“One of the most hateful expressions of intolerance” on the American scene today is the “infamous” McCarran-Walter immigration Act, Gov. Averill W. Harriman declared here last night at a dinner inaugurating the Joint Defense Appeal’s 1955 drive in the New York area.
The JDA, fund-raising arm of the Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith and the American Jewish Committee, seeks $5,000,000 nationally, half in the metropolitan area. Dr. John Slawson, executive vice-president of the AJC, and Benjamin R. Epstein, national director of the ADL, were honored at the dinner and were presented with silver medallions to honor their services in behalf of human rights.
Gov. Harriman, in his address, charged that there is very little real effort on the part of the national Administration to change the McCarran Act. He also criticized the emergency immigration program set up under the Refugee Relief Act of 1953 as a “source of disillusionment to everyone,” because the number of refugees admitted in the first half of the life of the program was “only a trickle.”
On the credit side of the ledger, Gov. Harriman cited the gains made in the United States in the Supreme court’s orders to end segregation in the public schools and in the state anti-discrimination programs in the field of jobs and housing, such as are in operation in New York.
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.
