Gen. Douglas MacArthur has taken no action on two letters sent him asking his position with regard to anti-Semitic material sent out in support of his candidacy by an organization called “Defender, Inc.,” headed by Gerald B. Winrod, it was revealed here.
Rabbi Samuel M. Silver, of Cleveland, disclosed in the Jewish Review and Observer this week that he had written Gen. MacArthur on April 14 and again on May 26 drawing his attention to anti-Semitic material being distributed by Winrod in support of a “draft MacArthur” movement.
In his first letter to Gen. MacArthur, Rabbi Silver said: “I am told that this material has been distributed in a widespread fashion throughout the nation. I can scarcely believe that you are in any way associated with this organization. As one who served under your command on the island of Leyte, I think I know your principles pretty well.”
In his second letter, which also went unanswered, Rabbi Silver said that “to all your admirers it would be unthinkable for you to refrain from condemning a group whose aims are inimical to the cause of democracy. I hope that it will be possible for me to publish a clear-cut disavowal from you.
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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.
