Vice President Wallace Broadcasts Yom Kippur Message to Jews in Armed Forces

Vice President Wallace, in a Yom Kippur broadcast to Jews in the armed services here and overseas, emphasized that the American people, though proud of their ancestry, are in a larger sense “not Jews or Gentiles, whites or blacks, but the people of the United States.” The broadcast was sponsored by the National Jewish Welfare Board in connection with Yom Kippur which will be ushered in tomorrow evening.

“I am happy to greet the hundreds of thousands of American young men in the army camps, upon the ships, and in service overseas who are preparing to celebrate Yom Kippur, one of the most solemn holy days of the Hebrew faith,” the Vice-President said. “As you enter upon 24 hours of fasting and prayer as a part of your worship, you know that one of your tasks is to free from bondage millions of men and women who are not free to worship God as they choose. All of us who are citizens of the United States are not of the same faith, or the same color, or the same race; but we can live peacefully here if we will give every man an opportunity to live and work without being persecuted because of his faith or color or race.

“You are fighting bravely on many fronts. The names of those who have served in this war will be honored whether they belong to the so-called bluebloods from Boston or Negroes from South Carolina. Let us remember always that although our religious beliefs are close to our hearts, although we are proud of our ancestry, in a larger sense we are not Jews or Gentiles, whites or blacks. We are the people of the United States.

“When you and your fellow soldiers and sailors have won this war, it is the prayer of all of us that all men on the face of this globe will be free to worship God according to their own dictates, and that you will return to a country with its face toward the future, where our hopes and dreams and prayers for a more abundant life will come true,” Vice-President Wallace concluded.