Boston Jewish Leaders Call on Police Head to Check Anti-jewish Street Attacks

Boston Jewish leaders today called on Police Commissioner Joseph Timilty in connection with repeated attacks on Jewish children and adults by hoodlums in Dorchester, a Jewish-populated district of Boston, which have been intensified during the last three weeks.

The attacks on Jews in the streets of Dorchester have been going on for a long time and resulted in a lengthy article this week in the New York newspaper P.M., where it was attributed to the Christian Front, Governor Leverett Saltonstall, at a press conference yesterday, termed the article “stinking” and ejected the writer from the State house where the conference was held.

“I most certainly do not want any persecution of any minority group in this State, either racial or religious,” the Governor said. “Any responsibility I have in such matters will be met to the best of my ability. Such stories stir up trouble and hurt the war effort. Conditions are good in the Commonwealth. From a religious and racial point of view, everyone is working well and cooperating.”

JEWS FEEL POLICE ARE INACTIVE IN SUPPRESSING HOOLIGANISM

Responsible Jewish leaders here feel that P.M. exaggerated the situation. “There are no anti-Jewish riots in Boston, but there are plenty of individual anti Jewish incidents, and we feel that this is distinctly an administrative police problem,” one leader told the Jewish Telegraphic. Agency. On the other hand, Jewish groups expressed the opinion that Governor Saltonstall “made a mistake” in ejecting Arnold Beichman, the P.M. reporter, from the State House for his article, which he documented by affidavits from the victims.

In the opinion of leading Jews here, Governor Saltonstall, who on many occasions has expressed his sympathy for Jewish causes, cannot be held responsible for the anti-Jewish terror. They are inclined to place the blame on the police commissioner and believe that he is not sufficiently active in checking the hoodlums. So far no arrests have been made, except of six Jewish youths who defended them-selves from an attack by hooligans.

CALL MEETING TO ASK PROTECTION FOR JEWS; COURT HEARING NEXT WEEK

The arrested boys are scheduled to appear in court next Tuesday. Meanwhile the council of the CIO in Boston called a meeting for tomorrow evening to formulate demands to the local authorities for the protection of the Dorchester Jewish residents. Joseph Salerno, president of the Massachusetts State CIO, demanded that Gov. Saltonstall order a special investigation of the anti-Jewish incidents.

Commissioner Timilty in a statement to the press declared that he assigned six Jewish policemen some time ago to investigate the anti-Jewish abuses, and that their investigation has produced no results thus far, At City Hall here it was stated that the Dorchester district needs about thirty-five more policemen. Air raid wardens and auxiliary police are cooperating with the police in patrolling the Dorchester streets at night as a measure of protection for the Jewish residents.