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ZIONISM DURING THE HOLOCAUST.   Term Paper ID:30535 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: Examines Zionism during the period of 1942-1945.... More...

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Paper Abstract: Examines Zionism during the period of 1942-1945. Argues that Zionism during this time has been marked by a disregard for the events in Europe. Concern of Zionists for their cause over the plight of European Jewry. Zionists collabortion with Nazis to achieve their political aims. Brief discussion of Zionism in general. Paper Introduction: HISTORY OF ZIONISM DURING THE HOLOCAUST The history and roots of the Holocaust go back a long way. While the industry of death and destruction did not operate before 1942, its roots were firmly established in the 19th century. Jewish aspirations for emancipation emerged out of the national struggles in Europe. When the hopes for liberation through democratic change were dashed, other alternatives for improving the lot of the Jews in Europe achieved prominence. It is the purpose of this paper to examine the history of Zionism during the period of the Holocaust (1942-1945) and suggest that this Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. The Socialistsdesired revolution to overthrow existing forms of exploitative governments.Many Jews turned to socialism for a number of reasons. The largest community,Germany, had fewer than 6 , Jews. 135-142).[xi] Sternhell, Zeev (1998). 275-282).[xii] Brenner, Lenni (1983). When thehopes for liberation through democratic change were dashed, otheralternatives for improving the lot of the Jews in Europe achievedprominence. The Formative Years. Zionism. Brutal, you are and murderers, too, you are, because of the cold- bloodedness of the silence in which you watch, because you sit with folded arms and do nothing, although you could stop or delay the murder of Jews at this very hour. Zionism in Germany. BIBLIOGRAPHYAvineri, Shlomo (1984). By the 187 s,European Jews were very different from what they had been three generationsearlier. Zionism, in a way, represented the opposite ofclassical Reform Judaism. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society of America.(pp. While theindustry of death and destruction did not operate before 1942, its rootswere firmly established in the 19th century. It claimed that Jews had notintegrated (and could never do so) because they were racially different.The term "anti-Semite" was coined to show that the objection was not to theJewish religion (since they wished to avoid being considered religiousbigots) but to the morally inferior Semitic (Jewish) race. NOTES -----------------------[i] Laqueur, Walter (1972). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.Vital, David (1982). Hefavored the Zionists and gave them his blessings: "Our good wishes togetherwith our official good will go with them." In 1937, the Labor socialistZionist militia, the Haganah, sent an agent (Feivel Polkes) to Berlinoffering to spy for the SS Security Service in exchange for the release ofJewish wealth for Zionist colonization. Ineffect, Zionists saw any effort to rescuer Europe's Jews not as thefulfillment of their political purpose but as a threat to their entiremovement. Only the branch of the young shall survive. The old ones will pass. 152).[xiv] Brenner (1983). In fact, Zionism was selectedby the Nazis to deal with the "Jewish problem."[ix] The ZVfD sent a memorandum of support to the Nazi Party on June 21,1933, and in that same year, defeated a resolution calling for actionagainst Hitler. (p. Most Jews stillmarried other Jews, lived in neighborhoods near other Jews, had many Jewishfriends, and supported Jewish charities, and they still tended toconcentrate in certain occupations. Murderers! 162-167).[vii] Beit-Hallahmi, Benjamin (1993). Original Sins: Reflections on the History of Zionism and Israel. Jewish aspirations foremancipation emerged out of the national struggles in Europe. To this end, the Zionists openly collaborated with the Nazisin order to achieve their political aims of establishing a Jewish homelandin Palestine. For example, Theodor Herzl approached Count Von Plehve, the authorof the worst pogroms in Russia (those of Kishinev), and asked for help tosettle Jews in Palestine; in turn he promised that revolt against theCzarist rule would end; we have to keep in mind, that many radicalrevolutionary movements were prominently manned by Jews. Oxford and New York:Oxford University Press. In its early days, Zionism was a minority movement opposed by anumber of other strong ideologies. Some Jews disagreed with this approach. New York: Schocken Books.Poppel, Stephen M. It was the height of the Depression and theGerman Mark was literally not worth the paper it was printed on. (p. Zionism in Germany. Although,this was a token measure, yet Zionist leaders opposed it. To that end, itconsistently ignored the plight of ordinary Jews who were beingsystematically exterminated, and actively sought to defuse any types ofrescue attempts, since such attempts would draw attention away fromPalestine, for its feared that rescued Jews would choose to settle incountries other than Palestine. (pp.187-193).[vi] Poppel, Stephen M. The agreement entailed the saving of sixhundred prominent Jews on the condition that silence would be maintainedabout the fate of Hungarian Jewry.[xvii] Thus, in conclusion, we see that throughout the Holocaust period,Zionism chose to cooperate with the Nazis in order to further its aim ofsettling Palestine and creating a Jewish state. Secondly, it is imperative to note thatZionism agreed with the basic tenet of anti-Semitism, namely that Jewscouldn't live with non-Jews. Westport: Lawrence Hill.Laqueur, Walter (1972). 64).[viii] Yisraeli, David (1974). Zionism. The Shaping of a Jewish Identity. (pp. In some countries, eventhe medieval anti-Jewish accusations of ritual murder were revived. In their view,this was because the Jews were a nationality in exile from their homeland.They could never live a normal life in exile and would only be acceptedwhen they again became an independent nation.[v] This was core belief ofZionism. Beirut, Lebanon: Palestine Research Center.Yisraeli, David (1974). From Herzl to Rabin: The Changing Image of Zionism. A People Apart: The Jews in Europe 1789-1939. 166).[xvi] Yahya, Faris (1978). 1897-1933. Christian anti-Semites usuallycalled for various types of restrictions to limit the political influenceand economic activities of the Jews.[iii] The second group was far more extreme. In January 1943,a Zionist spokesman informed the House of Parliament that his organizationopposed this motion since it did not contain preparations for thecolonization of Palestine.[xv] In effect, Zionism saw the mass rescue ofEuropean Jews as a threat to its goals. Adolf Eichmann, who would laterwrite the blueprint for European Jewry, was invited to Palestine as a guestof the Haganah.[xi] This level of cooperation reached its extremes with the Holocaust. Zionist Relations with Nazi Germany. (1976). 1889-1945. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press.Vital, David (1987). I was asked: 'Can you bring sixmillion Jews to Palestine?' I replied, 'No.' From the depths of thistragedy I want to save young people. New York: Holmes & Meyer.Sternhell, Zeev (1998). They will have toaccept it."[xvi] Zionist complicity becomes crystal clear in a secret agreement madebetween it and Nazi Germany in 1944 when Dr. Rudolph Kastner, of the JewishRescue Committee in Budapest, Hungary, signed a secret pact with AdolfEichmann to "settle the Jewish question" in Hungary. These agreementssealed the fate of 8 , Jews. The larger (and milder) ofthe two trends was Christian Anti-Semitism. Often, because they lacked socialequality, they tended to support liberal causes. Although it did not succeed inlimiting the rights of Jews, it did spread anti-Jewish ideas in the press,the universities, and in many political groups. Also, there were many well-organized Jewishworkers; and there were many Jewish students in the universities, thehotbeds of revolution.[i] The Socialists opposed Zionism because it supported Jewish cohesionwithout regard to social or class distinction, since the aim of theZionists was to leave Europe altogether and establish a Jewish state inPalestine, the ancient homeland of the Jews. New York: Schocken Books.(p.27).[ii] Avineri, Shlomo (1984). (p.56).[xviii] Yahya (1978). Who is it that gives charity: you who toss a few pennies from your safe homes, or we who give blood in the depths of hell?[xix]No Zionist supported his request, and not one single concentration camp wasever bombed. Beirut,Lebanon: Palestine Research Center. (p. Zionism. Most Zionists were acculturated Jewswho had once hoped for acceptance and now despaired of its achievement.They felt that the Emancipation had been based on false hopes and thatassimilation was a mistake. However, RabbiStephen Wise, the principal American spokesman for Zionism, came toWashington to testify against the Rescue Bill because it would divertattention from the colonization of Palestine.[xiv] This priority became further clarified when the British Parliamentcalled for asylum in British territories for persecuted Jews. Thus, Zionism chose the stance of allowingJews to be slaughtered in Europe, as long as its own goals of a Jewishstate stayed sharply in focus. It is the purpose of this paper to examine the history of Zionismduring the period of the Holocaust (1942-1945) and suggest that thishistory is marked by a general disregard for the events in Europe, in thatthe fate of European Jewry was important only insofar as it served theZionist cause. 149).[xv] Brenner (1983). 57-59).[v] Vital, David (1987). 37-48).[iii] Vital, David (1982). New York: Basic Books. HISTORY OF ZIONISM DURING THE HOLOCAUST The history and roots of the Holocaust go back a long way. TheZionist Federation of Germany (ZVfD), an organization representing a tinyminority of German Jews, was selected by the Nazis as the body to representthe Jews of the Reich. This goal, and this threat are clearly expressed by Chaim Weizmannm,who later became the first president of Israel: "The hopes of Europe's sixmillion Jews are centered on emigration. Political power had been thrust upon them; it was a power basednot on representation, but on similarity of ideals - neither the Nazis northe Zionists wanted to have Jews in Europe. New York: Olive Branch Press.Brenner, Lenni (1983). Madmen! Zionism in the Age of the Dictators. When a period of economic slump followed the boom of the 185 s and186 s, organized anti-Jewish feeling began to emerge, arguing that theallowance of Jews into everyday social life (known as the Emancipation) hadbeen a mistake, since it made the Jews stronger and therefore moredangerous but had failed to cause them to merge and disappear into societyas a whole.[ii] The anti-Jewish forces were of two types. (p.196).[x] Rubinstein, Amnon (2 ). The revival of Anti-Semitism convinced them that Jews would never be accepted in the countrieswhere they lived no matter how hard they tried to fit in. Although the Zionists remained a minority among Jews(and were resented by many Jews as undermining the hard-won Emancipation),they slowly gained strength as Anti-Semitism continued and Jewishsettlement in Israel grew.[vi] On the eve of the Holocaust, Jews represented only a small proportionof the population of western and eastern Europe. 123-127).[iv] Vital, David (1999). (p.55).[xix] Yahya (1978). Jewish radicalism was areaction to a persistent problem - that of Anti-Semitism. (p.59-6 ). Ramat Gan: Bar Ilan University. Silent while thousands upon thousands, reaching now six million Jews, are murdered? The WorldZionist Organization (WZO) broke the Jewish boycott and became theprincipal distributor of Nazi goods throughout the Middle East and northernEurope. Because Jews nowparticipated much more fully in the economic, political, and cultural lifeof the nations in which they lived, they now appeared more conspicuous and(in the eyes of those who distrusted them) more powerful than they had beenbefore. Anti-Semitism becamerespectable in "patriotic" and conservative circles in all three countries.In France, for example, the Dreyfus Affair (1894-19 6), in which a Jewisharmy officer was accused of spying on behalf of Germany, divided thecountry and led to intense anti-Jewish agitation. Relying onpseudoscientific racist, anthropological, and linguistic ideas, theycreated complex theories showing the eternal opposition between the Semiticand Aryan (a vague racist term which could mean blond northern European, orbe a mere code word for non-Jewish) races. A History of Zionism. (pp. This cooperation, in fact, is evident from the very beginning ofZionism. (pp. Therefore, there was room for cooperationbetween the Nazism and Zionism. (pp. France and Austria each had about2 , . Similar appeals byZionists were made to the Sultan of Turkey, the Kaiser of Germany, theFrench, and the British.[viii] This strategy of enlisting Europe's virulent Jew-haters and ofaligning with vicious movements and regimes as financial and militarypatrons of a Zionist colony in Palestine, was clearly made manifest in NaziGermany. (1976). The WZO established the Ha'avara, which was a bank in Palestineespecially created to receive funds from German-Jewish bourgeoisie; themoney was then used to purchase Nazi goods in large quantities.[x] Further, the Zionists brought Baron Von Mildenstein of the SSSecurity Service to Palestine for a six-month visit in support of Zionism.This visit led to a long report by Joseph Goebbels, Hitler's Minister ofPropaganda, published in Der Angriff ("The Assault") in 1934, in whichGoebbels praised Zionism and ordered a medallion struck with the swastikaon one side, and the Zionist Star of David on the other. (p. 185).[ix] Poppel (1976). Ramat Gan: Bar Ilan University. NewYork: Oxford University Press. Nevertheless, they had not disappeared as a recognizable socialgroup, nor had their organized communal life disintegrated. Westport:Lawrence Hill. Theodor Herzl promulgated this idea in his epoch-making book TheJewish State, which was published in 1896. He appealed to the Zionists in Palestine that they should bombfurnaces at Auschwitz, parachute arms and ammunition to 8 , prisonerswho could then undertake armed resistance, and send saboteurs to blow upall the means of annihilation and thus end the cremation of 13, Jewsevery day. Original Sins: Reflections on theHistory of Zionism and Israel. 149).[xiii] Brenner (1983). Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press.Vital, David (1999). Zionist Relations with Nazi Germany. Weissmandel appealed to the Palestine Zionists, because he knewthey had funds and enough infrastructure to obtain fighter planes, recruitJewish volunteers and carry out sabotage and active resistance.[xviii] ButWeissmandel's appeals were all in vain. Some of the extreme racial anti-Semites even opposed Christianity because its Jewish origin.[iv] The new anti-Semitic movement spread in a number of countries,especially Germany, France, and Austria. This latter group, it was argued, was merely trying to penetrateEuropean society in order to undermine it. The majorityof western European Jews felt that Jews should defend their legal rights ascitizens and should disprove the charged made against them throughpamphlets and other types of literature. They are dust, economic and moral dust in acruel world. Other Jewish communities were even smaller (the Netherlands had115, , Belgium 5 , , and Italy 45, ). In fact, there was a general between Zionist views and the viewsof the anti-Semites: They both believed that Jews and non-Jews could notlive together. This book helped to lay thegroundwork for the Zionist movement. The Making of Modern Zionism: The IntellectualOrigins of the Jewish State. Oxford and NewYork: Oxford University Press. Instead, the WZO recruitedsix thousand trained young Zionists from the United States, Britain, andother "desirable" countries.[xiii] In 1943, while the Jews of Europe were being systematicallyexterminated, the US Congress proposed to set up a commission to study theevent, in order to rescue the Jewish populations of Europe. A particularly powerful movement wassocialism, which argued that all problems in society were the result ofexploitation of the workers by capitalists and noblemen. The Palestine Problem in German Politics. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society of America.Rubinstein, Amnon (2 ). In 1935, ReinhardtHeydrich, the chief of the SS Security Service, wrote an article in whichhe separated Jews into two categories: Zionists and non-Zionists. 1897-1933. They saw the Jews as foreign to their Christiansociety and as a group, which stuck together in order to dominate. 53).[xvii] Yahya (1978). They blamed capitalism and thesecularized state (which they identified with the Jews) for eliminating allvalues except money. Von Plehve agreed,and he undertook to finance the Zionist movement. Jews reacted to anti-Semitic attacks in two main ways. They resented accusations thatthey were not full-fledged and fully integrated Germans, or Frenchmen, orAustrians. You, our brothers, sons of Israel, are you insane? During the ZVfD Congress of 1933, Hitler announced a tradeagreement with the World Zionist Organization's Anglo-Palestine, therebyeffectively breaking the Jewish boycott of the Nazi regime at a time whenGerman economy was in shambles. If Europe's Jews were saved, Zionists argued, they would chooseto go elsewhere, and the rescue operations would not further the cause ofsettling Jews in Palestine. For one thing, theJews, more than any other group, saw the existing European governments asespecially hostile to them. While Zionism as an option was taken by many young Jews, it remaineda minority position until the first days of the Third Reich in Germany. (p. The frustration and hopelessness this stance caused is eloquently andmovingly expressed by Rabbi Dov Michael Weissmandel, who desperatelyproposed a series of measures to save the Jews scheduled for liquidation atAuschwitz. New York: Oxford University Press.Yahya, Faris (1978). Zionism. A People Apart: The Jews in Europe 1789-1939. New York: Basic Books.Beit-Hallahmi, Benjamin (1993). The Founding Myths of Israel: Nationalism, Socialism and the Making of the Jewish State. (p. Despite their relatively smallnumbers and their relative conspicuousness, many of these communities werethe objects of intense hostility.[vii] Given this background, it is important to see that Zionism withoutanti-Semitism was impossible. For whom are you saving your money? They will beartheir fate or they will not. New York: Olive Branch Press. The Crucial Phase. Thisanti-Jewish feeling was directed not only against those unassimilated Jewswho remained recognizably Jewish, but also against those who tried to fitin. The Crucial Phase. The Formative Years. From Herzl to Rabin: The Changing Image ofZionism. Princeton, NJ: PrincetonUniversity Press. Zionism in the Age of the Dictators. The Shapingof a Jewish Identity. New York: Holmes & Meyer. The desire to colonize Palestine overruled all others. The Making of Modern Zionism: The Intellectual Origins of the Jewish State. The Palestine Problem in German Politics.1889-1945. (p. The Founding Myths of Israel: Nationalism,Socialism and the Making of the Jewish State. A History of Zionism. Before we proceed to examine the specifics of Zionism duringthe Holocaust period, let us briefly contextualize Zionism itself, andconsider its history before the Holocaust. The Zionists had another agenda.Here is the Rabbi's desperate cri-de-coeur: And you, our brothers in Palestine, in all the countries of freedom, and you ministers of all the Kingdoms, how do you keep silent in the face of this great murder? Their destroyed hearts cry out to you for help as they bewail your cruelty. Whereas the Reformers wished to see Judaism aspure religion with no nationalist elements, the Zionists saw Judaism asprimarily national. Thus it wasthat Ben Gurion informed a Labor Zionist meeting in England, in 1938: "If Iknew that it would be possible to save all the children in Germany bybrining them over to England and only half of them by transporting them toEretz Israel [the colonized state in Palestine], then I opt for the secondalternative."[xii] Thus, the Zionist movement consistently opposed anyrescue of the Jews facing extermination in Europe, because the ability tochannel people into Palestine would be impeded, if not threatened outright.In fact, the WZO classified German Jews as too old to bear children inPalestine, as lacking trades for building a Zionist colony; they could notspeak Hebrew and generally were not Zionists. Followers of this type soughtto return society to its older Christian roots, in which each class knewits place and the rich helped the poor. Don't you know the hell us? (pp. And silent now, while tens of thousands are still being murdered and waiting to be murdered? From a marginal position, the leaders of the ZionistFederation were propelled to a prominence and centrality that surprisedeven them. Zionists called on Jews to look to their ownculture and their own people rather than try to enter cultures in whichthey were not wanted. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.