The Congress of Racial Equality announced today it had called a meeting of its national advisory committee to discuss the controversy over Negro-Jewish relations which developed from an anti-Semitic remark by one of its Mount Vernon officials who resigned afterwards.
James Farmer, CORE national director, said the meeting which will be held Monday, would take up “the entire question of Negro-Jewish relations” because of a public statement made here last week by Clifford Brown that “Hitler made one mistake when he didn’t kill enough of you. ” Mr. Brown, a Negro, and CORE educational director in Mount Vernon — until his resignation after the statement — made the remark at a meeting of the Mount Vernon Board of Education. The Board is engaged in a heated struggle over New York state orders to integrate its schools.
Mr. Farmer indicated he had convened the advisory committee after receiving a telegram from David Livingston, a Jewish labor leader who is one of the 38 board members. Mr. Livingston called Mr. Brown’s statement “abominable” and declared “there can be no compromise with ovens for Jews. Whoever is anti-Semitic is an enemy of the Negro people. The offending member cannot absolve his guilt by resigning. ” He urged an immediate advisory board meeting to remove “all taint of anti-Semitism within CORE.”
A few hours before receiving the telegram, Mr. Farmer issued a 1, 500-word report on the controversy. The report said there was no room in CORE for “racism or bigotry” and “no justification possible” for Mr. Brown’s remark. The statement, the third on the incident from Mr. Farmer, condemned Mr. Brown more strongly for his attack on Jews than did the previous statements but he also asserted that members of the crowd at the meeting yelled, in reference to a Negro woman speaker “tell the black s-o-b to sit down.”
Witnesses at the meeting seated near Mr. Brown said they did not hear any such statement and reporters also said they did not hear any such slurring remark.
Help ensure Jewish news remains accessible to all. Your donation to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency powers the trusted journalism that has connected Jewish communities worldwide for more than 100 years. With your help, JTA can continue to deliver vital news and insights. Donate today.
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.
