The position of the new Prime Minister, Herr von Papen, on the Jewish question, is the subject of a long article by Dr. Julian Lehmann, in the “Israelitische-Familienblatt”.
Side by side with its emphasis on the Christian character of the Government programme, he says, there is one phrase which always occurs in the official statements of the new Government – “cultural Bolshevism”. This “cultural Bolshevism” is presented as something disruptive in German cultural life, and there is no doubt that it is being used as the slogan of a concealed antisemitic attack. The battle is, in fact, directed against windmills, because the overwhelming majority of German Jews have as little in common with Bolshevist ideas as Herr von Papen himself and the members of his Cabinet.
Herr von Papen is the spiritual initiator and force behind the war against Bolshevism in Germany, Herr Lehmann proceeds. He is the founder of the League of Western Culture, and he has repeatedly spoken at anti-Bolshevist demonstrations. Two years ago, he spoke at one of these demonstrations in Berlin, at which he had on his platform, in addition to several Christian clergy, Rabbi Dr. Rosenthal, of Cologne, whom he called upon to state the attitude of Judaism in opposition to Bolshevism.
Speaking afterwards in several of the provincial towns, Herr von Papen described the antisemitism of the Nazis as a reaction against “cultural Bolshevist tendencies in Jewry”. Jews asked him whether he was explaining what the Nazis believe, or whether he held that belief himself, and Herr von Papen replied that what he had wanted to say was that the Christian and the Jewish faiths must both unite to form a common front against Bolshevism.
What we want to know, Dr. Lehmann says, is – what does the Federal Government understand by “cultural Bolshevism”; whom does it regard as the bearers of this “cultural Bolshevism”, and against whom is it conducting its fight against “cultural Bolshevism”?
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
