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Drive Launched in Poland for Extension of Ghetto System to All Fields

October 11, 1937
See Original Daily Bulletin From This Date
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ENCOURAGED BY OFFICIAL INTRODUCTION OF THE "GHETTO" SYSTEM IN WARSAW UNIVERSITIES, ANTI-SEMITIC NEWSPAPERS TODAY LAUNCHED A CAMPAIGN FOR ITS EXTENSION TO OTHER WALKS OF LIFE.

CALL FOR WIDER "GHETTOIZATION" IN POLAND CAME AS CLASHES HAD MARKED ATTEMPTS BY POLISH STUDENTS OVER THE WEEK-END TO FORCE UNOFFICIAL SEGREGATION OF JEWS IN LWOW AND WILNO COLLEGES.

AT LWOW UNIVERSITY JEWS WERE PREVENTED FROM OCCUPYING ANY BENCHES AND FORCED TO STAND DURING LECTURES. FREE-FOR-ALL FIGHTS RESULTED WHEN SIMILAR EFFORTS WERE MADE BY ANTI-SEMITIC STUDENTS IN THE NATURAL SCIENCE FACULTY OF WILNO UNIVERSITY.

TWO HUNDRED NATIONALIST STUDENTS DEMONSTRATED IN WILNO STREETS SHOUTING SUCH SLOGANS AS, "POLAND FOR THE POLES!" AND "JEWS, GET OUT OF THE UNIVERSITIES." FIGURES MADE PUBLIC TODAY SHOWED ONLY 55 JEWS AMONG 1,000 ENTERING STUDENTS AT WILNO UNIVERSITY AND 16 OUT OF 367 AT LWOW POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE.

"GHETTO BENCHES," MEANWHILE, WERE INSTITUTED IN THE WARSAW SCHOOL OF DENTISTRY, WHERE THERE HAVE BEEN NO ANTI-JEWISH DISORDERS IN THE PAST.

THE NATIONALIST ORGAN, WARZSAWSKI DZIENNIK NARODOWY, LED THE DEMAND FOR EXTENSION OF THE "GHETTO" SYSTEM. IN A LEADING ARTICLE, IT URGES "GHETTOIZATION" OF MARKETS, HANDICRAFTS, THE PROFESSIONS, AND THE ARTS AND SCIENCES.

THE PAPER SUGGESTS ALSO EXCLUSION OF JEWS FROM THE ARMY AND INTRODUCTION OF "TERRITORIAL GHETTOS," WITH JEWS BEING PERMITTED TO LIVE AND TRADE ONLY IN CERTAIN QUARTERS OF LARGE CITIES AND IN CERTAIN TOWNSHIPS THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY.

AS A FIRST STEP IN THIS DIRECTION, THE JOURNAL ADVOCATES THAT JEWS BE FORBIDDEN TO LIVE IN BRZESC-LITEWSKI AND CZESTOCHOWA, SCENES OF RECENT POGROMS. "REMOVAL OF THE JEWS FROM BRZESC," THE PAPER COMMENTS, "SHOULD BE AN EASY MATTER, AS THEY HAVE BEEN RUINED THANKS TO EVENTS IN THAT CITY."

THE PAPER’S CALL WAS TAKEN UP BY POLISH TRADING ORGANIZATIONS, WHICH ASKED INTRODUCTION OF "GHETTO TRADING PLACES" IN POLISH MARKETS, AND BY WILNO TAXICAB DRIVERS, WHO DISPLAYED NOTICES ON THEIR WINDOWS, "MEMBER OF THE CHRISTIAN UNION OF TAXICAB DRIVERS,"

IN AN EFFORT TO FORCE SEGREGATION OF JEWISH DRIVERS. AT THE SAME TIME, THE NATIONALIST MINORITY IN THE WILNO MUNICIPAL COUNCIL PROPOSED INTRODUCTION OF "GHETTO" SECTIONS IN THE PUBLIC MARKET.

THE ANTI-JEWISH BOYCOTT CONTINUED IN MANY PARTS OF POLAND. ANTI-SEMITES IN SOKOLOW-PODLASKI DROVE JEWISH TRADERS FROM THE CATTLE MARKET, BEATING MANY OF THEM. THE ORGAN OF THE UNION OF POLISH MERCHANTS, TYGODNIK HANDLOWY, WARNED THAT "DISORDERS CAUSED BY THE BOYCOTT HAVE EXERCISED A DEPRESSIVE INFLUENCE ON POLISH INDUSTRY AND CREATED THE FEAR OF FINANCIAL CRASHES AND DEEPENING FINANCIAL CRISIS."

THE NEW DISTRICT GOVERNOR OF BIALYSTOK, ORASBEWSKI, PROMISED A JEWISH DELEGATION TO TAKE IMMEDIATE MEASURES TO RESTORE ORDER IN THAT DISTRICT AND TO INSTRUCT LOCAL AUTHORITIES ACCORDINGLY. THE DELEGATION, REPRESENTING THE BIALYSTOK JEWISH COMMUNITY, DESCRIBED THE RESULTS OF CONTINUOUS EXCESSES.

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