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Says Harlem Jews Are Ex-slaves of Dutch Jews

May 13, 1930
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The so-called black Jews of Harlem in New York are not of the Jewish race but are descended from Negro slaves from the West Indies who accompanied the Dutch Jews to America and adopted in the usual manner the religion of their masters. This is the conclusion of the well known anthropologist, M. Zollschen. His theory is confirmed by Arthur Rundy in the Vienna “Freie Presse”, who argues that when the Negroes were freed they remained partial Jews.

There are a number of colored people in Harlem, who claim to be Jews. They maintain two synagogues which have certain of the Jewish religious customs. Some of the members of these congregations speak Yiddish.

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