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News of Easing Anti-jewish Curbs Not Published in Reich

December 13, 1938
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A semi-official communique issued this morning and announcing to the world easing of the stringent anti-Jewish measures of the past few weeks remained unpublished in Germany late today. A check-up revealed that so far the communique, which announced that after Jan. I certain streets, Hotels and restaurants will again be open to Jews, and indignantly repudiated any suggestion that the Reich intends to establish a ghetto, has been released only for foreign consumption.

As things stand at present the Reich Jews know only that they may expect the anti-Jewish measures to be even further extended, a warning to that effect having been issued recently by the Berlin police prefect. They take no chances and are not to be seen in the forbidden zones, or any of the restaurants, cinemas, theatres and cafes barred to them.

The communique, which was issued by the semi-official German News Agency (D.N.B.), admitted that it was Germany’s aim ultimately to drive all Jews from the Reich, but at the same time it criticizes sharply police officials in some German cities who have taken steps to reestablish the ghettos of the middle ages.

The first installment of the billion-mark fine imposed on German Jewry after the assassination in Paris of Ernst vom Rath, Reich diplomat, by a Jewish youths, falls due this week. It must be paid before Thursday, Dec. 15 and cash must be furnished. Stocks and Bonds must not be sold on the market by the Jews to realize cash, since a sudden unloading would cause sharp fluctuations on the stock exchange. Jews may, however; turn them in to the State Bank of Prussia where cash will be furnished for them.

The Schwarze Korps, organ of the Hitlerite Blackshirt guards, today proposed that German women who “soil” their race by having relations with Jews should be accorded the treatment meted out in the Middle Ages for like offenses. They should have their hair cut off and their heads shaved, in order that their shame might be publicly made known, the journal asserted.

SEPARATION, NOT SEGREGATION SOUGHT

Not segregation but “separation” of the Semitic from the “Aryan” strains is the aim and this is to be achieved by the departure of all Jews from the Reich, the D.N.B. statement said. “The purposes of measures already taken or contemplated is the emigration of all Jews from the Reich, not only in the interests of the German people but of the Jews themselves,” the agency statement said. “Now that Germany has determined its unitary racial conceptions, there would always be difficulties despite all measures taken precisely for the purpose of avoiding friction. It is impossible to bring Jews into accord with Germans conscious of their race, as history has sufficiently proved. That is why separation of the German people from Judaism is desirable. The separation realized up until now in the domain of law must become effective. It is wrong to speak of placing a ban on the Jews. One cannot speak of quarters reserved for Jews or a ghetto. Jews will be admitted only into house belonging to Jews. Naturally the strictly legal exclusion of Jews from economy is pursued. But of this too there is an entirely false idea abroad. The ordinance of Dec. I prescribed that from Jan. 1, 1939 Jews shall no longer own retail or wholesale stores or exercise trades as artisans. But after Jan. 1, 1939 Jews will be able to buy in all stores and will have free access to all cafes and restaurants except certain stated retail shops and restaurants. It is inconceivable that Jews would greatly desire, for example, to go into the Kaiserhof in Berlin or the Deutscherhof in Nurnberg. However, in general, all shops and restaurants will be open to them.

“It is understood that all these have as their purpose the emigration of the Jews and the facilitation of this emigration to the greatest decree possible. The difficulty lies solely in transfer. Perhaps foreign Jews could put currency at their disposal, as they did for the Australian Jews. Every rich Jew who emigrated facilitated the emigration of some poor Jews. A solution was seen in this and it has already been attempted to realize this in the Reich.”

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