The chairman of the Jewish Activists Movement, a recently formed student service agency on college campuses, reported today that the group’s office in Brooklyn was “raided” last night, and that correspondence, membership data and donation files were stolen. The chairman, Eliyahu Birnbaum, a graduate student at City College and a rabbinical student as well, suggested that the Federal Bureau of Investigation was responsible for the action, which he called “the most outrageous of a long series of harassments that have been perpetrated against Jewish activist groups.”
Asked by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency if he deemed the FBI responsible for these harassments, he replied: “It seems to point that way.” He said that a month ago an FBI agent named Kenny had visited the Movement’s office to “gather information,” and that he had cooperated short of divulging membership lists. The JTA spoke with an FBI agent who identified himself as Jim Kenny and who declined comment on all questions about the alleged raid, even as to whether he was the only agent named Kenny in the FBI’s New York office.
Birnbaum said the “raid” did not appear to be the work of simple burglars or vandals, as an open envelope containing money was not taken. He reported that the phrase “Never again” was scrawled on the walls, but discounted Jewish Defense League responsibility. “We know for sure the JDL has no use for our files,” he explained. Birnbaum said his group has 1,400 members, mostly in the New York area.
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.
