[1.10. Kahn's
expectations from a possible Hitler Germany:
New Jewish refugees]
[14 Dec 1930: Kahn about the
Hitler Nazism - Jewish emigration from Germany has just begun]
Bernhard Kahn was, as we have seen, a man of penetrating intelligence.
It is therefore not in the least surprising that he should have
commented on the rise of the Nazi movement with more than ordinary
perspicacity. In a remarkable speech at the home of James N. Rosenberg
on December 14, 1930, he analyzed the Nazi electoral victory of 1930,
which made them the second largest party in the German Reichstag. Then
he dealt with the hope of many Jews that the Hitlerian movement would
not amount to much (p.54)
more than did the anti-Semitic movement in Germany in the 1890s. He
warned against such a comparison: "The anti-Semitism in Germany today
is more dangerous than the former outbreaks of this Jew-hatred."
This new movement fed on both the economic misery and the political
unrest resulting from World War I. However, Kahn said, "there ist no
possibility of disenfranchising German Jews if the Hitlerites should
form part of the government. It may be that then some of the Jewish
immigrants, or the foreign Jews, would suffer. There would be some
expulsion of foreign Jews, of whom there are 100,000 in Germany", but
even these would be "partly protected" by their governments, not
because of a love of Jews but because these states had a "bone to pick
with Germany".
If the anti-Semites came to power, Kahn surmised, "there may be no
pogroms (although even these are possible)", but the Jews would be
driven out of positions in the political and administrative apparatus.
A number of Jews were already moving out of Germany, and the economic
squeeze that the Jews could expect if the present trend continued would
cause misery and the desire to leave. The great danger was that the
Nazis might gain control of the provincial governments, especially in
Prussia. Even today, Kahn said, "the atmosphere is almost intolerable.
The situation of the German Jews is very critical" and JDC could soon
expect calls for help from Germany. Kahn saw a clear connection between
the anti-Semites in Germany and anti-Semitic outbreaks in Eastern
Europe: "The teaching of anti-Semitism goes out from Germany."
[18 Nov 1931: Kahn expects from
Nazi Germany discrimination - no "medieval persecution"]
As the Nazis gained in influence, Kahn became increasingly worried. In
the course of an address to a group of rabbis a year after the
Rosenberg meeting, he again returned to this theme.
(End note 32: File 39, 18 November 1931)
This time he expressed the fear that the danger in Germany was
considerably greater than what he had feared a year previously.
Nevertheless, he expected economic discrimination rather than "medieval
persecutions".
The same opinion is found in his letter to Cyrus Adler and others on
February 2, 1932.
(End note 33: File 70)
He assumed that if elections were held now, (p.55)
the Nazis would get 180 to 190 seats (actually, they got 230 in the
July 1932 elections). They might come to power if they allied
themselves with right-wing groups, such as Alfred Hugenberg's German
National People's party or even the Catholic Center party, but these
conservative allies would not allow Jew-baiting. "It would be a
different matter if with a government of Nazis and others, the Nazis
were to seize absolute power by a coup d'etat and maintain it. Then it
would of course depend on who the president would be at that time" -
surely an amazingly accurate description of what actually happened a
year later.
[One year later discrimination was starting with concentration camp
systems. Hitler eliminated other parties and by this seized the
absolute power. Systematic discrimination of Jews by Nuremburg laws was
coming in 1935, and systematic deportation began in 1940, and
systematic mass death happened 1942-1945 when the fast victory against
Russia did not come and tunnel systems were blasted into the hills and
the fight of the Red Army was lasting 4 years long].
[Kahn expects the expulsion of the
foreign Jews from Germany - Kahn suggests preparation for admitting
foreign Jewish refugees from Germany]
There were 100,000 foreign and stateless Jews in Germany, Kahn said,
42,000 of whom were Polish and 40,000 were Austrian. The Nazis would
probably turn first against these. But Kahn was no longer as sanguine
as he had been previously regarding the possibility of foreign
governments intervening in behalf of their Jewish citizens. Laws would
be enacted, ostensibly against trades but actually directed against the
Jews. There would probably be no pogroms unless the Nazis achieved
power through an overthrow of the government. While "medieval
persecution" was not envisaged, the Jews would nevertheless suffer a
great deal. Therefore, refugees had to be expected from Germany. The
point of this letter to Cyrus Adler was that quiet preparations should
now be made (in April 1932!) to meet such an emergency.
The year 1932 began on this note, and this extremely discouraging
situation continued throughout the year. East European Jewry was
starving, unemployed, desperate. "The record of Jewish insolvency and
even suicide is a tragic one", Hyman wrote.
(End note 34: Report by Bressler and Hyman on Europe, 1930, JDC Library)
German Jewry was faced with a frightening tide of rising Nazism, and
American Jewry was struck by a depression that seemed to make any
attempt to collect money illusory. Yet something had to be done to save
European Jewry. "My big brother must be with me if his strength shall
be of any use to me. His shouting from far away would not help much."
(End note 35: Executive Committee, Kahn, 11 Nov 1931)
Then in January 1933 Hitler came to power. (p.56)
[And the industrials in Germany protected Hitler, and many thought it
would be only an interim government].
