Anti-Jewish demonstrations in Paris 1945

[Artur Szulc]

(Perhaps this is in the wrong Forum category)

This occurred in Paris, some weeks after the end of the War in Europe:

Paris, May. 31 (JTA) –

Jewish circles here are considerably distrubed by recent anti-Jewish demonstrations, which culminated in a crowd of returning war prisoners shouting "Down with the Jews," as they raided shops in Paris, yesterday, demanding that they be clothed.

Bernard Lecache, president of the League Against Anti-Semitism, told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency today that the linking of the legitimate grievances of the returning prisoners with anti-Jewish activities is a serious development, which must be combatted strenuously. The league, as a first step, is having leaflets distributed among returning returning deportees and prisoners demouncing the provocateurs who are spreading anti-Jewish propaganda.

He also revealed that he has conferred with Minister of the Interior Adrien Fixier and Paris police chief Luizet, who assured Lecache that steps will be taken to fault the anti-Semitic agitation. They requested that anti-racists defense groups do not intervens. The officials also disclosed that police have been instructed to immediately release any Jews who might be arrested in street incidents arising from demonstrations by fascist elements.

Such clashee occurred last Friday, for instance, when a mob of anti-Semitic hoodlums attempted to break into a meeting called by the anti-racist organizations. They were driven back by the police and members of the audience, Meanwhile, 17 members of the "tenant" groups that are attempting to prevent the return to Jews of apartments taken from them during the occupation have been arrested.

Lecache said that the anti-Jewish incidents are attributable to several causes. Chief among them are: the anti-Jewish heritage left among the French people by the Germans; the fact that unpurged fascist elements among the police prevent energetic action against the agitators in some instances and, finally, the existence of anti-Jewish groups, which are not numerous, but which are well-financed.
[url]
http://archive.jta.org/article/1945/06/ ... -disturbed[/url]

Does anyone have more information regarding this disturbances?

[Artur Szulc]

A member in the Swedish skalman.se page has brought my attention to this:

http://books.google.be/books?id=UFVFmxjpqLgC&printsec=frontcover&dq=The+Jews+Are+Coming+Back&hl=en&sa=X&ei=WMryT8SnIMiS-wbc39DVCQ&ved=0CDMQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=The%20Jews%20Are%20Coming%20Back&f=false

[Carl Schwamberger]

In Jacksons English language book about occupied France 'The Dark Years' there are some remarks about anti Semetic activities in 1944 as the Allies closed in on France and then invaded. Jackson quotes some sentences from a French newspaper editorial of early August 1944 which might be summed up as: 'What are we to expect now? Packs of wandering Yids bleating about their former property and wanting to be fed and sheltered?'

Another ugly chapter of the end of nazi rule and dawn of the new Europe.

[anondragon2012]

Interesting that it happened post-war.
From 1870 to about 1920, France had a very antisemitic society with numerous antisemitic and monarchist groups.
Although one could portray this antisemitism as mixed-in with, ironically, germanophobia. (Most prominent jews in this period were German and associated with that country by revanchist Frenchmen).

I always find it interesting that post-1945, France has portrayed itself as the most tolerant semite place in Europe, and that within France antisemitism has, in my opinion, disappeared. Compared with the rabid antisemitism pre-1945 (which was coupled with germanophobia OF COURSE), how could such a mainstream idea within the population disappear suddenly ?

[michael mills]

Meanwhile, 17 members of the "tenant" groups that are attempting to prevent the return to Jews of apartments taken from them during the occupation have been arrested.

That was a very common phenomenon, in France and elsewhere.

The number of apartments left vacant by deported Jews must have been very large indeed, and also the number of persons to whom those vacant apartments were subsequently allocated.

Those persons would naturally have been very aggrieved when after 1945 they were evicted in favour of returning Jewish survivors, or more frequently in favour of relatives of the deported Jews living in France or elsewhere.

A similar phenomenon occurred in the territory of the former East Germany soon after the reunification with the Federal Republic, where persons who had purchased apartments from the former East German Government suddenly found themselves dispossessed in favour of American Jews who had claimed that property as heirs of former Jewish owners, whose property had been confiscated by the German State in the period 1933-45 and then passed into the ownership of the East German State.

[BellaPero]

Those persons would naturally have been very aggrieved

I'm not trying to be rude, but I must object to the use of the word "naturally" in that sentence; what a pity for them that they were living in other people's houses then.

[michael mills]

Object away to your heart's content.

It will not change the objective reality of the situation.

Persons needing accommodation were assigned dwellings by local government authorities, and of course paid rent for them.

A few years later they were evicted from those dwellings when a new government reassigned them to persons who claimed to be the original owners, or relatives of the original owners.

It was natural for the evicted persons to feel as aggrieved as were the original owners when they were arrested and deported. It is normal for any human to feel his own suffering more keenly than that of another person.

[BellaPero]

I'm not taking issue with the reality of the situation – my problem is your attitude towards it.

The word "naturally" in your sentence has no sense of blame whatsoever; indeed, the opposite, and that's what I object to. To simply write off such utter flaws in humanity as "normal" is only permitting unacceptable behaviour. Such lack of compassion to returning Jews is only natural in the sense that many bad things come naturally to human beings. It's like saying rape is acceptable simply because men are naturally programmed with a desire to pass their genes on.

Truly, it is normal for humans to feel their own suffering more keenly than that of another person, and so it's no surprise when things like this occur; but that doesn't make it correct, especially not in this context. Simply being "normal" for humans doesn't make something acceptable. The Holocaust, among many other events, has demonstrated that racism is normal for humanity, but that doesn't stop it from being wrong. And it never should.

Like many things relating to the Holocaust, this is only another example of the darker, disappointing side of human nature. To accept such behaviour is only expecting less of humanity; to have any hope of progressing as a civilisation, we must always expect more, not less.

[David Thompson]

Let's get back on the topic, please.

[Treve]

Thanks for these thought-provoking posts.

[Harro]

Is known how many people demonstrated? As far as I can see the number of people these demonstrations attracted is not mentioned which could mean anything from mass demonstrations to minor incidents.

[Treve]

That is a very valid point. A few hooligans should not be confused with a large scale 'demonstration' of protestors as we understand it in the present sense. Still, the article refers to a 'mob'. These articles while interesting can be misleading in representing public opinion. In the aftermath of Auschwitz one would expect a decrease in antisemitism contrary to what this article could be seen as suggesting.

[wm]

It is an established fact that antisemitism were on the rise at the end of the war and in the years after. The destruction, lawlessness, high prices, very high unemployment levels, the spectre of famine hanging over Europe ensured that there were some quite powerful negative feelings among people and one of them was antisemitism.

And the decrease in antisemitism because of the Holocaust was an intellectuals thing. Common people didn't really care much about it, unless they were in some way connected to the victims or were themselves witnesses of the crimes. Especially that for many of them the Holocaust was only a small part of the mayhem around them.

[summerof1942]

Intersting topic.

[Dili]

Those persons would naturally have been very aggrieved

You make them appear as they are in right.