Margalit, but the joint Distribution Committee and the cuban government, the negotiations broke down and people ask how they could not make the amount. It came out i think to half a million and close to half a Million Dollars and the join distribution kmiety was taking care of impoverished and persecuted jews throughout the country and i believe the government kept raising the amount that the joint contribution couldnt make in that amount of time and combined with what was said, there was no real will to take in the refugees, so again i think the onus goes back to the United States in terms of what the United States could have done after negotiations broke down with cuba. I thank everyone for coming and staying so long. [ applause ] youre watching American History tv programs, normally seen weekends here on cspan3. Coming up, history professor jonathan ray on what it took for jews to asimulate into the u. S. Culture during the u. S. Era and followed by a holocaust survivor on his familys efforts to Stay Together in nazi occupied poland. And then the voyage of st. Louis, a ship full of 900 german jews trying to escape the nazis and the officer talks about what happenhe to europe. Here are some of the highlights for this weekend. Friday at 8 00 p. M. Eastern, a history tour looking at the civil war. Saturday at 6 30 p. M. Eastern, the communicators visits a Technology Fair on capitol hill. Sunday on q a, political commentator, author and former president ial candidate pat buchanon. And then books on hillary clinton, barack obama. And edward snowden. And the weekly standards Daniel Halpern and sunday morning at 11 30, we tour the literary sites of casper. And on saturday at 6 00 p. M. Eastern on the civil war, the depiction of slavey in slavery in movies. And then an interview with president herbert hoover. And let us know what you think about the programs you are watching. Call us at 2026263400 or email us at comments. Like us on facebook and follow us on twitter. Each week American History tv sits in on a lecture with one of the Nations College professors. Can you watch the classes here on cspan3 every saturday night at 8 00 and midnight eastern. Next, Georgetown University professor jonathan ray looks at the lives of the american jus in the jews into the sim illation into the american culture. This class is about 75 minutes. Okay. All right. Todays class, as you know, will be taped for cspan so please, if you are going to speak up, speak up loud. Everyone should have their notes out and have the readings for today ready. Today we will talk about this question of the tensions that exist between jewish concepts of social justice in america and the jewish need for selfpreservation. Were going to look mostly at the first half of the 20th century, after spring break well look at how this changes after the holocaust and the civil rights movement. But the theme of how much jews are engaged with the questions ofthices or of ethics or social justice outside of the community and ethics outside the jewish social community. I want to start with a little bit of a review to get us up to speed. Weve been talking all semester about the different divisions which in here within the Jewish Community in america. Can we start out with what are some of the ways jews divide themselves from each other or some of the ways jews break down. Socio economic class. Downtown and downtown jews. Movement membership. What do you mean by that. Requiring different observance level religiously we have these movements. The reform, conservative movement, Orthodox Movement with their divisions. They create their own educational institute. You have orthodox colleges and reform colleges. You have Schools Associated with those different movements. Different ethnic origins for different movements. Origin outside the United States that map onto ethnic groups. Yidish speaking dont always finding common cause with thoeds who came together in the 19th century. These are some of the groups tensioned by group, region that there will be divisions from america as well not. Some of the tensions with see in the course is the tension between being jewish and american. The heart of judish or in fact we see a lot of these. Rel relit religio religions play out in questions of how american or jewish can and should you be. How do we play with the concept of religiogioureligious, et cet. Today were going to look about how these different tension had now with all of these jews have a long tradition of taking care of the poor of orphans jewish relithe othe lithe. The way of ethical conduct in the way you behave is discussed we hold those truths would be selfevident that all men are created equal. One would think that very b oft, to be american one is obliged to have a conscious and defend the poor. Very often it seems that they are motivated to help of traditional ideals. What were some of the reasons we have to deal with poverty, et cetera. We wanted to counteract it. They thought the poor were giving them a bad name. Theres this idea par giviiti shame. If they wanted to get compassion from other Members Society they had it in a just way. It was a way for women to find a way in society to take leadership roles. Yeah so we see women who are very often somewhat marginalized in official ma. Some of the progressive reformers are out there creating organizations. Fundraising fundraising. There are a variety of of alternatives. We need to help the jewish poor and combat negative images of jews as krcriminals. One of the earl ef, penniless and therefore a charge on penniless penny we also heard that jews who did not consider themselves jews who were found to be affiliated with synagogs and pray regularly, nonetheless didnt being fully secul secular. They wanted to have bar mitzvah coming of age ceremonies because they wanted a coming of age rit yul. They werent going to observe th them. In the way really forces them to make decisions. If you can become nonsecular or mass as nonwhite do you take that opportunity or are you going to find it somewhat unsatisfyi unsatisfying, do you to figure this out. Something thats there. Tin can alley is a popular place where music is composed. Jews find themselves overrepresented as writers and performers. It gives us a glimpse in the changes of below that are not theologically a theologically motivated. We see jews taking the opportunity to change their names and pass more or less as americans both as composers, entertainers whether they think they can do this fully or it will just help their career by taking on more americanized positions. Interestingly enough, we also see that the dream of afsim l asimulation. That gets somewhat abandoned. The idea that a christian immigrant. Whatever problems they had would real lis peer. By the 1930s there seems to be a discomfortable there are some who believe what you should do is keep your head down and try to pass do it quietly. Its not that somebody will reject your religion its this youre atrayou should mark your as being jewish and trum pext jewi, trumpet. The movie the jazz singer, jews had already been involved in combating questions of antisemitism that were in the movies and the formation of the edl. We also have jus using the movies as a platform for their own ideals and to some degree a place where they work out their issues. Publically. The jazz singer is the most known of these necessity that its the first major film thats with sound. Its in the meant for a jewish audience. Its meant for nonaudience. Its about the son of a canter. He should go out in the world and become a popular singer and have all of the things including a nonjewish love interest. Interestingly enough, it also dea deals. He does so by putting on black face so hes changing his race but not really. Hes changing his race the way other whites change at playing with race. By putting on black ice you associate with the dominate white proddestants cannot. A similar tension can also be seen in a jewish written and produce produced piece in the 1930s is a classic in which jewish music n musicians create this world about africanamericans in america which talks about injustice and having the jews up there, this is jews are talking about afric anamericaafricana. Jews clearly had an interest in engaging with questions of exclusion and belonging and becoming american. Whats the cost of becoming american. How any immigrant group can work them out. Any questions on this so far . Yeah, jacob. So this might sort of be on this track of assimilation but as jews would sort of help poor jews and poverty, help them to sort of clean how would helping those jews fit into jews henry forward wrote about and helping other jews. Right. So he asked how do jews ep others period without having these things against them that only work. Jews are to deal with these stereotypes. There are some who are more worried about them an. Help those in need. We have a mandate to help those in need which we are able to get rid ofrj kbz[, antisemitism. All of these things are at play. Do we do these things publically. Question hely in becomes an issue. Other questions. All igt. Why jish waways in which some o composers or popular architects from the jewish world at this time, the jews are overrepresented as a group in the Entertainment Industry at this time. Its the avenue of upper mobility for a lot of them tell their story directly or indirectly. The music of orphan baylin as does gu srkguscaun. Here you have this Jewish American writing about the nostalgicness of writing about white correctness. Is this some idea of longing for. Being part of on tack. He writes take me out to the ball game. Again sort of this classic of americanana of that day. When you begin to add up a lot of the sort of americanana and popular music written by jews at the time its hard to say its just coincidental. Theres something about American Jews dreaming about and struggling with accommodation of america that really arises out of this period that theres a lot of freedom and accommodate. They dont feel they can easily accommodate this issue of social justice when it comes to labor unions which is sort of our second great theme for today. We already talked about the great migration of Eastern European jews had become engaged in socialism or similar political ideology already in Eastern Europe. They come over engaged with the question of class struggle. The question of religion possibly being an obstacle to full freedom for all human beings. Therefore you have jews who reject religion or constructs as things that separate people and hold them back. We had a little discussion about jews what is it . Jewishness without judaism in one of the chapters assigned to you it . We started with this question, judaism sits behind christianity with its believe in god, et cetera. This efor me judaism is being a Italian American or africanamerican, it is a cultural designation it the a e rellgous it is over the request of industrial world not only should workers push back against management or how can you as a good jew let them bea cuesed. Fighting for workers rights is inher ept inher, injustice. Its not because weve been taught its wrong, this is wrong because as human beings, we see the industrial being as wrong. We begin to see in the early 20th century, late 19th, organizations in the American Jewish world that seek to aid m immigrants and seek to aid the poor but also things that seek to aid jewish labor. Now, i asked you toty about it a little bit. What here is odd about jewish socialists who believe you get people to unite. Why do you have a Jewish Organization of any kind . Isnt that a problem isnt that contradictory. She said that a lot of the Labor Organizations at the time were antiimmigrant were immigrants so jews had to form their own alternative labor. Why dont an immigrant organization . Why does it have to be a jewish Labor Organization . Why dont the jews bond with other immigrants . Well, it was saying that a lot received a lot of bad treatment in the work place when people found they were jewish, they were getting attacked and robbed on the streets. So they needed to establish unions and they were a way for them to let out their frustrations with other people who understood where they were coming from. They couldnt bring their issues from the boss because he may have been someone who didnt understand where they were coming from. Okay. The work place that theres this idea that here at work we have to discuss or deal with questions of Sexual Harassment or other things that take place in the work force as well as governing wages gentleman i was thinking jewish workers thought they were better than other immigrant workers. He ran t, i thought jewishs thought they were superior to nonjewish workers. Wauchhe also said that a lar percentage of factory owners were jewish and maybe ensince a lot of the jewish employers, a lot are employ jewish you kwk employee were possibly eve overreprese overrepresented in the work pla place. They werent allowed to receive low interest loans without collateral. Right. The other answer here is workers saying workers the world unite and the others saying youre not jewish. Were not hanging out with you. Ed they are workers. That havent been able to convince others of that. All men are created equal. We dont know what women. In 1922 there were only 85,000 people who were in the different branches of the ring. Yeah. So why does it feel like thats a low number for the amount of people coming over . Well thats a particularly Jewish Organization. Its maybe a their of those immigrants are krus. We can see that will address some imimmigrants but not others. Any other questions before we get onto that. Here you have mostly jewish women attacking mostly jewish male butchers but also policemen when they try to break it up because they believe the price of meat is too high that organized crime has set the price of meat very high. You will see that morality in the kosher Meat Industry not just in pricing but the way animals are treated is still very much there. In this case you see protesting is a means for expressing their problem with social injustice at the time. All of these different questions come together in something that michael writes about known as the work mens circle which is mostly established by and for eastern yidish speaking jews which challenging the supremacy of jews with different groups popping up and you have other groups saying im not particularly religious. They dont ment dontment. They developed a whole set of institutions for the propagation of their ideology including 47 yidish schools and a National Organization which uses traditional jewish culture and values and modern jewish Political Organization you begin to have at that point,; x p and that this was a possible model of being jewish in america, right . These included not only school but a dedication to including women in a way that really many of the religious organizations were not. Theres an interest in growth which supersedes maany other agenda. We feel like were helping immigrants or jus good r. Theres this discussion as it grows. As with all of tease relithe louse manufacturents. There were any rituals or were those totally gone by this point . Yes. There is some sort of appeal to rituals. They talk about temples of labor as their meeting places. Its not religiouses see though we do have interest in burial plots. Charity toward their own. We see the birth of landsman, a fellow from the same town or region in europe. It is organizations who came from the sirius area. It functions as a club as a mutual aid society. If the bread earner in a family gets killed. Sometimes that woman gets a woman to help. You might help a family at buri burial. Ebb ebb, any question before we go on . The question of how you make it available to the masses is a problem that plaques other organizations like it as well as other educational movements is it the day school movement. Is it night school movement. Theres this question aouting w teach culture in your particular way. Concert halls. A lot of of this Education Committee interest overlaps with the jewish sfr culture. Sometimes those themes were overtly religion often they are not. Sometimes they become a means of a culturation. Sometimes you have shakes spere. Socialist values. There will be plays about this and music about this. They will teach School Spirit songs that will talk about one day the worker will break the chains of bondbondage, et ceter. You have this large combination of culturally different schools in a lot of ways yet the ideology they are teaching is universal ideology. All of man kind as if theres a world in which these students can go out into and join hands with the greek and polish and methodist workers who went to their school. The fact is they are ahead of the curve. They are preparing jewish workers for a pair dice that america really isnt. In the questions on this . Okay. All right. Speaking of yidish and the idea of it as a united force among the children of the Eastern European binned el brief that i had assign. We saw jus using periodicals as early as the 19th century as a way of keeping tabs on other jew and being informed on other subjects. Here it becomes another sort of less religious or overtly organ for this. Aspects or articles or advertisements are catering to a religiously jewish clientele. Not everything. Theres also left leaning socialist content here. Abraham cahn is rally a force for quite sometime. Here we have a glimpse into the lives of average jews in this period. Now a caveat here. Were not really sure if these are actual letters and actual specific answers by different people. What we might have portrayed here is fiction where editors are creating composite letters were not sure but taken together they reflect things that the readers got to read and serge some of the ideology and way ways jews had to fight for identity if america. Lets take a lack at this one on 58 that someone referenced earlier. For my spanish majors this is a corner of the settlement of poland which was considered one of the poorest parts of Eastern Europe and it had a very large dense Jewish Population and many known fas the most poorest, leat modern, like calling someone a hick or unrefined. They themselves didnt like this but it givers them chance. Whats interesting about the way she starts out this piece . Any of the language she uses. He she says she minding her own business and not against anyone at the work place. She identifys hrself as a wo worker. Why should one jew get along. In one detate she said all of them are not good. She said she wished all galacians were dead. Quite strong. Not only all of you jews from that part of the world speak funny but rather i wish you all were dead. Okay. Um, she was naturally taken aback by this. I was naturally not silent. According him they are unhuman savages and he had the right to speak of them so badly. Dear editor does he really have the right to say this. So, shes on yo w whats her rebuttal to this . Given enough money. One of the reasons why we should be treated nice is what . That weve given a lot of money. Yeah. Weve dpichbgiven a lot of mone. Where has this idea come from . We should be treated nice because were charitable . I think maybe in part from the idea that jews are an economic burden on society. So havent can he we all decided were going to fight it add isnt we do this. It was a matter of accepting jews because of their economic helpfulness and now this is a matter of im being economically helpful isnt this enough to be accepted. Interestingly. One reason. We understand the deal. We shouldnt be a burden on. We take which is not being of the abrahamic religion. The social contract in america is everyone pulls their own weight. Were doing that. Also questioning too the fact that hes a russian jew. Arent we helping them . Dont they realize were on their side. Not only do we help jews but we help jews from where youre from you you. Still we give to charity like were supposed to. Like a good jew. It may be part of it. Its hard to say whether this is charity or sudacca. Like you could read this anywhere and not think they are in america because they are not really under this one unified out look. They are talking about racial tensions or just tensions in judaism that could exist anywhere in the world. They could still be back in Eastern Europe and have the same discussion. You bring up an interesting issue. We talk about jus in america. A lot of these people operate in a space9i 0 x thats not froi whe anywhere. It could be found in the factory. Whos reading . Do you want to read again. When a gentile speaks badly of jews its immediately printed in the newspapers and discussed hotly everywhere. Pause right here. If youre a reader of the newspaper, i want to hear your opinion. What did you notice about the way this ends . Whats go on her at the and of her already. Does i ha ill not sure if this is what youre looking for. Shes asking questions but they are essentially rhetorical. The answers are pretty evident through what shes been saying. You pointed out earlier that it seems a little arc atypal and possibly maybe this was created by someone else because it does sort of go over these questions that dont that are sort of easily answered. When she said lets b make it a statement. Ge jent ieshs gentiles it ha got in the papers why is it an orthodox russian attacks me the jews get up in arms and its printed in the New York Times but if a russian jew attacks me it doesnt get attention. Why is that. My thought is that it may not necessarily be that they shes asking rhetorical questions because we spoke about how that antisemettism caused self doubt among jews of it could be that shes used to having antiis heetism but when another fellow jew as her atabs her it could cause more of the doubt we discussed. Ill not safe anywhere. J interestly enough. The glacian jus are just as bad people from other ones. Among they are they are such an akwatence as our letter writer. Interestingly enough she doesnt run to our aid. She says yeah they are not that good or bad either. Interesting ending there. I want to look at this letter that starts on page 63 from 1907 which talks about the young machinist. Nate, do you want to read . Were the editor im 18 years old. During the pastry i suffered a great deal because im a jew. My trade is run mainly by the gentiles and ive seen things that cast a dark shadow on the American Labor scene. Jews have no choice but to come into contact with. S i worked small spot in new yo york. At times we were beaten up. Once when we were shop. We were beat up. At the trial they fined the hoodlum 8 and let him go free. Theres this question if the american Justice System can ever work for the jews. They dont have representation in the Justice System. Theresed idea that you need jews in the police force in order for them to be fully protected. After that i wept to work to the at a job. I either have to leave voluntarily but now ive brought my parns over and here. Is there Something Else we can pull from this idea of social justice versus self preservation. How might this shape the way jews feel about questions of social justice versus questions of selfpreservation in america . Yeah, go ahead. There might be a sense that people outside the jawish worew servation soi they say one day workers will unite but today they dont want to talk to us. There will be a group that says the workers dont want to unite with us. They dont have the same idea of us being part of humanity the way they to. Let alone does a christian fill apr april. This is crazy. We should really be just for that. Lets take look then i dont want to read the whole article but lets take a look at the answer. Who was reading. Nate do you want to read the answer . In the answer the jewish machinist is advised to the fact that there are jew and gentile factories where they get along together. People will have to work hard before this senseless hatred can be uprooted. Its not the answer itself but it is a summary. It goes back to the idea of serve selfpreservation. If they dont want us well do it ourselves. Go to the hebrew trade union. Anyone struck by going there instead of somewhere else . Were in a different world. Where might jews go . Aclu. Other labor like aclu. Synagog. Yeah. They say dont go to your religious leader. If jews have a problem and they are turning to social protectors that might be the rabbi. Any last comments on that one . I don want to read one last one here before we get going. Lets take a look at which one do i want to do . Lets take a look at the 1953 one. This is a little bit later in her we have our lovesick problem. Eric, did you want to read this one. Mr. Ed or i write you this letter for sabecause i know the accept your opinion. I have to write in yidish because my english is not good. They are beginning to become obviously more neversed in language and cult jur. Im a young man american born. During the past few years went out with nice attractive jewish girls but i fell in love with none of them. I waited for my true love but if for spot, the girl was not jewish. Here we have this theme that seems to be coming up again and from the the from the melting pot that will be a growing thing as they become thats jewish men and jewish women squxt can clearly, there seeps to be this question of jewish serve iflism. Now, lets hear about the gentile girl. She was refined and has good character and many fine qualities. I could write a lot about her. What good would it do i expect my are here. We have a generationalist we talk about socio economic, we talk about cultural and religion. Generational will be a tension thats not oldish but my undersd my desire for sex, love, rock and roll. I doesnt understand why we reject his lovely krift n, christian. If my parents told me they didnt want to see me again it would hurt me because i love my parents. But when i told them about the girl, they warned me that they would kill myself for picking a nonjewish girl. Thats classic. So now we have this sittinet. L let. Now knowing my parents im ashamed. I feel i would be happy with this girl. Therefore i ask you to explain to my parents that they must rid themselves with the thoughts and stop talking about suicide. This girl is as dear to me as live itself. I did the tow what to do. What do you do when you have a break between religion and secular joorkd woor. You should break off the match because you are from two different worlds. Here the advice is interesting. This is this socialist sort of progressive free thinking newspaper. Obviously its from a different year. We saw in some of the other pieces that its okay to be a free thinker. Its owe e kay to shave your beard once youplolei7 become nonreligious. I think that once you intermarry thats where you cross the line. I think that inner marriage, any thoughts on this . Its surprising to me because talking about what the ideals were, it was often like were just as good as christians. Were able to americanize and then hear the answer is were totally different. Were from two different worlds. Theres maybe some inkcongruity here. Going back to the theme of selfpreservati selfpreservation. Marriage can be prey big threat that if they start marriage nonjawish people. Your snlt, falling away from judaism generation by generation what about this . Tr so possibly the domino affect but you rarely a if you marr marry you dont have a husband to keep you following. Theres dependence of ju ew. Wuss you ta wuss. Demographics is at the heart of this. You can say jews dont mind other religions. The issue is if we theres not if. Despite the fact that youre american born. It has nothing to do with upbringing. Yeah you can say were both new yorkers. Theres this idea of culture being there. If you fm arent they arguing that gold stein who are saying that it zn matter, its not that the jews will reject her but rather shell be rejected by the dom inn yet. The jewishs in machinirries y that time they will have already lost him. The idea of democrats, the editors opinion seems to be dont marry, because the nan writing and asking to get rid of the thoughts and to noted. Do you want to finish it up there so we can get a sense . Even if your parents stop talking about suicide he would become to a stranger to the family forever. Since you were rage p m, you are from two different home sf, i met a girl who is a red sox fan. Her parents are jewish, would the response be different. So this man expresses interest in toop of erelationship erelationsherelations, theres obviously a difference between the two people. Okay so you should stay jewish for the loved ones in your family. That becomes the issue. At least according to this. Okay. Yeah. Im just wondering, are there any post war ent im ensentiment a few amount of people convert because its just the people from the old country in the camps. People if becomes that way in the wake of the holocaust. Obviously jews faced a lot of antisemitism obviously there were 6ed marriages between christians and jews. Were they skied by society. Theres a lot of literature on this. I think it depends. There are jews who reject aspects of that and jews who dont. Very often they find themselves more often in nonorthodox families. It it t. There you go. Tf
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