticulously gathering documents, testimonies, and newspaper clippings from across Germany and later from other parts of Europe. He believed that preserving this evidence was crucial for understanding the unfolding events and for potential future accountability. He worked tirelessly to establish the library as a vital resource for researchers, journalists, and policymakers.

In 1939, with the escalating threat to Jews in Europe, Wiener managed to relocate the collection to London. The library continued its mission throughout World War II and beyond, becoming one of the world's foremost repositories of information on the Holocaust and Nazi era. Alfred Wiener passed away in 1942, but his legacy endures through the continued work of the Wiener Holocaust Library, which remains dedicated to studying and combating antisemitism and genocide. The institution he founded stands as a testament to his foresight and commitment to documenting historical atrocities.