Zionism is the only solution of an anti-Semitism whose menace is rising in all of Europe and jeopardizing the future of the Jews in most of the Western European countries, according to a statement made by Louis Lipsky, former president and now honorary vice-chairman of the Zionist Organization of America, on his return Friday on the S. S. Mauretania from an extended visit abroad where he attended the meetings of the Zionist Actions Committee and the Jewish Agency at Berlin.
With the Jewish position in Europe constantly becoming less stable, it is all the more important that Zionists become more determined and assertive than ever, Mr. Lipsky declared, taking issue at the same time with Dr. Chaim Weizmann, President of the World Zionist Organization, who at the Actions Committee meeting at Berlin had declared that moderation ought to be the watchword of Zionist effort now.
In his statement, issued at the offices of the Judea Life Insurance Company, of which he is president, Mr. Lipsky said: “On this background of anti-Semitism, Zionism assumes a greater significance and importance than ever before. It is no longer a negative problem with which Jews must deal. Zionism is not a luxury of philanthropic sympathies, but an economic and political necessity. Establishment of the Jewish National Home is a goal which is inescapable.
“Under these circumstances the program of Zionism must be clearer and bolder than ever. It must demand with definiteness the fulfillment of the pledges of the Allied nations, because the needs of the Jewish people are so great. That is why every Zionist resented the address made by Dr. Weizmann at the Actions Committee meeting at Berlin. There can be no doubt that Dr. Weizmann did not have the proper perspective on the situation today in the address he delivered there. The policy of moderation and compromise, of avoiding a clear enumeration of Zionist principles, of giving way for the moment for the sake of ultimate gain, which might have worked a decade ago, is no longer practicable. If put into practise it can only jeopardize Zionist interests for all time; it may succeed in undermining the great constructive Jewish achievements of the past ten years in Palestine.”
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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.