Jewish Herald-Voice (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 37, No. 34, Ed. 1 Thursday, October 29, 1942 Page: 5 of 8
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October 29, 1942
What are the most important Jewish
postwar problems? In my opinion, they
can be enumerated as follows: the restora-
tion of civil and political equality for Jews
in the countries now under Nazi occupa-
tion or influence; relief and rehabilitation
for the victims of war; assistance and plan-
ning in migration and settlement; and
last but not least, the problem of Pales-
tine. These problems cannot be separated
from each other; rather must they be view-
ed as aspects of one major question —
the adjustment of the Jewish people with-
in a more democratic and socialized
world.
All my hypotheses (and, of course, in
times of global war, all thinking on the
future must of necessity be viewed in the
nature of a hypothesis only) are based
on the assumption of total victory by the
United Nations. Nazi plans for the ex-
termination of Jews in the event of their
victory are by this time common know-
ledge and need not be discussed further.
However, let it not be said that only
because of the Nazi threat to Jews, arc
we passionately on the side of the United
Nations. This is a war of two diamet-
rically opposed ideologies, liberty versus
slavery, and even if Fascism had not been
anti-Semitic Jews would in any case
oppose it violently, because Judaism is the
very antithesis of slavery. The stirring
call of Moses which is inscribed on the
Liberty Bell and which reads “Proclaim
liberty throughout all the land, unto all
the inhabitants thereof,” aptly epitomizes
the Jewish attitude towards Fascism.
There is no question in my mind that
the victorious United Nations will do their
utmost to establish an ever-expanding
democratic order throughout - the world.
Nor can there be any doubt concerning
the universal reintroduction of Jewish
emancipation in such an order. Indeed,
equal rights for all individuals regardless
of race, religion and nationality looms as
the logical result of the application of the
Atlantic Charter to the new world of to-
morrow. At the same time it would be
a dangerous delusion to assume that legal
statutes and international agreements will,
by and of themselves, at once translate
each and every one of the concepts in-
herent in democracy into concrete realities.
History has conclusively demonstrated
time and again that the capacity of a peo-
ple for democratic living is largely a re-
sult of a long-term educational process.
People, as a rule, do not change their
thinking and habits overnight. Therefore,
while it is reasonable to expect that in the
countries which had enjoyed democracy
before the war, Jewish equality will be
restored in fact as well as in law, it is
equally logical to presume that this may
not be the case in some of the other
countries that lacked a tradition of effec-
tive democracy. While the governments
of these countries will willingly or under
THE JEWISH HERALD-VOICE
Ji ^Po±tujax
07L
THE ADJUSTMENT OF JEWS TO A DEMOCRATIC WORLD
By DR. MAX GOTT8CHALK
Director, Research Institute on Peace and Postwar Problems
of the American Jewish Committee
As one who carries a vital responsibility in his directorship of the
Jewish Committee’s Research Institute on Peace and Postwar Problems, the
views of Dr. Gottschalk are of rreat importance in sucrestinc the steps which
American Jewry must take to help solve the urgent problems that will come
with peace. An International Bill of Rights Is but one of many topics touched
upon in this comprehensive and illuminating article. — The Editor.
pressure proclaim in their constitutions
equality for'all,.mere legal provisions will
not by themselves bring an end to deeply
ingrained prejudices, particularly among
the restive populations of the defeated
countries. . It would be much wiser,
therefore, for the United Nations collect-
ively to provide special guarantees for all
minorities everywhere and at the same
time also to create the instruments for
the immediate and lasting enforcement of
these guarantees.
After the last war, many people placed
false hopes in the Minority Clauses, which
had been included in the Versailles and
related Treaties. The fact that this syst-
em of minority guarantees has not lived
up to expectations can, it seems to me, be
charged mainly to its ineffective enforce-
ment. Should, therefore, the solution*of
minority treaties be upheld and stronger
implementation sought or should this
form of protection be abandoned? Most
plans today on post-war reconstruction
center around the establishment of larger
political and economic units, which may
be of a regional, continental or universal
character. In the light of this trend pro-
posals have been made for a more uni-
versal form which would eliminate the
need of singling out minorities for special
protection. Among these is the proposal
of an International Bill of Rights for all
individuals. This, in my opinion, might
perhaps be the best method to guarantee
Jews equal rights with all. Such legisla-
tion should indeed be,flexible enough to
permit Jews to practice and develop their
own religious and cultural life, with
special attention to certain needs such aj
Sabbath observance and educational fac-
ilities. World leadership will have to
choose between either one of those solu-
tions or perhaps a combination of both.
Homes For Uprooted
Jews in the free democracies will have
to give proper thought to the immediate
rehabilitation of all those who have been
completely uprooted in the last ten years.
Undoubtedly, Jewish victims of the war
will receive their share in the large hu-
manitarian action which will be under-
taken after the war on an international
scale and is already being prepared now
by the United Nations. At the same time
we must bear in mind that the Jews as a
completely dispossessed urban element will
generally find themselves in a more dis-
astrous position than most of the non-
Jewish population. Even the most equit-
able share in the distribution of rebel
will hardly suffice to alleviate their suf-
ferings completely. We* must also think
of the special Jewish needs, such as the pro-
vision of kosher food, Matzos, separate
nurseries, hospitals and schools which will
have to be met by the general relief
agencies, supplemented by Jewish organi-
zations when needed.
In assuming the final victory of the
United Nations, we are prone to think
that opportunities for Jews will be the
same as for non-Jews everywhere. This is,
however, a purely theoretical approach to
the problem. The shortcomings of society
in many European countries, which I
indicated in connection with the subject
of Jewish rights, hold true also in the
case of economic relations. Jews who will
return from their places of deportation to
their former domiciles will find their
adjustment very difficult in view of their
complete impoverishment and generally
unsettled conditions. There is much talk
about compensation, but this can at best
provide only a partial economic solution
to a limited number of individuals. Many
of the younger people will prefer to re-
construct their lives in newer and wealth-
ier countries which will offer greater op-
portunities than their war-torn homes
from which they had been exiled. Thus,
during the immediate interim period be-
tween the cessation of hostibties and the
peace settlement, many Jews will want
to emigrate in spite of the presumed le-
gally secured equality of opportunity for
all.
The migration of Jews will be but a part
of a world-wide migratory movement,
which in the opinion of most postwar
planners, is an inevitable aftermath of the
war. It deserves careful study and planning
rather than haphazard treatment. The
problem of securing the abolition of direct
or indirect restrictions against Jewish
emigration in the Western Hemisphere
must of necessity loom very high in the
considerations of Jewish leadership.
No discussion of Jewish migrations can
- - -
HE5E59E9flk255
be complete without a
Palestine as a major-place of
Few studies have been made on the i
of the absorptive capacity of the
Land on which there is much
ment. All, however, will agi
Palestine offers large possibilities
ther mass settlement of Jews,
likewise no doubt that
tive capacity depends in a large
if not almost exclusively, on the
status of the country. There is
agreement on this problem too. Some
recommend the continuation of the British
Mandate; others would entrust the
date to all or some of the United
while still others prefer that
become a part of the British Em pi as. On
the other hand there arc time
pose the establishment of a
state; other solutions call for making
Jewish State or Commonwealth of !
estine a part of an Arab or a Near East
Federation, or establishing
independent Jewish state. It is
early to choose between these
To me, the most important
in any solution is the assurance of
possibilities for a large immif
the country of our ancestors f<
who prefer that country to any other,
a solution must at the same tune
provide the basis for the peaceful
successful development of Palestine,
is on a solution based on these two
si derations that leadenhip should, at
believe, will, be abk to unite.
All these problems will have tc
solved by the peace treaty or
There is an increasing realization
unlike the situation after the
there should be a prolonged
between the cessation of
the peace settlement. The
Great Britain and the Soviet
destined to play the most imp
in the negotiations and experiments
ing that interim period. It is their
ship which will influence all eh
reaching decisions on which the new
order will be built. It it my
that the Jews may count on the
assurances which have been given
leaders of these countries that equal
in every respect will be granted to
everywhere.
Such problems will, of course,
intensive scientific study and
gage the attention of the many
government and private
research bodies, but, until now,
stitutions have consistently ignored
fically Jewish problems. This
should be attributed mainly to the
of appreciation of the urgency of
needs, whose solution will affect all
In view of this neglect, Jews
their own problems in preparation fr
utilization of their findings at the
time.
k «•
An Exclusion .
(Continued from page 1)
—
immigration of Jews had adverse-
ly affected the life of the Bolivian
cities. Roberto Jordan Cuellar
spoke of “the enormous number
of immigrants.” Siles Zuaco ex-
claimed that if by its decision the
Deputies would earn the designa-
tion of “Nazis,” he “would be
proud to accept that label.” The
gallery, full of a paid mob, ap-
plauded frantically. The Trade
Union of Railwaymen of Oruro
described as “traitors” the min-
ority of Deputies who voted
against the exclusion Bill.
Leaflets have been distributed
in the streets saying that 30,000
Jews have “invaded the country,”
figures which have no faintest
resemblence to the truth. These
leaflets also assert that inter-
course with Jews must be stopped
because they bear contagious dis.
eases; that children must be kept
far from Jews if they are to be
saved from corruption; that peo-
ple should not buy in Jewish
shops because Jews will cheat
them.
Handouts have been thrown
into Jewish shops demanding that
their owners leave the country.
“Jew,” “Bloody Jew” has become
a cry sounded by the dirtiest In-
dios, by children, by other classes.
Car-drivers have even been ac-
cused of trying to rim down Jew.
ish children. In one reported
case when a driver was asked:
"Can’t you see there’s a child?”
the answer was: "Child? A gringo,
a bloody Jew.”
Cases of street violence are in-
creasing. It is not an unfamiliar
sight to see illuminated signs and
other decorations on Jewish stores
torn down and broken. Jews are
assaulted in the streets by ruf-
fians. As is the etiquette inter-
nationally among Nazis, the at-
tacking force is always over-
whelmingly greater. Pupils of the
German College are particularly
nasty hoodlums.
The support which this situa-
tion receives from certain lead-
ing citizens is reflected in Deputy
Chacon, once editor of a Nazi
paper in Cochabamba, Bolivia’s
second largest city. Chacon, rep-
resentative of a European trust
and a banker, expresses sympathy
with the attacks on Jews, saying
he does so not out of racial pre-
judice but because the influx of
Jews has adversely affected econ-
omic conditions in Bolivia.
One Bolivian paper has pub-
lished what purport to be docu-
ments showing that some Memb-
ers of the Chamber who voted
for the exclusion bill have, as
lawyers, received 20,000 to 25,000
Bolivianos for getting immigra-
tion permits for Jews. In another
paper, one of the most prominent
j Roman Catholic priests denounces
the growth of anti-Semitism in
the country apd various Depu-
ties have made public statements,
requiring courage, opposing what
some have referred to as “the
bribed opinion of the Nazi-fol-
lowers.” Unfortunately, how-
ever, these protests do not reach
the masses. If they read at all,
it is the “Calle,” a Nazi sheet
which is on the Black List but
which, pevertheless, manages to
get paper.
I am at a loss to report what the
Government has done to counter-
act this trend.. I do not know
whether it thinks that the demo-
cratic principles of the Constitu-
tion and freedom of the press
justify the publication of any
material that a newspaper or in-
dividual wishes to issue.
There had been some hope here
that in view of the protests of
the Pope against the persecution
of the Jews in France, the adop-
tion of the Star of David by the
Bishop of Paris and similar in-
cidents, the Papal Nuncio in Bo-
livia would recognize the begin-
nings of an anti-Christian move-
ment and use his powerful in-
fluence to half the anti-Semitic
excesses.
A poor, miserable, unhappy
population is once again having
its instincts of envy, inferiority
and savagery played upon in
order that an entirely
result may be achieved
merely that Jews i
In the meantime, the Jews
iivia, most of then
since Hitler, wonder
can happen once agau
Geneva — Karl Krause.
Joeeph Pick. 37. two
cused of anti-Nazi
have been executed in
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White, D. H. Jewish Herald-Voice (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 37, No. 34, Ed. 1 Thursday, October 29, 1942, newspaper, October 29, 1942; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1102053/m1/5/: accessed June 27, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; .