Page Two

Purely
Commentary

THE JEWISH NEWS

Anti-Semitism and Post War World

.

By PHILIP SLOMOVITZ

IV, K. KELSEY vs. G. L. K. SMITH
W. K. Kelsey, brilliant Detroit News
CoMmentator, does not take Gerald L.
K. Smith seriously.• In . fact,' he looks
upon him as a comic character, as he
indicated in his column a few days ago
in which he wrote:

THE COMIC ROLE
"A woman writes to ask: 'What is the Jewish
problem that Gerald L. K. Smith is talking
about? . . Why are statements loaded with
dynamite, such as those issued at the America
First convention, permitted in wartime? Justice
Holmes said: 'Freedom of speech does not give
a man the right to shout "Fire!" in a theater.'
Outside of the fact that I am Jewish and natur-
ally saddened by all this. I feel •that America's
magnificence is being threatened by experienced"
professional hate-dispensers. Is there an antidote
for my depression, some faith to cling to in this
bitter world?'
"Answering the last question first: Madam,
there is such an antidote. Indeed, there are/two.
One is a sense of humor. The Rev. Smith-is es-
sentially a comedian. The comic character is one
who takes himself seriously while the rest of the
world laughs at him. Even Hitler is thus comic;
the tragic figure on the world stage is not he,
but the German nation that has followed this
clown. If America were to follow the Rev. Smith,
our nation too would be a" tragic protagonist.
But we have a fundamental sense of humor
which saves us.'
"The second antidote is a sense of proportion.
To how many does the America First movement
appeal ? To far fewer than the Know-Nothing
movement of the middle of the last century, or
the A.P.A. movement, or the Klan movement, or
many another that has appeared from time to
time.
♦ *' *
"NO JEWISH PROBLEM
"There is no Jewish problem in America, al-
though there are more Jews in the United States
than in any other country. They constitute some
31/2 per cent of our population. About 46 per cent
of them are in New York State. There, if any-
where, is the place to start an anti-Jewish move-
ment; for if the Jews are a menace anywhere,
they are a threat where they are most numerous.
In Michigan they, constitute 1.57 per cent of the
people. Why does Mr. Smith start his cry in
Michigan, rather than in New York? Because he
thinks there are more fools here?
"If Mr. Smith were crying 'Fire' in a theater,
it would be the sensible thing to shut him up,
unless he were a comic figure shouting the word
as part of his role. Well, to the Commentator,
that is exactly what he is doing. The show isn't
very funny, but it brings a smile." -
•
*
*

A CLEVER COLUMN
So much for Mr. Kelsey's column.
We admit it to - be. a clever piece of
writing. It is exactly the way to handle
a crack-pot — provided you are un-
affected. by his ramblings.
If Gerald L. K. Smith were a deluded
minister of the gospel (as he is) writing
about a majority, say, in Palestine, and
we were part of that majority, we would
have a good laugh, too. We would be
like Kelsey.
But we are 4 per cent of the population
of this country, and we were just through
being witnesses to a similar demonstra-
tion of bigotry by a man by the name
of Adolf Hitler. The other demonstration
led to the murder of millions of Jews
and the destruction of thousands of
Jewish communities.
Therefore, we do not look at Smith
from the same viewpoint as Mr. Kelsey
has.
* * *
THE VIEWPOINT OF THE AFFECTED
The Holmes story quoted above has
its counterpart.
- The limits of personal freedom, in a
democracy, often abused, may be judged
by the following illustration:
In the court of Judge Ben Lindsey a
man was once accused of striking another
in the face during the _course of a Fourth
of July celebration. The prisoner admit-
ted 'having delivered the blow, but coun-
tered the charge by saying, "But wasn't
it the Fourth of July, and couldn't I
have a bit of fun?"
"Yes," agreed the judge, "but your
right of having fun ended where this
man's nose began."
* * *
STAY AWAY FROM OUR NOSES!
The firecrackers are too close to OUR
faces, Mr. Kelsey, and we don't like it.
Therefore, we can't look at this busi-
ness through your glasses.
We demand that the crack-pots stay
away from our noses and respect OUR
personal freedomS.
To make sure that America—for YOUR
security as well as OURS does not have
a Hitler, we must fight the Smiths. To
win this battle, we must have YOUR.
help.
Now that . Smith has been, dissected_ in
his comic_role, let's get serious, and let
us all, together, eradicate from our midst
the poison which has crept into our
democracy from the poisoned atmosphere
of Nazi-Fascist territories.
a a a
THE POINT ABOUT NEW YORK
The point made by Mr. Kelsey about
New York is more serious than he
imagines.
Anti-Semites have said that when they
get started on the Jews, New York will
be their starting point.
Actually, they have caused trouble in
Brooklyn, the Bronx, Washington Heights
Is this cause for comedy:-

By . ELMER RICE -
A man -
hates another -because of his race or religion is not only a
bad neighbor and a bad citizen, but the pliant tool of those perverted ego-
maniacs whose grandiose ambitions lead inevitably to mass murder and to.
war. The recent history of Germany offers a horrible example of how a
cunning and tinscrupulous leader can utilize race prejudice for the achieve-
ment of his own. ends. - Hitler used anti-Semitism as a means of inciting his
followers. to violence. He appealed to the worst,t- elements in Germany, when
their morale was at its lowest. He did not 'waste time talking about the
. economic problems that had reduced these. people to hopelessness. He whipped -
up their passions, their resentments, their lust for revenge—blind, sadistic
revenge upon no , matter whom; and the Jews offered a ready-made target.

Friday, September 22, 1944

Strictly
Confidential

By PHINEAS J. BIRON

(Copyrigin. t944, by Seven Arts
Feature Syndicate)

LISTEN HERE
Orchids to Philip Lee Bush and Mrs. y
Lloyd Dinkelspiel, members of the San 1
Francisco Board of . Education . . . Both
refused to be intimidated and, ass good
It is a deplorable fact that anti-Semitism exists in Amerita, too. It is a
dangerous component of our political life and the problem of keeping it
Americans concerned with the main-
under control is one phase of the, problem of -democracy. - We ,cannot hope
tenancie of absolute separation of
to root out, over-night, destructive passions' from the hearts of men: But
churdh and state, voted with the ma-
what we can do is sterilize the social soil in which 'those passions germinate.
jority of the non-Jewish members
In the post-war world, there will be millions of men and women, in
against the adoption- of release time for ,
whom - the philosophy of hatred has been deeply ingrained, who have been-
religious instruction for public school 1
inured to bloodshed and destruction and 'to whom death is a commonplace.
children . . . They are right, of course
If they cannot find employment, if they are denied political rights and
. . . Religious. instruction -belongs, not
economic security, if a sense 'of injustice and defeat rankles in their breasts,
in the American public school system )
they will be ready recruits - for the stormtroops of any senator or radio priest
but to the churches and synagogue
or transatlantic flier, who covets power; and they will take up eagerly as
. Besides, they know that ant
a battle-cry: "Kill all the Jews"—for to the despairing and the desperate,„
' the more irrational and destructive the slogan, the better. The surest way
SeMitic hooliganism on the part
to avert that catastrophe is to build a post-war world whose corner-stones
minors occurs most frequently in s
are -political equality, economic democracy and social justice for all.
spots in the Union as have- ado
release time.
Our hat is off to Harry C, Oppenheiiii
er, who haS been a leader in the succe'Ss-
ful fight to end Jim Crow. restrictions ,at
Sydenham hospital, the first New York
voluntary hospital to erase the color line
in the appointment of doctors and nurses.
a a a
By
ARNOLD
LEVIN
By BORIS SMOLAR
OVERSEAS
REPORT
(Copyright, 1944 Independent Jewish
(Copyright. 1944, JTA, Inc.)
Press Service, Die.)
We may hope that by the time you
OVERSEAS FRONT
read this all of Holland will have been
OBJECT: EXILE'S RETURN
liberated from the Nazi yoke . . . But in
Jewish organizations in America are,
It is rumored that, through neutral con- the meantime we want to pass on the
for the time being, not in a position to
-tacts,
Axis
agent
Haj
Amin
el
Husseini,
report that in the city of- Zwolle the
respond to the appeal of the Jews in
liberated Poland for a relief delegation Mufti of Jerusalem, is still giving direc- Nazis, after getting rid of- all the living
to be sent to Lublin . . . Nor. are Jewish tives to his followers in Palestine. That Jews, turned their attention to the Jew-
organizations in England . . . This is be- may explain why the Mufti-ites had at ish dead — and transformed the loca
cause the temporary Polish 'government first accepted, and then rejected the plan Jewish cemetery into a recreation ground
in Lublin is not the only Polish govern- for Palestine inter-party unity proposed . . . The tombstones, we may add, were
ment .. There is also a Polish govern- by Egypt's Minister of Justice. Palestine sent to another ' city, where they were
ment in London . . . Thg first recognized Arab , politicians are already preparing sold on the open market.
Dr. Sven Hedin, the great Swedish
by Russia but not by the United States the ground for the return of the Mufti.
and England . . The second is recog- Should hostilities end by the time the . scientist and explorer, who is a rabid
nized by England and America, but not Pan-Arab Congress, contemplated by pro-Nazi unto this day, is partly Jewish,
by Russia . . . A situation is thus created Nahas Pasha, Premier of Egypt, is called, and if he had lived in Germany he would
in which neither the State Department they will demand that the Mufti be per- have been one of the 4,000,000 Jewish
in Washington, nor the Foreign Office in mitted to participate. They will contend victims of the Nazis.
When Manfred von Killinger, self-con-
London can issue passports to any dele- that he was only an "exile." They will
gation desiring to proceed to liberated further claim that Britain has recognized fessed expert in political murder, was
Poland until the two separate Polish his right to return, by the Colonial Secre- the Nazi Consul General at San Fran-
governments merge into one recognized tary's statement some time back that Haj cisco, we protested against his presence
by all members of the Allied Nations Amin el Husseini is still Mufti and can- in this country, and never thought that
the day would come when we would
. . . In the hope that such a merger will not be deposed by a secular power.
*
*
• -
approve one of his acts . . . But now we
take place soon, the interested Jewish
give him the posthumous award' of our
relief groups in this country, especially JEWISH SCENE
approval of his machine-gunning of a
the Joint Distribution Committee, are
Why wasn't the Jewish press admitted. number of Nazi representatives just be-
making preparations for large-scale re-
lief activities among the surviving Jews to the sessions of the National Commu- fore his recent suicide at Bucharest.
a * *
in Poland . . . Plans are also being made nity Relations Advisory Council? Secret
diplomacy?
It
doesn't
appear
so
secret
BOOKS
AND
AUTHORS
for relief activities in Romania.
judging by its published decisions. This
* * *
"No Mean City," Simeon Strunsky's
executive session habit is absurd . . . Not new book on New York, is gathering in
THE HOME FRONT
having been admitted, we feel more jus- the critical plaudits . . . Strunsky, you
Between now and election day a rise .tified than ever (even a columnist has his
in anti-Jewish propaganda in this coun- moments of conscience qualms) to resort should know, is the author of the fas-
try can be expected . . . Jewish organiza- to the "heard in the lobbies" method. We cinating unsigned column "Topics of the
tions interested in combatting such propa- have been told in the lobbies that after Times" which- appears on the editorial, ,
ganda are prepared for it . . . Not much the N.C.R.A.C. had already been formed page of the New York Times every day.
. Allan Chase is having a novel publish-
can be revealed of the measures they for quite obvious functions, a committee
have taken_ to fight the injection on anti- was appointed to define its functions. The ed this week . . . Its title is "Five Ar-
Semitic issues into the Presidential elec., committee brought in three proposals, rows," and it deals with the Spanish
tion campaign ... Sufficient to, say that and the executive committee, whose Fascist group he exposed in • his best-
seller "Falange" . . . Ben Hecht is plan-
such measures have been taken . . . And members include Dr. Stephen S. Wise,
ning
a lecture tour for the coming season
in this respect complete unity prevails Joseph M. Proskauer and Henry Monsky,
. . . The theme on which he will speak
among all interested Jewish groups.
agreed on a compromise, reportedly pro- is the message of his book on the Jewish
The American Jewish Committee, un- posed by Maurice Bisgyer, secretary of
der the direction of Dr. John Slawson, Bnai Brith, and combining the best fea- problem, "A Guide for the Bedeviled"
Now to the many friends of Pierre van
its executive vice-president, is now 'de- tures of all proposals.
Paassen:, Walter Winchell's item about
veloping a more active policy of ac-
* * *
the serious illness of the beloved author
quainting the J e wish communities FROM THE PALESTINE FRONT
of "The Forgotten Ally" is, to quote
throughout the country with its activi-
In the Palestine Post there is an amus- Mark Twain, greatly exaggerated . .
ties . . . More than 300 community or-
Van Paassen was, after a thorough medi-
ganizations are given an intensive service ing piece, signed D. K. B-A on a "Civil cal check-up, declared in the pink
of
on various Jewish questions on a day-to- War" now being waged in Palestine be- condition.
day basis ... The latest step in populariz- tween Mr. Wrigley's chewing gum,
ing the activities of the American Jewish growing in popularity among the youth, ABOUT PEOPLE
Anna Lord Strauss, president' of the
Committee is the publication of an eight- and _sunflower seeds and wheatstalks
page booklet which summarizes, among chewed by the older settlers of the com- National League of Women Voters, at
other things, the attitude of the Commit- munal villages. Objections to gum in- tributes her interest in politics to- the in-
clude the contention' that chewing it fluence of her father, the banker Albert
lee towards Palestine.
changes one's facial features, the writer Strauss, whom she accompanied to Eu-
* * *
says. Incidentally, Palestine makes its rope after the last war, when he served
FRIENDLY CRITICISM
own gum and pretty soon it will be a as a financial adviser to the Peace Con-
Much criticism has been voiced against three-cornered fight, between Wrigley's, ference.
the American Jewish Conference by the Palestine-made product and sun-
ROger W. Straus, who is taking an
many of its friends . . . But none of the flower seeds.
active part in Governor Dewey's cam-
*
*
critics is as outspoken as Daniel Frisch,
paign, is one of the big shots of the
a member of its Interim Committee .. . JUST AN ANECDOTE
National Conference of Christians and
On the eve of the second session of the
From Broadway columnist Leonard Jews.
Conference, to take place in Pittsburgh Lyons: "This story is being told about
Briefly revisiting Brooklyn, after near-
in December, Frisch has issued a special Mischa Elman and Jascha Heifetz, both ly two and a half years overseas, is
pamphlet asking "What Happened to the of whom attended the funeral of a mu- Bernard Kessel, the corporal who practi-
American Jewish Conference?" . . . He tual friend. The deceased's family select- cally captured the North African town
charges the Conference with inactivity ed Heifetz to play at the funeral services. of Oran single-handed.
and especially with failure to take a firm Elman felt slighted. 'At last,' he con-
Too bad that' Leo Birinski's "The Day
attitude towards the problem of rescuing soled himself, 'I can listen to Heifetz Will Come," the play in which Hitler is
Jews in Europe from extermination . . . and won't be allowed to applaud.'\"
confronted and told by the Wandering
He finds that the leadership of the Con-
Jew, hasn't got the stuff Broadway hits
are made of.
ference is monopolized by a few people
and represents, chiefly, vested organiza- the management of our affairs." . . . The • Soon to be launched is a liberty ship
tional interests . . . He claims that the American Jewish Conference, he says, bearing the name of the late Poale-
leaders turned out to be the heads of demonstrated that while the people have Zionist leader Dr. - Nachman Syrkin.
other organizations which would not grown, the leaders have not kept pace • Back in civilian life is - Lt. Sidney
yield their prerogatives to the Confer- . . . They have created a tyranny of Kingsley, the playwright — a medical
ence which they themselves consider the ' speechmaking as a substitute for true discharge.
supreme body of American Jewry . . . greatness and inner humility, he asserts
A new swing band is in the making
He also holds them responsible "for fail- . . . He calls upon the delegates to the and will soon make its debut under the
ing to provide opportunities for the in- forthcoming session of the Conference baton of Artie Shaw, recently discharged
clusion of younger men and women in not to remain mere onlookers.
from the Navy.

Between
You and Me

Heard in
The Lobbies

