Apology for his declaration that he did not want Jews in his local branch of the American Business Men’s Association has just been made by Frederick A. Snyder, local mechanic, who had announced his intention to organize such a branch, open to all Americans, but to exclude Jews.
Following intervention of the Better Business Bureau here, Snyder agreed to discontinue his proposed organization and issued the apology.
After some considerable questioning by W. B. Garver, manager of the Better Business Bureau, during which Snyder declined to divulge the names of the sponsors of his “Association,” he confessed he had conceived the idea himself. Mr. Snyder is 25 years old.
He now claims he is the only one back of the plan to organize an association of American business men in every city of 5,000 or more population in the United States. He had planned to charge senior members $25 a year dues. which would give them “full privileges,” while junior members, consisting of American working men and women, could join up for “a dollar or two.”
Mr. Garver got Snyder to write a letter stating he would discontinue his efforts. He did not announce what he would do with the literature he had printed, some of which he has already distributed through the mails.
Some Uticans are still unsatisfied with the explanation that Snyder was acting entirely on his own inclination, and without backing from any other group.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
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.
