Extreme Right-wing Movement Reported Avoiding Anti-semitism

The emerging extremist right-wing movement in the United States appears inclined to keep anti-Semitism at arm’s length and to guard against any expressions of anti-Semitism at its forums, two local Jewish community relations agencies reported today.

The conclusion emerged from an appraisal by the Jewish Community Council of Metropolitan Boston and the New England office of the Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith of a “13-hour talkathon, ” held Sunday in Boston under the title of “New England Rally for God and Country.”

The two principal themes of the rally were “castigation of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People” and recurrent praise of Major General Edwin A. Walker, according to the report, which was compiled by Robert E. Segal, Jewish Community Council executive director, and Isadore Zack of the ADL office.

They reported that these two themes “indicated that hostility towards the self-respecting and embattled Negro community has replaced anti-Jewish outbursts when right-wingers get together. ” They added that “no nationally known anti-Semitic propagandists” appeared at the lengthy rally “and evidently were not invited or welcomed.”

The report also noted that while the printed program indicated that 20-minute question periods were planned after presentations by each of the 12 speakers on the program, no questions were invited throughout the program. The report added that “past experience suggests that embarrassing questions reflecting considerable bigotry often arise in such forums and it may well be that those in charge of the meeting were determined to avoid such displays of intolerance.”

The appraisal referred to radio reports that George Rockwell, the leader of the American Nazi Party, was to be one of the rally participants and added, that if Rockwell had appeared, “the rally managers would have been in serious trouble.”