With practically all Jews expelled from German sports organizations, an order was issued here today declaring such expulsions contravene existing German laws.
The order does not state that Jews expelled merely because of their Jewishness are to be reinstated.
Issued apparently as window-dressing for the forthcoming Olympic Games, the order merely announces:
“Paragraph 4 of the by-laws of the Reichs Association of Physical Culture eliminating Jews from membership is invalid as of January 1, 1936.”
Since most Jews were expelled from German sports clubs prior to that date, the order is considered meaningless and is believed to have been issued solely for the purpose of “proving” that Germany does not discriminate against Jews in sports.
The order grants sports leaders the right to “reject application for membership on the ground of unfitness but lack of ‘Aryan’ qualifications is not to be given as ground for rejection.”
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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.
