In the 1950s, when refugee aid was mostly organized by men, the Dutch Federation for Female Voluntary Aid (Nederlandse Federatie voor Vrouwelijke Vrijwillige Hulpverlening, FVVH), representing 500...Show moreIn the 1950s, when refugee aid was mostly organized by men, the Dutch Federation for Female Voluntary Aid (Nederlandse Federatie voor Vrouwelijke Vrijwillige Hulpverlening, FVVH), representing 500.000 Dutch women, had already implemented its own aid program concerning refugee camp Spittal an der Drau in Austria. After the Hungarian Revolution in 1956, several Dutch private organizations joined forces to help Hungarian refugees both in Austria and the Netherlands. This thesis centres around the question in what ways the FVVH was involved in the resulting committee, and why. Based on an extensive range of archival sources of the FVVH and other voluntary and women's associations, it becomes clear that the origins of the FVVH's refugee aid can be traced back to local initiatives in 1951. Furthermore, this thesis explores the ways in which the FVVH's involvement was supported by the Dutch government and the UNHCR. Lastly, it is found that the FVVH used its refugee aid activities to attain better relations within Civil Society. Regularly being excluded and ignored by both the Dutch Federation for Refugee Aid (Nederlandse Federatie voor Vluchtelingenhulp) and the committee concerning Hungarian refugees, the FVVH tried to influence their decision-making processes by emphasizing its own expertise, by vocally expressing its point of view in meetings and letters, and through lobbying, making use of the personal network within the women's and voluntary movement. Thus, this thesis not only explores developments within post-war refugee aid, but also contributes to discourse on the methods used by marginalized groups in order to gain influence and resist exclusion.Show less
