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American Zionist Convention Opened: Still Uncertainty over Next Zionist Leadership: Senator Borah Se

November 10, 1931
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The 34th. annual Convention of the Zionist Organisation of America was opened at Atlantic City to-day, and will remain in session until Tuesday night. Judge Julian W. Mack opened the Convention, which is attended by 500 delegates from all parts of the country.

Great uncertainty still exists with regard to the future leadership of American Zionism, despite the peace pact which was concluded between the Mack-Szold and the Lipsky group last month under which a committee was appointed, consisting of Mr. Robert Szold, Mr. Louis Lipsky, Mr. Israel Brodie, Mr. Abraham Tulin, Mr. Morris Rothenberg and Judge William M. Lewis, empowered to recommend to the Convention the selection of a national Zionist Administration, which will disregard partisan differences and will aim at securing the co-operation of all Zionist forces in America, without regard to majorities or factions.

A letter from Senator Borah, Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee of the United States Senate, strongly favouring the idea of establishing a Pro-Palestine Committee in America, was read out to the Convention by Mr. Emanuel Neuman, member of the Zionist World Executive, who has just returned from Washington where he held a number of conferences with important individuals high in Government and academic circles in America, with a view to the formation of a Pro-Palestine Committee in the United States on similar lines to the existing Pro-Palestine Committees in Germany, France and other European countries.

Such a Committee, Senator Borah writes in the letter, will be helpful in the dissemination of accurate and reliable information from Palestine and for giving encouragement to the movement. I am in sympathy with the work and shall always be glad to help.

Mr. Neuman, who in the course of his stay in Washington also had a conference with Judge Brandeis, the former head of the American Zionist Organisation, who is celebrating his 75th. birthday next week, warned the Convention in his address against undue optimism, even though, he said, the backbone of the Passfield policy is broken.

Mr. Neuman announced that they were beginning to establish a Palestine Economic Bureau as a clearing house for their various problems, and to give opportunities and information to people interested in Palestine. He appealed to American Zionists to send settlers to Palestine, urging an American emigration to Palestine of a thousand American Jewish families in possession of means who would be able to help in the development of the country.

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