Hélène Cazès-Benatar

Hélène Cazès-Benatar (born Rachel Hélène Cazès; 27 October 1898 – 7 July 1979) was a Moroccan Jewish lawyer and human rights activist. She was the first woman to practise as a lawyer in Morocco and organised major relief efforts for Jewish and other refugees in North Africa during the Second World War. Quotes “At no moment did I consider the persons protected by us as material for calculations and statistics, but always took care of their needs, regarding them as human beings and persecuted persons with the right to all care and attention from our department.” Verfassungsblog (from her wartime correspondence) About Hélène Cazès-Benatar “One day in July 1940, while volunteering with the Red Cross on the shores of Casablanca, Cazès-Benatar received a letter from refugees who were stranded on a ship offshore. Hungry, thirsty and some of them sick, they pleaded at the gates, searching for refuge. Despite the authorities not allowing them to disembark from the ship, she heard the call and went. From that moment on, she dedicated herself entirely to the rescue mission of the refugees, a task that consumed her time and energy.” Ynetnews (account by her son) “Cazès-Benatar was a one-woman rescue operation enterprise. Thanks to her, alongside other recruited activists, Morocco became a haven for refugees from Europe, mostly Jews. Due to her efforts, approximately 60,000 refugees were saved until their liberation in November 1942 when American forces landed on the shores of Morocco and Algeria in Operation Torch.” Ynetnews “Our mother, a legendary woman who rescued so many human beings from their hardships.” B’nai B’rith International (inscription on her tombstone) External links Category:Moroccan women Category:Jewish lawyers Category:Human rights activists Category:Women lawyers Category:1898 births Category:1979 deaths