Under-Secretary of State Summer Welles today emphasized that the refugee children whom the State Department has agreed to admit to the United States, from France, are not of any particular race or nationality. He made this statement following a report from Vichy that the French Government has agreed to permit the emigration of Jewish children from France whose parents have been deported to Nazi-occupied territories.
Refusing to confirm the figure of 5,000 children which the Vichy report said will leave for America, Mr. Welles said that he wanted to make it clear that the group includes not only Jewish children, but also natives of many countries. “The children, left destitute by their parents’ deportation, appeal to our deepest humanitarian instincts,” he said. He added that the United States Government is doing everything it can to facilitate the effects of private organizations to bring them to this country.
Mr. Welles explained that the State Department would grant the young refugees visas under the present immigration laws. After they arrive here, private charitable institutions will be responsible for their care and maintenance. It is estimated that there are about 8,000 Jewish children in France today whose parents have been delivered to the Nazis. A representative of the international YMCA, Mr. Don Laurie, will arrive in Vichy at the and of this week from Geneva to arrange for the formalities connected with the departure of the first group of children. He will work in close cooperation with representatives of the Joint Distribution Committee and the America Friends Service Committee in Europe.
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.
