Although the fortunes of many have been wiped out, although their professions have been taken away from them, and although they live in a state of rigid suspense and fear of the moment when they will be humiliated, beaten, or imprisoned, a large number of German Jews continue to remain ##ithful to the fatherland.
A few of them even support the current anti-Semitic National Socialist administration because of the party’s policies on non-racial questions. They applaud the party’s success in uniting the various divergent parts of Germany. They strongly approve Germany’s demands for restoration of the old empire and the rearmament of the country. And in certain of its aspects they even support the current action of the Nazis against their race.
Dr. Max Naumann, leader of the Union of National German Jews, (Verband Nationaldeutscher Juden) an organization enrolling seven thousand Jewish citizens of Germany, declared in an interview that Nazi action against Jews was in many ways justified. He further stated that patriotic German Jews did not want the support of foreign Side in New York, and the Grenadierstrasse here.
“Unwilling to slough off their oriental traits, they are a disturbing factor to us who are bound to the soil.”
Dr. Naumann scored the Zionists for their retention of Jewish customs and their unquenchable desire to create a Jewish nation. He declared they were intrinsically traitors to the country in which they lived. On this basis he supported Nazi action against the famous scientist, Albert Einstein, because he is a Zionist.
Eastern Jews, according to Dr. Naumann, came to Germany in great numbers immediately after the World War. During the inflation period and financial crisis of 1920-23 almost 600,000 Eastern Jews took advantage of the situation, bought for a few foreign pennies valuable estates, reconverted or mortgaged them after stabilization, and left the country. He estimates the number of Eastern Jews in Germany now at 50,000.
Dr. Naumann believes the German government would be quite within its right in confiscating the properties of Eastern Jews who are now living abroad. A measure ###
Help ensure Jewish news remains accessible to all. Your donation to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency powers the trusted journalism that has connected Jewish communities worldwide for more than 100 years. With your help, JTA can continue to deliver vital news and insights. Donate today.
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.