Dr. Israel Efros, a member of the World Jewish Congress cultural delegation which made a tour of DP camps in Germany, during which it spoke to 30,000 displaced Jews, arrived here today.
Dr. Efros, who is a Hebrew poet and educator, said that he and the other two members of the delegation, H. Leivick, Yiddish playwright and poet, and Mrs. Emma Lazroff Schaver, an opera singer, had visited 18 of the 21 camps for Jewish DP’s in the American zone in Germany.
Jewish life in Germany today, he said, is a picture of misery, nervous tension and despair. However, the DP’s have created a social organization and a form of communal life. Through works hips and schools they are attempting to train themselves to play a productive role in whatever place they wish to settle which in most cases is Palestine. There is not sufficient work for all of the camp residents, he stated, and as a result tension is growing.
The German population has succeeded in beguiling the American soldiers and is becoming increasingly arrogant toward the Jews. Dr. Efros said. Although the troops who fought the war were extremely friendly to the liberated Jews, the occupation troops have fallen under the influence of the Germans, he charged.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
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.
