46 | APRIL 16 • 2020 

Looking Back

From the William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History

accessible at www.djnfoundation.org

A Look Back at a 
Homegrown Fascist
Y

ou may have been watching The Plot 
Against America on HBO and reading 
JN Editor Andrew Lapin’
s columns 
about the series online. Plot is based upon 
a fictional situation — thank God — where 
fascism has become the ruling political force 
in America. There is a dem-
agogue in the White House, 
Charles Lindbergh, and the idea 
that such an occurrence “could 
never happen here” is turned on 
its head. The fictional phenom-
enon unfolds through the lens 
of the Levins, a middle-class 
Jewish family. (See page 28 for 
more.) 
There are many nuances to the Plot’
s char-
acters and storyline. Lapin is providing JN 
readers with a weekly review and is dealing 
with serious historical issues: in particu-
lar, the role of Jews and their assimilation 
into American society. In today’
s climate 
of rising anti-Semitism and intolerance, we 
should give these issues proper consider-
ation because, in the real America of the 
1930s and 1940s, we did indeed have several 
homegrown fascists and Hitler admirers. And 
Charles Lindbergh was among them.
“Lucky Lindy” gained global recognition 
in 1927 at age 25, as the first person to make 
a solo, non-stop, trans-Atlantic flight from 
New York to Paris. It was a courageous act 
and a transformational moment that forged 
the way for commercial aviation. Lindbergh 
became an instant American hero, receiving 
the Medal of Honor. 
In 1940, Lindbergh would once again earn 
national notoriety for another reason. He 
was a leader of the America First Committee 
(AFC). On paper, the organizing principle 
of the AFC was isolationism; that is, opposi-
tion to America entering WWII. The name 
seems benign. What citizen would not put his 
or her nation first? But the AFC had a very 
dark side. Underlying the AFC was a vein of 

anti-Semitism, racial bigotry and intolerance, 
along with some admiration for Hitler’
s pol-
itics.
Lindbergh gave a speech on Sept. 11, 1941, 
illustrating this point. He suggested that, 
along with President Franklin D. Roosevelt, 
American Jews were pushing the U.S. to 
enter WWII, and that this was against 
the nation’
s best interest: “Instead 
of agitating for war, the Jewish 
groups in this country should be 
opposing it in every possible way, 
for they will be among the first 
to feel its consequences … A few 
far-sighted Jewish people realize this 
and stand opposed to intervention.” 
He elaborated: “Their [Jews’
] great-
est danger to this country lies in their 
large ownership and influence in our 
motion pictures, our press, our radio 
and our government.” 
Claiming that he was not against 
Jews — don’
t anti-Semites always 
say this? — Lindbergh claimed that 
Jewish leaders, “for reasons which 
are not American, wish to involve 
us in the war.” 
Although Lindbergh had made 
anti-Semitic statements before, 
this speech created a furor in the 
American Jewish press, includ-
ing in the Sept. 26, 1941, issue 
of the Detroit Jewish Chronicle, which 
is part of the William Davidson 
Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit 
History. I also found references to 
Lindbergh’
s anti-Semitism in issues of 
the JN as late as the 1970s.
The Plot Against America is certain-
ly entertaining, but it also presents a 
serious question. What is the goal of 
“
America First” and for whom? 

Want to learn more? Go to the DJN Foundation 
archives, available for free at www.djnfoundation.org.

Mike Smith
Alene and 
Graham Landau 
Archivist Chair

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