Buffalo Community Leaders Play Down Alleged ‘nazi Problem’

A Jewish community spokesman dismissed as exaggerated today a local press report that Buffalo faces “a serious Nazi problem.” The spokesman told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency that while there had been “two or three cases” recently of Nazi activity, only a tiny number of people were involved and “the matter is well in the hand of Buffalo County and federal law enforcement authorities.”

The Buffalo Jewish Review, an English-Weekly published here, reported on June 29 that “a reliable federal government source” had informed it “that the problem of Nazi activity in the Buffalo area is more serious than the Jewish community has been led to believe.” The paper said the source who declined to be identified, was known to be well-informed. According to the paper, the source said the Buffalo police were not sufficiently aware of the situation because there was no public demand for them to keep up with it.

A statement minimizing the “Nazi problem” which will be published in the Review tomorrow, was issued by Eugene M. Warner, chairman of the Buffalo. chapter of the B’nai B’rith Anti-Defamation League; Wayne Wisbaum, chairman of the American Jewish Committee chapter here; and J. Milton Zeckhauser, president of the United Jewish Federation of Buffalo. They called on the community to refrain from “emotional reaction” in dealing with the problem.

Louis H. Glickman, executive director of the Upstate New York ADL, told the JTA that there are no more than “four or five” people in Buffalo who engage in Nazi activity. He refused to name the people on grounds that publicity would only “spur them to further activity.”

Glickman said there were no more than three or four Nazi incidents during the last three months In one case a group paraded with a swastika in front of a Jewish-owned supermarket and in front of a school. In other cases, persons passed out leaflets of the National Socialist White Peoples, Party.

The source cited by the Jewish Review claimed that the local Nazi group “has dozens of adherents” and “have a camp in the Buffalo area.” Glickman told the JTA that there was no such camp and that this fact “was confirmed by the police.”