Whether Europe’s Jewish survivors, facing a series of conditions that threaten their recovery efforts of the past three year, will continue to make progress towards health and self-support, depends primarily upon immediate and increased American aid, Edward M.M. Warburg, chairman of the Joint Distribution Committee, declared today following his return from Paris.
In a report on the all-Europe J.D.C. conference held in Paris which he attended, Mr. Warburg told a meeting of the J.D.C. ‘s Administration Committee here: “We must increase our help this spring and summer to meet new and serious problems confronting Europe’s Jews. These problems include the fact that despair is growing greater every day among the 250,000 Jews in Europe’s DP camps who, in the light of the U.N. partition decision, had confidently expected that thousand of them would be leaving for the Holy Land this summer.”
“A second great problem,” he declared, “grows out of the economic change in Eastern Europe that has displaced large numbers of Jews who formerly were engaged in individual enterprises. These economically displaced are increasing J.D.C. relief roles daily, making it necessary to broaden programs aimed at economic reconstruction.
Reviewing the current condition of the Jewish D.P.’s, Mr. Warburg said: “Their standard of living has worsened as a result of the reduction of international assistance. To fill the gap J.D.C. has found it necessary to revise upward its original D.P. aid program this year in an attempt to make up many of the current deficiencies.” He added that in addition to increasing its supplies and services, the agency must expand its reconstruction programs as a means of meeting the problem of those displaced economically, and as a morale booster.
Mr. Warburg headed a delegation of six American Jewish leaders who attended the Paris conference. J.D.C. area directors form 19 European countries and Cyprus, North Africa and the Middle East also were in attendance. The other Americans at the parley were Rabbi Jonah B. Wise, Judge Maurice Bernon, Cleveland, Moses A. Leavitt, Robert Klenin, Chicago, and Simon H. Scheuer, of New York
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