Americas role in WW2 free essay sample

Adolf Hitler killed six million Jews in Europe between the years 1933 and 1945. Hitler, however, could not do this without help. American laws and policies made escape to America nearly impossible, and her silence emboldened the Nazis to continue the persecution of European Jewry. The Zionist organization displaying excessive loyalty to England, their rulers in Israel, hampered many rescue missions. I accuse these countries and organizations of being partners in crime with Nazi Germany. By their silence, and by their conduct they helped kill many millions of Jews. America, Zionism, and Germany killed six million Jews in Europe between the years 1933 and 1945. America’s Role in the Holocaust A Review of policies and attitudes of the American government that allowed the final solution to take place. In 1544 the rabid anti-Semite and founding father of the Protestant Church, Martin Luther, published his book Von den Juden und Ihren Luegen (On the Jews and their Lies). We will write a custom essay sample on Americas role in WW2 or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page In it he called for the destruction of Jewish homes and businesses. Richard Wagner, crown of Germany’s society is quoted in the Nazi film, â€Å"Der Ewige Jude,† (Fritz Hippler, 1940) as saying â€Å"The Jew is the demon behind the corruption of mankind. † It seems fair to say that anti-Semitism held a prominent place in German culture, and needed only a spark to set off what lay dormant for many years. Germany, after World War One was in shambles, with its economy a joke and inflation driving the general public to poverty. It was in this atmosphere that Adolf Hitler entered politics in the year 1919. Hitler in Mein Kampf (chapter 12) describes his quick ascension through the Labor party ranks, eventually forming his own party called National Socialist Labor Party which held its first large formal meeting on February 20, 1920. In 1933 Hitler rose to power and kept it until Germany’s downfall in 1945. During these twelve years the world changed drastically and the course of Jewish history was forever altered. Hitler’s Rise to Power Hitler attempted to gain leadership of Germany earlier, but was not successful until January 30, 1933. This win was the result of obtaining 44% of the national vote combined with another 8% from another party so that Hitler had a 16 seat majority in the Reichstag1. In March of that year the Reichstag, almost unanimously, voted itself out of power leaving Hitler as the absolute leader of the country. Hitler, in Mein Kampf, wrote all his plans and outlook, and after reading it, it is obvious that all was planned and known before2. One of his most significant viewpoints is that there be a single supreme leader. He writes: At a time when the majority dominates everywhere else a movement which is based on the principle of one leader who has to bear personal responsibility for the direction of the official acts of the movement itself will one day overthrow the present situation and triumph over the existing regime. That is a mathematical certainty. (p. 390) Arthur D. Morse in his book While Six Million Died (1969) quotes the U. S. ambassador to Germany as writing to Washington that â€Å"Democracy in Germany has received a blow from which it may never recover† (p.89). Over the next couple of months, then years, anti-Semitic laws grew increasingly harsh and racism escalated. Whereas episodes of anti-Semitic violence once occurred in the dark of night, it now became the norm for Jews to be attacked on their way to work or while coming back from school. The government organized boycotts on Jewish businesses, and defacements were a common sight. Throughout April and May of that year the professional class of Jews was all but gone. Morse (1969) expresses the harshness of these laws. The Nazi technique for outlawing the Jews economically began with the destruction of the professional classes and worked its way down to the humblest citizen. Within three months after the law’s3 enactment, more than 30,000 heads of families representing 100000 individuals had been deprived of a living. (p. 126) The infamous Nuremburg laws climaxed the impossibility for the continued living conditions of Jews in Germany. The spreading of anti-Semitism through widespread propaganda was extremely extensive as it was well thought out. Children’s books such as The Poisonous Mushroom, and Don’t Trust a Fox in the Meadow, were written as educational tools to safeguard the purity of the Aryan population. Government issued radios were sold for the cheap price of 76 Reich marks to broadcast Hitler’s speeches. 4 Loudspeakers were placed throughout the city streets prior to each speech or rally. There was no escape from the pervasive force of anti-Semitism. As Joseph Goebbels said The essence of propaganda consists in winning people over to an idea so sincerely, so vitally, that in the end they succumb to it utterly and can never escape from it. Such was the rise of Hitler to power in 1933. Such was the anti-Semitism that followed. Silent Bystanders Two weeks after Hitler’s rise to power in Germany, Franklin D. Roosevelt was inaugurated as president of the United States. The most urgent of responsibilities which fell on him were not foreign matters, but dealing with the great depression at home. FDR, as he came to be known earned himself much adoration for the early action he took to stop the plummeting of the economy. Although his alphabet soup programs, as they became known, were slightly controversial, everyone admired his boldness in taking action. The president’s friend, Rabbi Stephen Wise, was a Reform Rabbi and probably the most influential one in America at the time. He headed the American Jewish Congress one of the most powerful Jewish organizations of the time. When the racist laws started the initial response, Morse writes, was â€Å"to wait and see† hoping the torrent of anti-Semitism would slow (p. 126). When it didn’t the general American public demanded that some form of formal warning be given to the Germans5. The only protest actually given was in regard to the mistreatment of American citizens. About the general condition of Europe’s Jews, Secretary of state Cordell Hull, in a letter dated march 28, 1933 wrote to a Jewish delegation, â€Å"A reply has now been received [from Nazi Herman Goring] indicating that whereas there was for a short time considerable physical mistreatment of Jews, this phase may be considered virtually terminated. † This answer was trusted in the face of much evidence. In response to requests of American protest the secretary wrote â€Å"I am of the opinion that outside intercession has rarely produced the results desired and has frequently aggravated the situation. † This answer was, in different variations, the general approach of American policy until 1938. (While Six Million Died p. 93) Silent Brethren In the year 1917 the English announced in the famous Balfour Declaration â€Å"Let us give the Jews a homeland,† and in the pact of 1925 they proclaimed â€Å"Let Britain prepare a homeland for the Jews in Palestine. † Now, in these times of sorrow, the princes of Israel such as Chaim Weizmann, Eliezer ben Yehuda, and other leaders of Zionism like them had a decision to make. To whom would their loyalties lie? Now that they were the ones in power, for they were the spokesmen of Zionism to England, would they bring as many Jews to Palestine, or thinking of the best interests of England would they discourage them from coming6? Ben Hecht (Perfidy, 1999) quotes the tragic decision made by the leader of Zionism, the leader of world Jewry. Dr. Weizmann, addressing the 480 Zionist delegates, fifteen hundred visitors, two hundred press correspondents from all corners of the earth, and official foreign representatives from a score of nations, had this to say: â€Å"I told the British Royal Commission that the hopes of Europe’s six million Jews were centered on emigration. I was asked, ‘Can you bring six million Jews to Palestine? ’ I replied, ‘No. ’ . . . The old ones will pass. They will bear their fate or they will not. They were dust, economic and moral dust in a cruel world. . . . Only a branch shall survive. . . . They had to accept it . If they feel and suffer they will find the way—beachareth hajamin—in the fullness of time . . . I pray that we may preserve our national unity, for it is all we have. † In Jewish tradition, the Hebrew phrase Weizmann used, â€Å"beachareth hajamin,† meant that â€Å"When the Messiah comes, all the Dead will be revived. † (p. 20) These words spoken in 1937 are the clear plan of the main branch of Zionism, the type that influenced British policy in Israel, to abandon them when war were to break out. We can therefore appreciate the tragedy of the Jews in Germany in 1933 until 1939. The doors to Israel were closed long before the infamous white paper of 1939 was issued. America’s Golden Door Closes7 In the beginning of the 20th century the United States was inundated with many immigrants from Poland, Russia, Austria, Hungary, Italy, and Rumania. These were a new type of immigrant, the poor one. Morse (1969) notes the how each group kept to themselves instead of melting into the society of Americans. â€Å"Unlike most of the earlier immigrants, who had dispersed throughout the nation, they [the new immigrants] settled in the cities. They remained identifiable groups . . . alarmed the labor organizations† (p. 110). Because of this a quota on how many immigrants were allowed to enter was put into effect. In 1929 the quota was set at 153,774 people, 83,575 of which was reserved for Great Britain and Ireland. Two more laws were enacted in 1924 which made it hard for immigrants to enter. One was a law requiring a sponsor so as to ensure that the immigrant be supported and not become a public charge. Another law demanded a letter of recommendation from the city of origins police as to the upright character of the emigre. While these laws are reasonable in normal times, in times of genocide they must be compromised. These laws were not at all changed. It is quite inconceivable how a Jew of those times would be able to get this letter. Additionally, to stop people from leaving Germany, laws limiting the amount of money one may take with them were put into effect. They essentially used the American law to facilitate their evil scheme. Anyone thinking of leaving would automatically be considered a public charge by America. In 1940 just as matters were heating up, FDR appointed Breckinridge Long to head the state department, putting all immigration or foreign visiting matters in his hands. Long was a known anti-Semite and admirer of Mussolini and his fascist government. This did not bode well for Jews looking too escape. They stood almost no chance of being allowed to enter the U. S. Morse (1969) sums up the official outlook against changing the quota system. Five days [after kristalnacht] later, at a white house press conference, a reporter asked the president, â€Å"Would you recommend a relaxation of our immigration policies so that Jewish refugees could be received in this country? â€Å"That is not in contemplation† replied the president â€Å"we have the quota system. † The U. S. not only insisted upon its immigration laws . . . but administered it with severity and callousness. (p. 124) There was nowhere to go. Hecht (Perfidy, 1999) ties all of the above. He explains how the Germans had tested their theory that nobody cared or wanted the Jews. This is why they started relatively slowly and increased their harshness as times went on and they were proven correct. In the late 1930’s, the Germans began to test this discovery. The S. S. started beating up Jews in Berlin, Munich, Frankfurt, Cologne, and other towns. Then they tried killing a few hundred here and there. Their hunch was upheld. The killing of Jews, openly and brutally, produced no moral thunder or even noticeable objection—not from the United States, Great Britain, France, Russia. And not even from world Jewry. The Jewish Agency and World Zionism were officially silent. (p. 92) The Germans were free to do what they want. There was no escape. All doors were locked, all eyes shut, and ears oblivious to the tears shed and the disaster to come. Partners of the Final Solution Adolf Eichmann, one of the top Nazis in charge of liquidating ghettos and other grisly projects, wrote in a memoir which was found later and published in Life magazine â€Å"In 1941, the Fuhrer himself ordered the physical annihilation of the Jewish enemy. The method of the liquidation was prussic acid contained in Zyklon B gas. The days of the primitive shooting of victims was over, although it killed one million over its time. The systematic killing machine was about to begin. Gerhardt Reigner, secretary of the Geneva branch of the World Jewish Congress sent a cable to multiple recipients including the U. S. and British governments, and central headquarters of the World Jewish Congress. The cable read: Received alarming report stating that, in the Fuehrers Headquarters, a plan has been discussed, and is under consideration, according to which all Jews in countries occupied or controlled by Germany numbering 3? to 4 million should, after deportation and concentration in the East, be at one blow exterminated, in order to resolve, once and for all the Jewish question in Europe. Action is reported to be planned for the autumn. Ways of execution are still being discussed including the use of prussic acid. We transmit this information with all the necessary reservation, as exactitude cannot be confirmed by us. Our informant is reported to have close connections with the highest German authorities, and his reports are generally reliable. Please inform and consult New York. (While Six Million Died, p. 13) When this communication reached Rabbi Stephen Wise on August 28 he immediately approached his friend, the president. The president told him he was â€Å"profoundly shocked† and assured him that â€Å"the U. S. and allies will take every step to end the crimes and save those who might yet be saved. † He told Wise, however, that â€Å"the mills of the G-ds grind slowly. † An amazing answer to an urgent request, at the same time expressing his wish to help, and also explaining his limitations. After this Wise fully cooperated with FDR, not raising any sort of outcry. Hecht (1999) records the refusal of general zionism to utilize their money for rescue operations, even as the extermination was already confirmed beyond doubt. Itzchak Greenbaum, chief of the Rescue Committee of the Jewish Agency, announced in Tel Aviv in 1943, â€Å"When they asked me, couldn’t you give money out of United Jewish Appeal funds for the rescue of Jews in Europe, I said, ‘No! ’ And I say again, ‘No! ’ In my opinion one should resist this wave which pushes the Zionist activities to secondary importance. †(p. 50) A smaller group of American Jews, realizing how nothing was being done, arranged for rallies and mass protests, and prominent newspaper spreads to inform the free world what was known and being witheld. Peter Bergson, formerly Hillel Kook, was the main driving force of this small group. Louis Rappaport writes (Shake Heaven and Earth, 1999) â€Å"On Dec. 27, 1942 the [protest] proclamation and its huge list of sponsors appeared as a two page spread in the New York Times . It was signed by 27 senators 20 governors . . . † Rappaport (chapter 6) recounts the deepseated hatred that Wise had for Bergson and his cronies even going so far as to regard him as â€Å"equally as great an enemy of the Jews as hitler. 8† It is because of this hatred that this group was unable to save anyone, although awareness was raised, and perhaps as an indirect result of their efforts the war refugee board started in 1944, although the connection is undocumented. Hecht gives another reason for their lack of success. The notables on our roster were sufficient seemingly to sweep any cause to victory. That they didn’t was due to two factors—our notables were not all of them on our side all the time. They came and went, like volunteer firemen. And the Jewish respectables outnumbered us. However many senators . . . the Jewish respectables could come up with five times as many. And not volunteer firemen, but full-time affiliates. (p. 190) The result of these main evils of American silence and immigration laws, and official Judaism’s carelessness, is the death of nearly six million Jews9. Although I cannot be so bold to state that most of the six million could have been saved, it is obvious that many more would have been saved if the â€Å"important Jews† would have worked with the unimportant ones. If idealism of Zionism would have been shelved for just a short time, many more Jews might have survived. However, Eichmann (â€Å"Eichmann Confessions† Life Magazine 1960), wrote of Kastner, the protagonist of Ben Hecht’s Perfidy, â€Å"I understand Kastner [for helping the Nazis and deserting the Jews in favor of Zionism], he is an idealist like I am. † This is the sad, tragic, and unvoiced story of the Final Solution.