Arsonists attempted to set fire to the home of Wolfe Busell, the 42-year-old Jewish taxicab driver who was recently fined in a London court for “insulting” Mrs. Francoise Jordan, wife of British fascist leader Colin Jordan, police authorities reported today.
The action took place early yesterday morning while Busell was out, driving his taxi, and his family was asleep at his home in suburban Chingford, Police said an oil-soaked rag had been tossed at his home, damaging the front porch and door. No one was injured. Police today establish a 24-hour watch over the Busell home.
Busell had refused to accept Mrs. Jordan as a passenger, telling her “I don’t want you; I’m a Jew, you stinking Nazi.” He reported she had retorted “if you are a Jew, what are you doing out of the ovens?” He told the court he had then tore off her neck a swastika decorated neckless, throwing it into the gutter. The court fined him four pounds ($11.20).
(In New York, Victor Riesel, a columnist specializing in labor affairs, reported that New York taxi drivers “Jewish and Gentile alike” are raising a special fund to compensate Busell for his court costs because “they want to show their solidarity with their fellow-hackie” and his anti-Nazi stand.)
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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.
