Radical Care: Polish Jewish Women, Doctors, Nurses, and the Spanish Civil War, 1936-1939

• In Event: Unruly Acts: Polish and Polish Jewish Women Resisting War and Persecution

Abstract

This paper explores the often-overlooked contributions of Polish Jewish women—doctors, nurses, and caregivers—who served in the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939). Motivated by political convictions, antifascist solidarity, and a commitment to radical care, these women played a crucial role in frontline medical units and hospitals, navigating both the dangers of war and the challenges of gender and ethnic discrimination. It argues that their participation not only shaped wartime medical practices but also challenged prevailing narratives of Jewish and female agency in 20th-century conflicts. By centering their stories, this paper contributes to scholarship on gender, war, and diasporic activism in the interwar period.

Author

• Anna Muller, U of Michigan, Dearborn