On May 13 1939 the SS St Louis, a German ocean liner, set sail from Hamburg. On board were 915 Jewish refugees hoping to escape gathering oppression in Europe. There were dances and concerts aboard the luxury vessel and the indulgent captain permitted passengers to throw a tablecloth over an offending bust of Adolf Hitler. Two weeks later, the ship dropped anchor in Havana, pending what passengers, who had purchased Cuban visas, fully expected to be a warm reception. It was not to be. The Cuban authorities turned them away as, subsequently, did those of the US and Canada. The St Louis was obliged to return to Europe. An estimated quarter of its passengers ended up perishing in Nazi concentration camps.
1939年5月13日，德國遠洋班輪“圣路易斯號”(SS St Louis)從漢堡起航。船上有915名猶太難民，他們希望逃離歐洲日益逼近的迫害。這艘豪華客輪上頻頻舉辦舞會和音樂會，寬宏大量的船長還允許乘客在令人不悅的阿道夫?希特勒(Adolf Hitler)半身像上蓋上桌布。兩周后，該船抵達古巴哈瓦那，已經購買了古巴簽證的乘客們滿心期待著熱情的接待。結果并非如此。古巴當局拒絕他們入境，后來美國和加拿大有關部門也作出同樣的決定。圣路易斯號被迫返回歐洲。據估計，其1/4的乘客最后死于納粹集中營。