In an interview with the Jewish Telegraphic Agency today, Dr. Bernhard Kahn, European director of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, outlined the broad principles along which the relief organization will continue and expand its efforts on behalf of Polish Jewry.
Returned from a survey of the situation in Poland, during which he conferred with local Jewish leaders and organizations, he declared:
“The Joint Distribution Committee and all of American Jewry are deeply distressed over the plight of the Polish Jews, as I convinced myself during my recent American visit.
“The Joint for more than twenty years has been working closely with Jewish organizations in Poland. Different from other organizations, whose cooperation the Joint will welcome, the Joint is faced with the task, as a result of its work hitherto, to continue and to maintain all that it created, supported and developed in Poland with the sacrificial assistance of the Polish Jews themselves. Also, to considerably expand the scope of work of all existing organizations doing social, cultural and economic work, such as youth education productivization of the younger generation, protection of health, credit relief in every form and all constructive relief activities.
“The Joint cannot overlook new organizations conducting such activities, which it built through protracted labor and which won great importance in the life of Polish Jews.
“In addition, the Joint makes it its aim to seek ways and means, together with all existing economic organizations and interested Jewish personalities, for finding new economic existences, though in moderate proportion, for those Jewish masses who have lost their economic positions, and also to strengthen the weakened existences.
“Without going into details, I can only say that in addition to existing activities, which will be expanded, a large part of the Joint’s funds will be devoted to such economic strengthening of the Jewish masses.
“In carrying out this task, we shall seek the cooperation of Jewish social and economic forces, which we found during our previous work, for example, the 130,000 members of the Free Loan Kassas, also the forces represented in TOZ (Jewish health society) and others grouped around our work.
“We hope to find in these economic activities, also, practical workers as well as interested circles through whom and with whom we can work. Previous conversations in Poland have strengthened this hope; similarly, forthcoming numerous conversations with Jewish personalities and organizations will undoubtedly produce the same results.”
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.
