Department Commander J. Garvey of the Veterans of Foreign Wars yesterday announced that the Westchester County Council of his organization had voted not to participate in affairs of foreign veterans’ organizations in the United States.
He declared this held true in regard to proposed celebrations by the Stahlhelm, German veterans’ group here. On further questioning he said that it did not apply to other groups “such as Italian and French.”
“The Westchester County Council,” he said, “voted that it has no desire to take part in the affairs of the organization because of the disturbed political conditions in Germany.”
Edgar H. Burman, past commander of the Jewish War Veterans, said his organization did not protest against participation by American war veterans in a Stahlhelm celebration which had been scheduled for August 10.
“We haven’t objected to it,” he declared, “and we haven’t even heard of it.”
STAHLHELM CHIEF DENIES REPORT
Captain Robert Liebert-Emden, head of the New York unit of the Stahlhelm, yesterday denied reports that a German fest in which his organization was to have joined with the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion and the Steuben Society, had been called off because of non-cooperation by American veterans.
The occasion, which was to have embraced field day exercises and a music festival, was set for August 10.
“I am quite certain that no American military organization can bear prejudice against the American Stahlhelm,” Captain Liebert-Emden yesterday told The Jewish Daily Bulletin. “Our purpose is to be friends with America and many of us are good American citizens. We are shocked to learn of reports indicating that we might be regarded otherwise than in a friendly way by any American group, particularly veterans.”
Captain Liebert-Emden stated plans for the affair had been abandoned because it came close to a celebration planned for Labor Day in Rochester.
ALL VETS INVITED
“All American veterans have been invited to be with us on Labor Day. We have sent out invitations to the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion and, as I understand it, they will be there.”
The American Stahlhelm has been closely connected with the mother organization in Germany, which is composed of 1,000,000 veterans of the World War. A movement recently instigated by Nazis to dissolve the Stahlhelm and create it anew as a Nazi League of Front Soldiers was not particularly successful. The move to do the same in this country met with no success whatsoever.
While some of the Stahlhelm members are recognized as members of the Friends of New Germany, the organization as a whole is considered out of sympathy with the Nazi movement here and, to some extent, the Nazi administration in Germany.
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.
