A report from Geneva, sent out by the United Press and published widely in this country under screaming headlines, told of the formation of the “Jews’ Super-Government” at the “World Jewish Conference,” in Geneva.
The opening paragraphs of that report said:
“A super-government of Judaism, representative of Jews in every country and pledged to fight unceasingly and uncompromisingly against oppression of the race, was in process of formation today.
“Plans were formulated by the World Jewish Congress for the government, actually a Jewish parliament with delegates from every country, and with permanent headquarters here.”
After quoting from the address by Dr. Nahum Goldmann, president of the Committee of Jewish Delegations, the United Press listed the following five main activities of the present “congress,” according to Dr. Goldmann’s statement to the United Press:
Preparation for permanent congress.
Intensification of the boycott against Germany.
Position of Jewish minorities in various nations.
The situation of the Jews in Soviet Russia.
Methods of combating anti-Semitism, which is growing throughout the world.
Dr. Stephen S. Wise, upon learning of the report concerning a Jewish super-government to combat anti-Semitism, declared:
“This report is so absurd that you may be astonished that I refer to it at all. There are doubtless Jews in New York, London and Paris who are not so enthusiastic as we about the projected World Jewish Congress. But there is not a man or woman in this room who would be guilty of saying such a foolish thing as that we favor a world super-government.
“We do not favor any Jewish government. We do favor Jewish self-respect and the idea that Jews shall cease to be victims of hatred. As far as a super-government is concerned, we merely ask that every government on earth be just, not only to Jews but to all peoples and all religions. More than that we do not ask.”
Morris D. Waldman, secretary of the American Jewish Committee, in a statement to the press, declared:
“In view of the erroneous headlines and statements contained in some reports of the press of a conference of Jews now being held in Geneva, attention is drawn to the fact that the American Jewish Committee, which is made up of representatives in every important city in the United States, has not endorsed and is not participating in the world conference, and that important organizations abroad, among them the Board of Jewish Deputies of England and the Alliance Israelite Universelle of France, have declined to send delegates to represent them. In the light of these facts, the conference cannot truthfully be described as representative of the opinion of Jews of the world or as expressing the viewpoint of Jewish citizens of the United States.”
The World Jewish Conference at Geneva is indeed not representative of a united Jewish public opinion. The organization headed by Dr. Nahum Goldmann, while doing useful work in behalf of the Jewish people abroad, is no longer as representative as was the Committee of Jewish Delegations that functioned during the peace conference in Paris.
A number of Jewish leaders, without having received any mandate from the Jewish people, have gathered in Geneva and have discussed the burning questions affecting the Jewish people at this crucial moment. Some of these moulders of Jewish public opinion are very influential. Others represent only themselves and cannot be described as leaders. Still others have come to the World Jewish Conference merely because they happened to be in Europe at the time of the conference. There is no doubt that all are sincerely concerned about the plight of the Jewish people and are eager to devise ways and means of combating Nazism and the spread of anti-Nazism in other lands. The delegates have succeeded in attracting much attention to the deliberations of the conference. But the conference cannot be characterized as representative of all Israel.
The misleading and untruthful references to a Jewish “super – government” are extremely deplorable and harmful. Anti-Semites everywhere will point to these statements as a confirmation of the Jewish “super-government” outlined in the forged “Protocols of the Wise Men of Zion.” No responsible Jewish leader has ever conceived such a scheme. No Jewish leader could indulge in such an absurdity without being repudiated by the Jewish people.
And yet, notwithstanding the unfortunate exaggerations regarding the Jewish “super-government” and the unrepresentative character of the conference from a democratic point of view, the presentation of Jewish loss of rights and the Jews’ sufferings during this crisis has proved to be effective. The injustice to the Jewish people must be called to the attention of the civilized world vividly and truthfully so long as such injustice prevails. Co-ordinated efforts to win the cooperation of the civilized non-Jewish world to combat anti-Jewish hate and persecutions must be organized. Failure on the part of the Jewish people to unite and work for their self-preservation would merit the contempt of their Christian neighbors. But the organization must be representative, embracing all elements of the Jewish people. Unless it is recognized as representative and authoritative, an organization speaking in behalf of the Jewish people, however eloquently and powerfully and intelligently, will fail to attain the desired goal.
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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.
