Jewish Congress Commemorates Anniversary of Warsaw Ghetto Revolt

The 10th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising was commemorated here yesterday at a memorial meeting sponsored by the American Jewish Congress at which various Jewish leaders paid homage to the heroic sacrifices of the handful of Jewish martyrs who were virtually wiped out in the battle with the Nazis. Among the leaders was Dr. Israel Goldstein, president of the AJC, Dr. Nahum Goldmann, chairman of the Jewish Agency executive, and Dr. Isaac Schwarzbart, director of organization of the World Jewish Congress.

Dr. Goldmann, warning of the dangers of disunity in the ranks of democracy and of failing to recognize moral issues, pointed out that “if the democracies had heeded this lesson when Nazism appeared on the horizon, the tragedy of the six million Jews might have been averted. We should, grasp this opportunity on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto to learn these lessons of human solidarity and pledge ourselves like the Warsaw fighters to stand ready to pay whatever costs it takes to secure the victory of democracy and social justice.”

Dr. Goldstein expressed the belief that “one of the most important lessons of the Ghetto revolt, for our day, is that resistance to oppression–whatever the odds and however limited the immediate results may be–is never useless. The legacy of that epic resistance,” he continued, “will inspire people in the struggle for freedom for generations to come.”

Dr. Schwarzbart, who in his official capacity as a member of the Polish Government-in-Exile was in contact with the ghetto fighters, pointed out that “the Warsaw Ghetto must remind mankind that morality and unity is indivisible, that we must be constantly alert and ready to bring aid and succor to any victim of oppression, that democracy and justice can be furthered only by the most thorough going concern for the welfare of all members of our society.”