Funeral services were held today for Stephen Lux, 48, Czech Jewish journalist who died Friday of a bullet wound self-inflicted at a meeting of the League of Nations Assembly. His widow and twelve-year-old son, representatives of Swiss Jewish communities and correspondents attended the services. Burial was in the local Jewish cemetery.
Chief Rabbi S. Poliakoff of Geneva, in a eulogy, referred to the fact that Lux was wounded twice during the World War, serving in the Austrian army.
“The Jew, Stephen Lux, a volunteer in the great war, who escaped death at the front decided after careful consideration,” Rabbi Poliakoff said, “to commit suicide to arouse the conscience of the League of Nations and public opinion to the persecution of the weak by the brutal Nazi regime.”
He added that “this act has symbolic significance.”
Robert Dell of the Manchester Guardian, president of the International Association of Foreign Correspondents Accredited to the League of Nations, and the president of the Geneva Jewish community spoke and laid wreaths on the grave.
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.