The Jewish Community Council of Jacksonville met today to map plans for immediate and long-range community action to prevent further attacks such as yesterday’s bombing of the Jacksonville Jewish Center. The blast caused less than $3,000 in damages but injured no one.
At the same time, local and county police officials drove forward with their investigation while civic and religious leaders throughout the city prepared to rouse the population against the attackers, identified in anonymous telephone calls as members of the "Confederate Underground."
(In Birmingham, Alabama, an attempt was made yesterday to blow up Temple Beth-El. However, the attempted bombing failed because of a faulty fuse. A total of 54 sticks of powerful dynamite were bundled together. The explosives were discovered after the 25 foot fuse burned to within 18 inches of the dynamite, enough to demolish the temple.)
The Jacksonville Jewish Community Council, whose members agreed today to act jointly on all matters pertaining to the bombing, has scheduled meetings with the local Ministerial Alliance to obtain an official expression of the views of the Christian clergy. It is understood that most ministers in Jacksonville were planning to devote their next Sunday’s sermons to the attack and its significance as an assault on the civil rights of all citizens.
Meetings with newspaper and radio officials and with municipal officers and police authorities have already begun. Ben Stark, executive director of the Jacksonville Jewish Community Council, said today that the police officials were handling a "difficult" situation with a "great deal of understanding and a great deal of cooperation."
Among the long-range plans tentatively considered at today’s Community Council meeting was the establishment in this city of a human relations council embracing the widest possible representation of political, civic and spiritual leaders. The Community Council also plans to keep in active contact with major national Jewish agencies working in the field of community relations.
Jewish community sources were at a loss to understand the reason for the violence since in Jacksonville, unlike in some other Southern cities, neither individually nor as a community had the Jews been active in the integration of Negro children in the schools. In fact, it was pointed out, there has been practically no integration in Jacksonville. Relations between the Jews and the non-Jewish community were characterized as "excellent."
Mayor Haydon Burns said it is quite obvious that the bombing is the work of an outsider." He called on the FBI to investigate. But the FBI said it had no jurisdiction because it found no evidence of violation of Federal law. However, FBI agents are maintaining liaison with Jacksonville police.
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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.
