‘reflex’ Makes Charge of Academic Boycott in American Universities

Declaring that there is a dearth of Jewish professors in the American universities. Dr. S. M. Melamed, editor of “The Reflex.” writing in the December issue, charges that this is due to religious prejudice.

“Only at rare intervals does a celebrated scholar receive a full professorship in a major university. In most cases an aspirant to a professorship must either deny or ignore Judaism or rely upon pull to attain his purpose. The fact that he is of Jewish blood is held against him.” Dr. Melamed writes ## an article entitled “The Academic ##oycott.”“The European Jew beholds the galaxy of illustrious men in the realm of spirit and is filled with pride. Vienna. Rome and Berlin carry more Jewish professors than all the universities in the United States combined. For instance. Yale. Princeton. Chicago, Wiscousin. Johns Hopkins, Michigan. Texas and Georgia universities each have one. Harvard has three. Berkeley has two. Columbia two. St. Louis five. New York University none; the College of the City of New York four, and so forth.

“In New York the Jews are numerically strong enough to combat injustice. Instead of fighting for a certain Jewish judge or assemblyman who mean nothing to Jewish life the fight should be for the Jewish professor. The City College. maintained by the money of Jewish taxpayers with a 90 per cent Jewish student body, makes it impossible for a Jew to get an additional full professorial chair, although New York has a sufficient number of Jewish scholars and scientists who can well fill one-third of the chairs available.”

“If the academic boycott against the Jew continues for two generations more, American Jewry is doomed. The standard of Jewish life will be lowered and Gentile-Jewish relations will be strained to the breaking point.”