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New President of West Germany Says He Will Deepen Contact with Jews

September 29, 1959
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The B’nai B’rith Anti-Defamation League today made public a cable received from Dr. Heinrich Luebke, new President of West Germany, in which the head of the Bonn Government indicates that he hopes to deepen the relationships of “mutual confidence” between himself and the Jews the world over.

Emphasizing that his predecessor, Dr. Theodor Heuss, had fostered such relations, President Luebke said they were “a precious trust bequeathed to me.” He added that “a great deal remains to be done to remove completely the rubble of a wretched past.” His cabled message came in response to a communication from Henry Edward Schultz, ADL national chairman.

Mr. Schultz had suggested steps to the German President designed to improve citizenship training and teaching of history of the Nazi period to German youth, His proposals were based on a report made by Nathan C. Belth, ADL official, who visited Germany and found that a major problem in its education is the fact that “the older generation, in large part, has not yet been able to come to terms with its past and therefore cannot transmit to German youth a comprehensive evaluation of Nazi years. “

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