Leading Negro Newspaper Condemns Black Anti-semitism As ‘irresponsible”

A leading Negro newspaper, the Chicago Daily Defender, has condemned anti-Semitic activities by some black militants and declared editorially that “the element in the black community which agitates against Jews is uninformed, irresponsible, with a following that never amounted to more than a corporal’s guard.” The editorial noted the “great similarity between the Jewish struggle for recognition and rightful place in American society and the black crusade for freedom and equality.” It commented that “it would be a strange twist of history indeed, for the members of an oppressed black race to assume the role of oppressor. This is not only repugnant and intolerable.” it said, “but is a dangerous undertaking that would threaten the security of the black folk in the long run.”