American Jewish Committee Reports on Activities in Latin America

Techniques developed by the American Jewish Committee to combat bigotry are being successfully used by “sister” organizations in Latin America, the Instituto Judio Argentino de Cultura e Information in Argentina and the Instituto Brasileiro Judaico de Cultura e Divulgacao, according to a report published today describing the activities of the Committee in Latin America.

Explaining that the anti-Semitic, neo-Fascist movement of the Arab League today is the main concern of Jewish organizations in Latin America, particularly in Argentina, the Committee reported: “Avoiding defensive positions, these groups are stressing the fact that Arab interference in Argentine life is provoking internal conflict and obstructing government programs for domestic harmony and social reconstruction.”

The American Jewish Committee report traced the history of AJC activities in Latin America from 1948, when its office in Buenos Aires was opened. Offices were opened in Rio de Janeiro in 1957, and in Sao Paulo in 1963. Among the many AJC-sponsored projects in Latin America described in the report were:

1. Interreligious activities, as in the establishment of Christian-Jewish Fraternities in Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro, and Sao Paulo.

2. Pioneering studies in the use of social research to probe the causes of prejudice, with particular emphasis on anti-Semitism.

3. Translation of AJC-sponsored books in Spanish and Portuguese, and the publication of Comentario, modeled after its English-language publication Commentary, in the two Latin languages.

4. Traveling exhibits that have been prepared for use throughout Latin America.

5. The first attitudinal studies ever conducted of members of Jewish communities in Latin America.

“The most recent focus of AJC attention in Latin America, stemming from a visit of Committee leaders to four South American countries in the summer of 1964, has been the problem of the integration of Jews into the general community, while they retain a clear sense of Jewish identity,” the report stated. “The AJC recently created a Latin American Community Service Program, conducted jointly with local groups and offering expanded opportunities for educational and cultural activities, to help meet this need.”