Living in Hiding

    As early as the summer of 1940, the clandestine Jewish Resistance organization “Solidarité” was established. Many young communists, most of whom were immigrants from Eastern Europe, joined the Jewish Communist Youth to wage a specific struggle and gradually went underground. They had to follow very strict security protocols.

Resistance fighters who were already involved in actions against the German authorities and collaborators went underground—especially starting in 1942—equipped with false identification cards and living in “safe houses” under assumed names. They were able to join the Resistance thanks to the Resistance organization, to the support of loved ones, and to a segment of the French population that wanted to help the Resistance fighters despite the risks involved. Adhering to strict guidelines was sometimes difficult, especially for young activists who were far from their families.

   For these underground resistance fighters, it is essential to go unnoticed, to blend in with the crowd, and to dress like everyone else. The underground organization provides some financial support to those who become full-time members. It connects them with networks that produce forged documents—such as ration cards, work permits, travel permits, and exemptions from the STO—which are printed by clandestine printing presses.

    There are various levels of clandestinity: for example, members of the UJRE combat groups, although in possession of false papers, continue to work and sometimes live with their families, whereas the FTP-M.M.O.I. are subject to strict secrecy, are not allowed to engage in any professional activity, have no contact with their families, and are paid by their organization to survive.

   In the face of repression, and despite the activists’ vigilance, police officers from the Special Brigades—deployed in large numbers—managed to infiltrate certain networks. Arrested and tortured, members of the Resistance died without revealing their true identities.