An appeal to the governments of South America to open their gates to Jewish immigration, and especially for refugees from Hitler Germany, was published here by the noted Chilean poetess, Gabriella Mistral, who is now Chilean Consul at Madrid.
The poetress published her plea in El Mercurio, the oldest and most influential newspaper in the country. The appeal called forth a warm and enthusiastic response by the entire press.
Miss Mistral admonishes the South American populace to reject the methods and prejudices of Nazi Germany, and not to follow in the footsteps of Hitler’s cohorts whose anti-Semitism is a reversion to medievalism. She enumerates a list of Jews who achieved greatness in every field of human endeavor, and whose works are of benefit to the whole of civilized humanity.
“The persecution of the Jews,” Miss Mistral stresses in her appeal, “is barbaric and benighted and is harmful to the world even as much as to the Jews.”
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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.
