Julius Rosenwald: The Remarkable Unsung Philanthropist Meet the NMAJH Family OPEN for Interpretation: Artist JJ Tiziou The Memo that Led to Rescue
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Photo: Ilana Blumenthal
Becoming American is the Museum’s most popular education program. It highlights the journey of Eva Baen, who, in 1913 at the age of 17, immigrated to America from Russia. Here, actress Johanna Dunphy of Historic Philadelphia, Inc. portrays Eva, sharing a family photo with visitors.
Contents
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Honoring Louis Brandeis OPEN for Interpretation The NMAJH Family Julius Rosenwald
On the cover: Julius Rosenwald. Courtesy of the Harris & Ewing Collection, Library of Congress.
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This Exhibition Rocks Calendar of Events The Memo that Led to Rescue Farms, Jews, and the Garden State
From the Director “ Let us remember: One book, one pen, one child, and one teacher can change the world.” — MA L A L A Y O U S A F Z A I
Remember the commandments and “teach them diligently to your children.” This is what the v’ahavta prayer, recited after the shema and protected in the mezuzot in doorways across the world, exhorts the community to do. Learning Torah is at the center of being Jewish. By extension, teaching and education have been central to Jewish tradition for centuries. While many of our ancestors immigrated to this country fleeing pogroms and persecution, seeking religious freedom and economic opportunity, so did they come and enjoy quality, free public education. At its heart, our Museum is an educational institution. In technical terms, we are a 501(c)(3) and chartered by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as such. More importantly, education guides everything we do. And I mean everything. I am one of a handful of museum directors in the country who moved up through the ranks in education (rather than an exclusively curatorial track). The centrality of education in the mission and vision of NMAJH and our Museum’s capacity to contribute mightily in the educational arena are what inspired my move to Philadelphia almost five years ago to lead this charge. Education is in my marrow and in the Museum’s DNA. I hope this issue of Beacon helps illustrate the depth and breadth of educational programming in the Museum and outside our walls. We’re grateful that one of the Museum’s academic advisors and a great educator, Michael Berenbaum, agreed to share some thoughts with us in this issue—a real-world example of when knowledge combined with action can, and did, change the world (p. 13). We could never educate the number of visitors that we do without the significant contributions of our volunteers and docents (p. 6), our talented team of educators, including Katerina Romanenko (p. 7), and our interns, who help us teach even as they learn. The story of Julius Rosenwald is the center of this issue (pp. 8-10). By inducting him into our Only in America Hall of Fame, honoring his legacy at our New York gala on June 1, and sharing his story throughout the community and across the country—with Jews and non-Jews alike—in observance of Jewish American Heritage Month this May, we hope to recognize the astounding educational achievements of this visionary. May Rosenwald’s story inspire each of us to dream, dare, and do, in order to transform our lives and the world in which we live. Warmly,
Ivy L. Barsky, CEO and Gwen Goodman Director P.S. W e’d love to hear your thoughts on our magazine. Please feel free to email us at beacon@nmajh.org. SPRING 2016
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“ At a time of intense polarization . . . Brandeis is the historical figure who represents and blends the ideals of both sides of this crucial debate.”
The First Jewish Supreme Court Justice Museum, National Constitution Center Mark Historic Anniversary
By Jeffrey Rosen
On June 1, 2016, the National Constitution Center, in partnership with the National Museum of American Jewish History, will celebrate the 100th anniversary of Louis Brandeis’s Supreme Court confirmation and the publication of my new biography, Louis D. Brandeis: American Prophet. Brandeis was the Jewish Jefferson—the greatest critic of what he called the “curse of bigness,” in business and government, since the author of the Declaration of Independence. In addition to writing the most famous article on the right to privacy, he also wrote the most important Supreme Court opinions about free speech, freedom from government surveillance, and freedom of thought and opinion. And as the leader of the American Zionist movement, he convinced Woodrow Wilson and the British government to recognize a Jewish homeland in Palestine. Combing narrative biography with a passionate argument for why Brandeis matters today, the book explores what Brandeis, the Jeffersonian prophet, can teach us about historic and contemporary questions involving the Constitution, monopoly, corporate and federal power, technology, privacy, free speech, and Zionism. 4
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Published in the award-winning Yale Jewish Lives series, the biography features exclusive interviews with Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, and Elena Kagan about how Brandeis influences them today. I argue that Brandeis was the leader of a Jeffersonian tradition that is as distinctive in the twenty-first century as it was during the New Deal era: a progressive champion of federalism and the autonomy of the states. (He was the first to characterize the states as “laboratories of democracy,” a phrase that has become the touchstone of libertarian and conservative defenders of federalism today.) At the same time, Brandeis embodied a bipartisan constitutional tradition that is once again gaining broad adherents on both sides of the political spectrum, from Tea Party libertarians to progressive civil libertarians: a defender of personal and economic liberty and a foe of centralization in government or business. At a time of intense polarization between conservatives and libertarians, who prefer small government and free enterprise, and liberals and progressives, who advocate a more energetic social welfare state, Brandeis is the historical figure who represents and blends the ideals of both sides of this crucial debate. On June 1, the Museum will partner with the National Constitution Center—a neighbor on historic Independence Mall— for a celebration of Brandeis’s legacy and contemporary relevance. For more details or to register, visit constitutioncenter.org.
—— Jeffrey Rosen is the President and CEO of the National Constitution Center. He is also a professor at The George Washington University Law School as well as a Contributing Editor for The Atlantic and a nonresident senior advisor at the Brookings Institution. His book on Louis Brandeis will be released on June 1. It can be purchased in person at the Museum Store or online at judaicastore.net.
Image: Louis Brandeis is featured in the Museum’s Only in America gallery, which illustrates the choices, challenges, and opportunities 18 American Jews encountered on their paths to shaping the history of this country. Louis Brandeis © 1916. Courtesy of the Harris & Ewing Collection, Library of Congress.
Photo: Jessi Melcer
OPEN for Interpretation Artist in Residence A Q&A with Photographer JJ Tiziou
If only one word could be used to describe JJ Tiziou’s photography and philosophy, it would be celebratory. As an artist, he celebrates the human form, diversity, and the challenges of everyday life through shared experiences that build community. That’s why the Museum is pleased to welcome JJ as its third OPEN for Interpretation artist in residence. The purpose of OPEN is to invite creative thinkers to reimagine the Museum’s stories, inspiring new connections between past and present. In 2014, artists in residence Dito van Reigersberg and Andrew Nelson created a cabaret inspired by unexpected stories told in the Museum. Previously, Keir Johnston and Ernel Martinez created a textile-based installation inspired by themes of labor and struggle. Learn more about past OPEN artists at NMAJH.org/open. The Museum interviewed JJ as he began thinking about his residency. NMAJH: What inspires you about the Museum? JJ: I love the stories told at the Museum. There’s something
NMAJH: Your philosophy, “Everyone is Photogenic,” is inspiring. How does it guide your work? JJ: It’s just the simple truth. “Photogenic” means to emanate
light, so my philosophy serves as a statement of my faith and spirituality. I’ve never met a person I wouldn’t want to photograph. [Read more about JJ’s philosophy and see his work at everyoneisphotogenic.com.] NMAJH: How does your art contribute to community building? JJ: Art and social activism are two sides of the same coin;
both involve imagining the world that we want to live in and then building it, rather than passively accepting the status quo. One example of how community building applies to my work is my project that reinforces yoga’s accessibility to people of all shapes and sizes; anyone with a body and a breath can practice it. To watch how JJ’s project develops and to find out how you can participate, sign up for our e-newsletter at NMAJH.org.
really interesting about exploring the immigrant experience —— and what it means to be a part of multiple cultures. As the Funders as of 3/11: William Penn Foundation, Sheryl Neff and Alicia Felton, the Paul and Emily Singer Family Foundation. child of immigrants, my bicultural and educational background—at a small international school—really shaped me. I learned to value diversity, inclusivity, and dialogue. SPRING 2016
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Photo: Deepika Satyadev Photo: Ilana Blumenthal
Volunteers and Docents Enhance Visitor Experience Museum Benefits in Myriad of Ways Volunteering: A Family Affair
If you visit the Museum on any Thursday, there’s a good chance you will be greeted by Al or Patti First. Al and Patti, who have been married for 25 years, have been coming to the Museum together nearly every week for the past six years, welcoming visitors as part of the Museum’s large volunteer corps. “This Museum tells an important story, especially to the younger generation,” says Al, a retired civilian analyst for the US Navy. “That’s why we’re so committed to it,” adds Patti, who taught for 34 years prior to becoming a Museum volunteer. Most Museum volunteers feel deeply connected to its mission, and some, like the Firsts, choose to make volunteering a family affair. “Our volunteers care because we are more than a museum; we are a cultural center as well,” says Naomi Echental, director of visitor and volunteer services. “The volunteers create an engaging visitor experience; they are our best ambassadors.” A Tale of Two Beths
In 2011, Beth Latham joined a tour led by Beth Goldman. Beth Goldman, a retired developmental evaluator in early intervention, has been a docent for more than 10 years, since
the Museum shared space with Congregation Mikveh Israel. After the tour, Beth and Beth met serendipitously in the Museum Café. Goldman was impressed by Latham and asked if she’d be interested in becoming a docent herself. Now, as a graduate of the Museum’s docent training program, Beth Latham gives tours on weekends, in addition to her work as a library assistant at Bryn Mawr College. Beth Goldman beams: “I’m so proud of my protégée, who shows that it’s doable both to be a docent and to work full time.” Beth Latham says being a Museum docent has offered her an opportunity to learn about her family’s history in the context of American history. “I’m grateful for the chance to share what I have learned,” she says. The Museum’s dedicated volunteer corps comes from a variety of religious, ethnic, and professional backgrounds and has contributed more than 65,000 hours of service and led almost 5,000 tours since the Museum opened in 2010. As we celebrate our fifth anniversary on Independence Mall, we also celebrate that nearly 100 of our current volunteers have shared the full journey with us, serving since our new doors first opened. To learn about becoming a Museum volunteer or docent, please visit NMAJH.org/volunteer.
Top left: Volunteers, like the Firsts, welcome visitors, assist at public programs, and work in the Museum Store. Top right: Docents, like Beth Goldman (left) and Beth Latham (right), bring the Museum’s exhibitions to life by guiding tours. Here they are, in the café where they first met, taking a moment’s pause for tea.
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Interns Bring New Energy to the Museum Program Touted as a Local Model
Photo: Ilana Blumenthal
Twenty-eight undergraduate and graduate students from across the country spent an intensive 10 weeks last summer contributing to and learning about the Museum. This infusion of young talent began when Ethel Weinberg, MD, brought the idea of an internship program to the Museum in 2010 and was quickly given the go-ahead to institute it. She invited her friend Judy Finkel, PhD, to help. Together they used their backgrounds in higher education to launch the program in summer 2011. Today, more than 60 interns per year contribute approximately 10,000 hours to the Museum year-round. Ethel and Judy have placed interns in the café/store, curatorial, development, education, facilities rentals, marketing, public programs, and visitor services teams. “These departments benefit from the interns’ fresh perspectives,” Judy says. For example, interns have managed content for the Museum’s online store, assisted in the installation of exhibitions, and conducted research for curriculum development. The Museum provides a strong educational foundation for its interns. Students in the summer program attend “Museum 101”—a series of weekly seminars that teaches them how NMAJH, and museums in general, operate. “Interns gain a broad understanding of how the Museum works to add to the very specific experience they are getting from the team to which they are assigned,” says Ethel. The Museum’s program has become a model: Judy and Ethel have conducted workshops by invitation for other nonprofit groups, including the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance. Olivia Kenney was inspired by her internship to pursue an MFA in arts leadership. “It was an overwhelmingly positive experience,” says Olivia. “The program really gave me a sense of what museum leaders do and set the standard for the type of professional I hope to become.” To learn more about applying to become a Museum intern, visit NMAJH.org/internship. To learn more about creating opportunities for students by supporting the internship program, please contact Cobi Weissbach, director of development, at 215.923.3811 x131 or cweissbach@nmajh.org.
Above: Past interns Deepika Satyadev, Julia Shteyngardt, and Hadassa Schrijver working together to publicize Museum programs.
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P R OFILE
Katerina Romanenko, PhD Associate Director of Education
“ My story is the story the Museum tells.” Born and raised in the Soviet Union, Katerina moved to Israel in the 1990s, served in the army, and earned her undergraduate degree there. She then moved to the United States 16 years ago and earned a doctoral degree in art history. Her career path led her to teaching in colleges and working as an educator at the Guggenheim Museum. When she joined NMAJH five years ago, however, she was struck by how deeply her background resonated at this museum: “Working at the Museum has helped me to deepen my Jewish identity, and it’s a privilege to help bring others closer to their own heritage, too.” On being an art historian: Katerina sees
the Museum’s artifacts as an expression of culture and history. “Visual culture is a form of communication; as an educator, I aim to use art and objects to add richness and dimension to what we can learn through spoken and written language.” What brings her joy: “It is music to my
ears when the galleries are buzzing with schoolchildren.” Katerina and her staff— with the assistance of docents and volunteers (featured on p. 6)—help visitors of all ages to create meaningful connections with the Museum’s exhibitions. Professional development: Last year,
she participated in Brandeis University’s nationally-recognized Jewish Leadership Incubator for Russian-speaking Jewish communal professionals. Personal development: Katerina seizes any
opportunity to travel. When her 14-year-old son studied Elizabethan England in school earlier this year, she decided to go with him to London.
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MUSEUM INDUCTS
JULIUS ROSENWALD into the Only in America Gallery/Hall of Fame 速
TRAILBLAZER OF SOCIAL JUSTICE JOINS HONORED 18
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“ With the larger society saying, ‘you cannot,’ we thought, ‘yes, we could.’” — M AYA A N G E L O U , S P E A K I N G O F J U L I U S R O S E N W A L D ’ S I M P A C T
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ouis Brandeis. Albert Einstein. Emma Lazarus. Barbra Streisand. Each is an American Jewish icon. Each is among the 18 individuals honored in the Museum’s Only in America® Gallery/Hall of Fame. This June, the Museum will induct a new Only in America® member. His story is less familiar, but his impact on education, social justice, and philanthropy in America is unparalleled. Julius Rosenwald was born in Springfield, Illinois, in 1862 and grew up across the street from Abraham Lincoln’s family home. The son of German Jewish immigrants, Rosenwald never finished high school. Despite that, he became the influential president and chairman of Sears, Roebuck and Co. in Chicago, and he amassed a great fortune. But the Museum’s selection of Rosenwald was driven by his unique, highly successful approach to philanthropy—and the distinctly Jewish beliefs and values that inspired him. “We’re honored to commemorate the legacy of Julius Rosenwald,” says Ivy Barsky, the Museum’s CEO and Director. “His innovative philanthropic approach not only transformed American education and tens of thousands of lives, but also demonstrated an effective, inclusive model of engaged giving. His philanthropy was a beautiful expression of Jewish values. We hope that his inclusion in the Museum’s Only in America® Gallery/Hall of Fame will make his story more well known and inspire others to turn values into action.” Funding Thousands of New Schools
Julius Rosenwald with students from a Rosenwald school. Courtesy of Fisk University, John Hope and Aurelia E. Franklin Library, Special Collections.
Rosenwald joined Sears in the mid-1890s. By the early 20th century, the company had become increasingly successful, and Rosenwald soon turned some of his attention to philanthropy. In 1910, his friend Paul Sachs (of Goldman Sachs) sent him Up From Slavery, the autobiography of African American leader Booker T. Washington, founder of the Tuskegee Institute. The book deeply affected Rosenwald, opening his eyes to the racial inequality of the South: “He said that as a member of a despised minority, as a Jew, he identified with African Americans,” notes Stephanie Deutsch, a Rosenwald scholar and wife of one of Rosenwald’s great-grandsons. In 1911, Rosenwald met and befriended Washington, who invited him to become a member of the Tuskegee board. Rosenwald remained on the board
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for the rest of his life. Washington told Rosenwald of the pressing need for schools for African American students in the South. “The doctrine of ‘separate but equal’ was never really equal—it was always very unequal,” says Pulitzer Prize– winning journalist Eugene Robinson. “The idea was to keep [African Americans] fit for work in the fields [and] as servants. White Southerners wanted to keep [education] out of black people’s hands.” Rosenwald began to commit his time and money to building schools for African Americans in the South. Over the next 20 years, Rosenwald helped construct more than 5,000 schools. Tikkun Olam: Repairing the World
Last summer, filmmaker Aviva Kempner released the documentary film Rosenwald. Kempner interviewed many notables touched by the Rosenwald schools, including Eugene Robinson and the late, celebrated writer and poet Maya Angelou—both of whom attended Rosenwald schools—as well as civil rights activist Julian Bond, who passed away last year. “I was so impressed by the breadth of what [Rosenwald] was able to do. He really took tzedakah [charity] and tikkun olam to great heights,” says Kempner. Not only does his legacy live on in the lives he impacted; today, many of Rosenwald’s descendants are philanthropically active across the country. Rosenwald would never simply write a check for any organization; he became passionately engaged with the groups he funded. “He was involved in the Rosenwald schools much more so than many other philanthropists of his day [were involved in their own philanthropies],” says Peter Ascoli, Rosenwald’s grandson and biographer. Rosenwald mandated community involvement. He felt
that in order for the schools he funded to thrive, people in those communities should match his dollars and be involved in the construction of the buildings. “I don’t believe it is helpful . . . to make people dependent upon charity,” said Rosenwald. “[We should] put them in a position to help themselves.” The community’s own investment in the projects proved effective. “Their pride was an encouragement. . . . With the larger society saying, ‘you cannot,’ we thought, ‘yes we could,’” said Angelou. An important influence on Rosenwald’s philanthropy was Rabbi Emil Hirsch, the dynamic and legendary leader of Chicago Sinai Congregation. Hirsch instilled in his congregant that, as a man who had accumulated great resources and influence, Rosenwald was obligated to help those less fortunate. Rosenwald was a down-to-earth, unpretentious man. “Most people [believe] that because a man has made a fortune, that his opinions on any subject are valuable. Don’t be fooled by believing because a man is rich that he is necessarily smart,” Rosenwald would often say. Indeed, it is likely that he is so little known in part because the foundation ceased to exist, by design, after his death in 1932. Rosenwald thereby ensured that all funds were spent within a certain amount of time and in support of his own priorities. “Rosenwald was a hero—though he wouldn’t have liked being called one,” says Kempner. Julius Rosenwald
National Museum of American Jewish History, Maxwell Whiteman Collection.
Maya Angelou, Julian Bond, Stephanie Deutsch, and Eugene Robinson appeared in Kempner’s documentary; quotes in the article were taken with permission from the filmmaker. For more information about the film, visit rosenwaldfilm.org. To purchase the DVD of the film, visit judaicashop.net.
H O N O R I N G T O D AY ’ S P H I L A N T H R O P I S T S The Museum’s second Only in America Gala in New York honors modern-day philanthropists whose commitment to education is reminiscent of Rosenwald’s. The honorees (pictured clockwise from top left) are Sherry Lansing, former CEO, Paramount Pictures, and founder, EnCorps STEM Teachers Program and PrimeTime LAUSD; Joseph Neubauer, retired chairman, Aramark Corporation, and chairman, University of Chicago’s board of trustees; Daniel Rose, chairman, Rose Associates, and founder, Harlem Educational Activities Fund; and George Weiss, CEO, Weiss Multi-Strategy Advisers, and founder and chairman, Say Yes to Education.
Only in America Gala • June 1, 2016 • 6:30 pm • Gotham Hall, New York, NY See NMAJH.org/nycgala or contact Julie Howard Taylor at jtaylor@nmajh.org or 215.923.3811 x104 for more information.
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This Exhibition Rocks The Museum Celebrates Impresario Bill Graham Wolodia Grajonca was born in Berlin in 1931. At age 10, he came to the United States as a refugee of World War II. The story of this Jewish immigrant—who later changed his name to Bill Graham and stage-managed the rock revolution—is celebrated in the Museum’s upcoming exhibition, Bill Graham and the Rock & Roll Revolution, organized by the Skirball Cultural Center, Los Angeles “Graham left an indelible mark on American popular culture,” says Josh Perelman, PhD, chief curator and director of exhibitions and collections at the Museum. “He entered the music scene at a pivotal moment and harnessed the spirit of the 1960s, which was marked by the Vietnam War and the civil rights movement. His genius was to understand the opportunity that the energy and idealism of the times presented to make rock and roll the voice of a generation.”
Not only did Graham boost the careers of musicians including the Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, and Jefferson Airplane. He also gave back to his community, locally and globally. In Philadelphia in 1985, he organized the American leg of Live Aid, the groundbreaking international concert whose mission was to raise money to end Ethiopian hunger. “Bill Graham put the same energy into supporting social causes as he did promoting concerts,” says Cobi Weissbach, the Museum’s director of development. “He became known as the conscience of rock and roll.” —— Bill Graham and the Rock & Roll Revolution will be on view at NMAJH September 16, 2016 through January 16, 2017.
Rock promoter Bill Graham onstage before the final concert at Fillmore East, New York, June 27, 1971, Chromogenic print. Photo by John Olson, The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images.
“ Graham became known as the conscience of rock and roll.” — COBI WE I SSBACH
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WHAT’S HAPPENING AT THE MUSEUM • SPRING/SUMMER 2016
Calendar of Events May
Café Conversation: Joshua Braff on Fatherhood
Tuesday, May 10 • 7 pm
Included with pay-what-you-wish admission
Free, registration required
Author Joshua Braff (The Unthinkable Thoughts of Jacob Green and Peep Show) will read from his latest novel, The Daddy Diaries, and discuss the challenges, anxieties, and triumphs of modern Jewish parenting. Books available for sale and signing.
Two Americans Who Defied the Nazis
Filmmaker Artemis Joukowsky will share excerpts from his upcoming documentary, Two Who Defied the Nazis, about Martha and Waitstill Sharp, an American social worker and Unitarian minister who provided aid to refugees fleeing Nazi persecution. Presented with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
God, Faith, and Identity from the Ashes: Reflections of Children and Grandchildren of Holocaust Survivors Tuesday, May 17 • 7 pm $8/Free for Members With Stephanie Butnick, deputy editor, Tablet Magazine; Jeanette Lerman-Neubauer; Menachem Z. Rosensaft, general counsel, World Jewish Congress, and Mark L. Tykocinski, MD, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, Thomas Jefferson University, and dean, Sidney Kimmel Medical College.
June
Wednesday, June 15 • 6 pm
Wednesday, June 1 • 6:30 pm Gotham Hall—NY, NY Tickets start at $1,000 More information at NMAJH.org/nycgala.
My Home, My History Opening Event Esperanza Academy Charter School Student Exhibition Wednesday, June 8 • 5:30 –7 pm Included with pay-what-you-wish admission In partnership with the National Archives
C-Suite Speaker Series: Mitchell Morgan Tuesday, May 10 • 12 – 1 pm $36
Curated Cocktails Wednesday, May 18 • 6 – 8 pm
Sponsored by the Jewish Book Council
$12/Free for Members
Café Conversation: Mark Segal on LGBT Activism
A Midsummer’s Eve Celebrating Life, Love, and Tu B’Av
Wednesday, June 29 • 6 pm Included with pay-what-you-wish admission Join Mark Segal, journalist, LGBT advocate, and Philadelphia Gay News founder, as he discusses his new memoir, And Then I Danced: Traveling the Road to LGBT Equality. Books available for sale and signing.
July Independence Day Monday, July 4 • 10 am – 5 pm Free
Only in America Gala
Young Friends Events
Celebrate Independence Day at NMAJH! Examine the original 1790 letter from George Washington to the Jewish community in Newport, RI and enjoy themed interactive tours, story times, and arts and crafts.
Café Conversation: “America’s Newest Jews” Wednesday, July 13 • 6 pm Included with pay-what-you-wish admission Helen Kiyong Kim and Noah Samuel Leavitt, husband and wife team from Whitman College, will discuss their new book, JewAsian: Race, Religion and Identity for America’s Newest Jews. Books available for sale and signing.
Thursday, July 21 • 8 – 11 pm $40/$30 for Members
Curated Cocktails Thursday, September 22 • 6 – 8 pm $12/Free for Members These programs are especially for young professionals, ages 21 – 40.
Second Sunday Family Activities June 12, July 10, and August 14: 10 am – 3 pm Free with Museum Admission Escape the heat and celebrate the second Sunday of your summer months with NMAJH. Let your creativity flow with arts and crafts projects, listen to a story, or read in our book nook. All activities are suitable for kids of all ages. Let’s have fun out of the sun!
Pay What You Wish Wednesday Evenings Memorial Day through Labor Day, 5 pm – 8 pm
New programs are being added all the time. Check NMAJH.org/publicprograms for new listings, additional details, and to purchase tickets. Advance registration is highly recommended for both free and ticketed programs. Students always get the Member price.
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The Memo that Led to Rescue By Michael Berenbaum
Amidst the current refugee crisis in the Middle East and Africa, many people have looked back at the dismal record of the United States in accepting refugees from Nazi Germany. Hesitant to compare, I seek to understand. In the 1920s the United States introduced a quota system deliberately based on the 1890 census in order to build America along the “racial stock” of its founders. Preferences were given to Anglo-Saxons and northern Europeans rather than southern Europeans; Greeks, Italians, Russians, and Poles competed for a limited number of visas. In the 1930s and 1940 these quotas became lethal for Jews seeking to escape Nazi German domination. Immigration opponents argued that these people might take American jobs. Especially after the US entered the war in December 1941, they warned that refugees might be a clandestine fifth column of Nazi agents. The US remained relatively unresponsive to refugees until January 1944 when the War Refugee Board was formed. How did the policy change? The answer can be found in the Museum’s collection of the papers of a Philadelphia lawyer—Josiah DuBois—that were donated to the Museum some 35 years ago. In December 1943, DuBois was a young staff attorney working in the Treasury Department when he was called to the State Department by his friend Donald Hiss—Alger’s brother—on a late Friday afternoon and clandestinely shown the full copy of a cable sent to all consulates in Europe. Previously, he had seen a sanitized version; so he immediately
understood its significance—the State Department had restricted communications regarding the Jews. Returning to his office, DuBois spoke with his colleagues and began working on a memo that was to consume him over the next thirty days. He even worked through Christmas. The result: On January 13, 1944, three Christian staffers—Randolph Paul, the Treasury Department’s general counsel, John Pehle, also a Treasury Department attorney, and DuBois— presented a memo entitled Report to the Secretary on the Acquiescence of This Government in the Murder of the Jews to Secretary Henry Morgenthau, their superior and the highest ranking Jew in the Roosevelt administration. The memo charged that State Department officials: • Prevented the rescue of these Jews. • Prevented private organizations from implementing rescue efforts. • Surreptitiously attempted to stop collecting information concerning the murder of the European Jews. According to the report, the State Department had been guilty of a cover-up—political dynamite. Shocked, Morgenthau condensed and “softened” the memo, entitling it Personal Report to the President and presented it to FDR on Sunday morning January 16, 1944 —an election year. FDR asked his longtime friend what he wanted. Morgenthau was prepared: he pressed for the establishment of a War Refugee Board, the formal engagement of the US in rescue. Within days, the President created the Board, naming Morgenthau as chairman; his staff assistant Pehle became the director. Among its other activities it financed the work of Raoul Wallenberg, who under the cover of a Swedish diplomat rescued Jews in Budapest. These men claimed little credit for their work. John Pehle recalled his achievements as “too little and too late.” Yet some 200,000 Jews and their descendants lived because these men and their boss had the courage to confront the President and to plead for action. To see the memo in its entirety, please visit NMAJH.org/rescue.
—— War Refugee Board members (from left) Secretary of State Cordell Hull, Secretary of the Treasury Henry Morgenthau, Jr., and Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson, Washington, DC, 1944. Gift of John W. Pehle, Executive Director of the War Refugee Board, 1944-1945.
Michael Berenbaum is a Professor of Jewish Studies and Director of the Sigi Ziering Institute: Exploring the Ethical and Religious Implications of the Holocaust at the American Jewish University in Los Angeles. He was a historical consultant for the Museum. SPRING 2016
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Farms, Jews, and the Garden State Levitsky Family Helps Tell Important Stories
“ This is not just our story; it’s the story of hundreds of Jewish families” — VE L DA L E VI T SKY
religious and cultural life in the garden part of the Garden State. I want it to be told and remembered. What more appropriate place than the National Museum of American Jewish History!” NMAJH’s core exhibition explores these agricultural communities, established by philanthropists like Baron Maurice de Hirsch in the late 1800s. The Levitsky family has made a generous donation that will allow the Museum to enhance the telling of these stories. This May through August at the Museum, a special installation about Jewish farm life will feature original artifacts from the Levitsky family and others. In fact, the Museum is always expanding its collection of artifacts and hopes to collect more objects and stories from families who have farming roots. Claire Pingel, the Museum’s chief registrar and associate curator, says “We know there are artifacts in attics out there that could help us share a more complete history of the diverse ways that Jews made livelihoods, homes, and communities in America.” Photo: Ilana Blumenthal
Jewish farmers? Yes, indeed! In the late 1800s, Jews established farming colonies in southern New Jersey’s Cumberland and Salem counties that became home to thousands of eastern European Jews escaping grinding poverty, antisemitic laws, and violent episodes known as pogroms. By the 1920s, more than 10,000 families were working the land in the United States. The colonies endured, and later served as refuge to a new generation of immigrants who fled Nazism. Velda Levitsky wants to share the stories of these communities in tribute to her husband David, who passed away in 2013. David was the youngest of five children of Russian Jewish immigrants and was raised in an Orthodox home in Salem, New Jersey, a rural community between Philadelphia and Atlantic City. His father, Samuel, was a farmer and broker of dairy cattle. Samuel was also the gabbai of the local synagogue, assisting in Torah reading as a lay leader for most of his adult life. After serving in World War II, David returned home, married high school sweetheart Velda, and joined the family business—waking very early to ensure cows were milked, taking in hay in the heat of summer, and traveling far to buy and sell cattle. On his father’s farm, he learned entrepreneurial skills he later used to grow the large medical supply distribution company in Bridgeton, New Jersey, founded by his fatherin-law, Leon Stotter. Cumberland and Salem counties abound with Jewish history, stories of community spirit, and economic innovation. “I didn’t want these little communities to be forgotten— Rosenhayn, Norma, Bridgeton, Carmel, Salem, Millville,” says Velda. “This is not just the story of one family; it’s the story of hundreds of Jewish families who established a thriving
For more information about donating to NMAJH’s collection, contact Claire Pingel at cpingel@nmajh.org or 215.923.3811, x124.
—— This article is part of a series that highlights American Jewish communities, both then and now, across the country.
Above left: Family and friends at the Stotter family homestead, Rosenhayn, New Jersey. Courtesy of the Levitsky family. Above right: Velda Levitsky with her daughter, Susan Kaufman, during a recent visit to the Museum.
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BEACON
Happenings at NMAJH
B OA R D M EM B ER S Board of Trustees
Photo courtesy of Providence College
Photo by Susan Beard Photography
During Pope Francis’s visit to Philadelphia, the Museum hosted more than 200 pilgrims overnight. This group was from Providence College in Rhode Island.
Photo by Susan Beard Photography
Genny Dornstreich and Trustee Elijah Dornstreich, the hosts of the 2015 Only in America Tree of Life Gala.
Photo by Elayna Tursky
Joan L. Specter and Trustee Miriam “Mimi” Schneirov at the Only in America Tree of Life Gala.
Photo by Ilana Blumenthal
Three generations of the Lauder family at the special event A Conversation with Leonard Lauder. From left to right: Josh Lauder, Judy Glickman Lauder, Leonard Lauder, and William Lauder.
Mr. Glazer’s class from Bruriah High School in Elizabeth, NJ. visited the Museum.
Philip M. Darivoff, Co-Chairperson Ronald Rubin, Co-Chairperson Lyn M. Ross, Honorary Chairperson Stephen Cozen, First Vice Chairperson Andrew R. Heyer, Vice Chairperson Matthew Kamens, Vice Chairperson Thomas O. Katz, Vice Chairperson Miriam Schneirov, Vice Chairperson Richard E. Witten, Vice Chairperson Joseph S. Zuritsky, Vice Chairperson Ira Saligman, Treasurer Lisa B. Popowich, Secretary George Ross z”l, Founding Chairperson
Trustees Susanna Lachs Adler Harold Berger Elijah S. Dornstreich Carl E. Dranoff Alec Ellison Abbie Green Friedman Alan J. Hoffman Sharon Tobin Kestenbaum Seymour Mandell Anne Welsh McNulty Mitchell L. Morgan Mark Oster Raymond Perelman Marc Porter Daniel Promislo Richard Rothschild Daniel A. Shapiro Lindy Snider Shanin Specter Barbara Spiro Ryan Robbi Toll D. Walter Cohen, Chairman Emeritus Gwen Goodman, Executive Director Emerita Ruth Sarner Libros, President Emerita Samuel J. Savitz, Trustee Emeritus
T O T R AV E L ! Through October 30, 2016: Skirball Cultural Center, Los Angeles, CA
P O P - U P E X H I B I T I O N* Though July 31, 2016: American Jewish Historical Society, New York, NY September 5 through November 24, 2016: Detroit Historical Museum, Detroit, MI April 6 through June 25, 2017: Sherwin Miller Museum of Jewish Art, Tulsa, OK July 17 through October 13, 2017: Skirball Museum at Hebrew Union College, Cincinnati, OH
* The Chasing Dreams pop-up exhibition is a panel version of the exhibition, including photos, labels, and interactives, but not artifacts. Originated at the National Museum of American Jewish History.
National Leadership Council Roy Zuckerberg (New York, NY), Chair Eugene Applebaum (Bloomfield Hills, MI) Charles Bronfman (New York, NY) Betsy Z. Cohen (New York, NY) Ambassador Edward Elson (Palm Beach, FL) Milton Fine (Pittsburgh, PA) Rabbi Irving (Yitz) Greenberg (Bronx, NY) J. Ira Harris (Palm Beach, FL) Senator Joseph Lieberman (Hartford, CT) Ambassador John L. Loeb, Jr. (New York, NY) Newton Minow (Chicago, IL) Allan “Bud” Selig (Milwaukee, WI) Albert Small (Washington, DC) Edward Snider (Philadelphia, PA) Fred Wilpon (New York, NY)
Ivy L. Barsky, CEO and Gwen Goodman Director
For the most updated Chasing Dreams travel schedule, see chasingdreams.nmajh.org/national-tour. To bring Chasing Dreams to your community, please contact Ivy Weingram at iweingram@nmajh.org. SPRING 2016
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WHAT IS IT? Pictured here is an object from our collection. Can you tell what the object is? Submit your guess to beacon@nmajh.org and be entered for a chance to win a $100 gift certificate to our Museum Store! Watch for the answer to be revealed in our June e-newsletter!