Carrie writes: Henry Ford's The International Jew is comprised of four volumes. Many haters of the Jewish race turned to these volumes to bolster their anti- Semitic beliefs. Ford's work emphasized what he believed to be the many faults of the Jewish race, blaming them for many of America's problems. His list of complaints revealed a deep hatred for the Jewish race and culture. Jews and many others were angered by the publication of Ford's text. Ford later issued a public statement apologizing for his work; however, many remain skeptical of his apologies. The fact remaining is that anyone can access these anti-Semitic articles to breed hatred for the Jewish race.
Ford accused the Jews of imposing their religious beliefs upon Americans. "Jews have actually invaded, in person and in program, hundreds of American churches, with their subversive and impossible social ideals. . . ." (Ford chapter 2). Ford reported that the Jews believed the basic principles of the United States were Jewish and not Christian. He labeled the Jews as being propagandists and schemers when they tried to advocate their beliefs. Ford explained that the reason why the Jewish population behaved this way was because they thought of themselves as being "the chosen people" (Ford chapter 2). It was their duty to preach their religion because if they failed in doing that, they believed they failed in everything (Ford chapter 2).
Ford was angered by the infiltration of Jewish ideas and lifestyle into America. Their influence was present not only in religion but also in the arts, education, and politics. He identified the following as problems he believed the Jews had caused -- by cheapening the dignity of government through corrupt politics, by trivializing the mind of the people through theaters and movies -- "but it is in the study of Jewish money-making out of war that the clues are found to most of the great abuses of which the Jews have been guilty (Ford chapter 3)."
He also blamed the Jewish population for making the working man lazy. He accused them of changing the idea of "making money" to "getting money." Ford concluded that the Jews concerned themselves more with accumulating profit than national issues and feared their influence on Americans (Ford chapter 3).
Ford was angered by the Jews' refusal to Americanize because there existed conflict between Judaism and Americanism. "The Jew glories in religious persecution as the American glories in patriotism" (Ford chapter 3). For Jews, greater emphasis was placed on religion as opposed to being loyal to America. The Jew's inability to settle in one spot made Americanization nearly impossible.
The KKK Imperial Wizard, Hiram Wesley Evans, furthered this view by relating this conflict to their being a nomadic race. He believed that because the Jews were accustomed to moving from place to place, they would never consider America their home. Therefore, Jews invested more trust into their religion than they did their homeland. Evans also applied this view towards Catholics. He stated that many Catholics had immigrated from other countries and should not be teaching Americanism. Ford's work was therefore used to support the attack on other ethnic groups.
Sara's notes: In the 1920's, Henry Ford Sr. published an anti-Semitic work titled The International Jew. The International Jew was a four-volume piece which consisted of articles previously printed in The Dearborn Independent, a newspaper owned by Ford. This four volume piece was a tool used by haters to validate their hostile beliefs toward Jews. The work essentially blamed everything that was wrong with America on the Jews and even had reasons and examples to support these theories.
Although times have changed and most Americans have accepted the diversity which makes America, others have not, and The International Jew is still used as a guideline to anti-Semitic groups and cults. On May 22, 1920, Ford's newspaper, The Dearborn Independent, first attacked Jews. Before the release of this paper, [editor] E.G Pip heard about the intentions to attack Jews and resigned. However, his resignation did not adversely affect the paper's decisions to print anti-Semitic articles for it proceeded to print an additional 91 editions containing anti-Semitic materials.
The International Jew asserted that a great number of Jews were in financial control and these Jews were acting as a clan to maximize their prosperity while minimizing the prosperity of non-Jews. The Dearborn Independent saw Jews as carrying out 'revolutionary programs to break up the present control of society.' The 'revolutionary programs' revolve around economic control: the Jewish plan is 'to control the world, not by territorial acquisition, not by military aggression, not by governmental subjugation, but by control of the machinery of commerce and exchange.'
In September of 1920, "The Central Conference of American Rabbis, The National Council of Jewish women and B'nai B'rith asked ADL [Anti-Defamation League] to counteract Ford's work." The League then released a pamphlet, The Poison Pen, which condemned The Dearborn Independent as well as those men that supported it. The pamphlet received support from many prominent American citizens. This pamphlet also spawned the document, The Perils of Racial Prejudice, which urged "all those who are molders of public opinion to strike at The International Jew, which it characterized as un-American, un-Christian agitation." This statement was signed by many people including President Woodrow Wilson and former Presidents Taft and Roosevelt. Despite protests, The Dearborn Independent continued to print articles defaming Jewish people.
In 1927 an article accusing a "Jewish Lawyer Aaron Sapiro and a group of Jewish bankers and merchants of seeking control of the nation's wheat farming." Saprio sued and a man named Cameron took full responsibility for the article claiming that Ford knew nothing of the situation. A previous employee of Ford's came forward and rebutted Cameron's testimony, claiming that Ford did have knowledge of the article and its contents. Before Ford was able to take the stand in his own defense, he was in a car accident and settled out of court. Soon after public apologies were made by Ford followed by the closure of The Dearborn Independent.
The International Jew: The World's Foremost Problem contains information about the migration of Jews to the United States, the "Jewish Influence in American Politics, Jewish Supremacy," and the influence Jews have in America. The term International Jew has two interpretations; "one, the Jew wherever he may be; the other, the Jew who exercises international control." According to The International Jew, Jews migrated from Brazil to the primarily Dutch colony of New York. The colonists did not allow Jews to enter retail shops or public service. The Jews persevered, and they began making their own business that others would not have wanted, such as waste removal and the selling of second-hand clothes. Essentially Jews "found wealth in the debris of civilization."
The International Jew also contained statements supporting the use of anti Semitic terms. "Anti Semitism a term which is bandied about too loosely. If it continues to be used indiscriminately and vituperatively about all who attempted to discuss Jewish characteristics and Jewish world-power, it will, in time, arrive at the estate of repeatability and honor." To protect Christianity and American civilization, Jews should be suppressed. Their (the Jews) desire to obtain "'Jewish Rights' seem to be summed up in the 'right' to banish everything from their sight and hearing that suggest Christianity or its Founder. It is just there, from the Jewish side, that religious intolerance makes its appearance." The International Jew contains "documented attacks" dating back as far as 1899 on Christianity.
The articles, in great detail and depth, portray Jews as "monolithic, malicious schemers plotting to control the planet." They (Jews) control the U.S. Theater, motion picture industry, sugar industry, tobacco industry, meat packing, shoes making, oil, cotton, jewelry and many other industries. As they migrate, so does their business and the economy, such as seen throughout the history of Europe as the Jews were "persecuted." KKK Imperial Wizard Hiram Wesley Evans says that since the Jews were "ejected from Judea, they had been nomadic." They are people with no real land so they do not understand what patriotism means and thus look out for themselves as a people rather than as a country.
Justin's notes:
1. Henry Ford's biggest complaint with the Jew's stems from his belief that, although they do not represent the largest group of immigrants in the United States, they certainly influence American life to great extents. Their ways are becoming our ways, and this is not a good idea according to Ford. He states that they are constantly claiming to have given us our "God, Bible, and Religion", so much so that it is making him sick. Then he says that if they want to rub this in our face, they shouldn't get upset when we point out what they have really contributed to American life, with their power-hungry and money-hoarding ways. Ford goes into great detail about the plight of Tammany Hall, once the epitome of all that is powerful in the world of organized politics. But, because it was so powerful and so well known, the Jews, "thither swarm obsequiously." They have to be in control, and due to their over-taking of Tammany Hall, it has been reduced to a, "distributing station of a Gentile front".
Ford also makes the argument that the Jews have invaded the movie industry, which is even worse. Because so many Americans subject themselves to the movie experience every day, they are getting a full dose of Jewish lifestyles, opinions, and view of love. This is greatly affecting Americans, according to Ford, for it is changing their notions in favor of the Jewish ones. We are losing our cultural identity. The last main point that Ford brings up is that although the Jews might be a disciplined race, they do dabble in the illegal arts. They bootleg, run gambling rings, and are subject to corruption. You see, Ford feels that no matter what the activity, if money is involved, so are the Jews. This is a problem, he feels, because if the Jews think that they can make a profit off something illegal, they'll do it, regardless of its affect on America. This is wrong, and it can only hurt our country. Ford really despises these people, and it seems that throughout this entire book, he has found way after way to tear them apart.
2. As I have stated in the last part, Ford's view of the Jews and the characteristics he associated with them are not favorable. He sees them as very money-oriented. Although this may not always be a bad thing, Ford makes it one. He goes on to prove (in his eyes) that its doesn't matter about the legality of the operation, so long as it nets the Jews money. Ford also says that they love to be in control, and are steadily taking over American politics. They are starting small, but working their way up. Politics boost one's name, and boosting one's name means people will remember you. If people remember you, they'll do business with you. That is why Ford feels there is no good intention with the Jews being interested in power. They just want to use the office to earn a buck. It is no different with the theater. The Jews knew that it was a lucrative industry, and after 'taking it over', according to Ford, they subject their viewers to Jewish life and ideals during the course of the pictures. While this may not seem like a big deal, Ford believes that is causing American to lose its cultural identity. Basically, Ford characterizes the Jews to be all-consumed with money, power-hungry, and ignorant to the damage of their actions. Some racial profiling, eh?
3. The opinions of Ford scarily fortold the coming beliefs of the KKK. When reading the notes of Hiram Wesley Evans, one cannot but help to notice the vindictive and hostile views he places on the Jewish population. He felt very strongly about American purification, and was a strong supporter of Eugenics. He felt that immigrants were the cause of "defectives, dependents, and criminals", and he linked the Jewish population to all of these. They may not be as uncivil and unruly as the Negroes and Italians, according to Evans, but they still represented impurity in American life. Evans went on to say that since most immigrants are males, they would most certainly mate with American females and begin to breed a new generation not of pure blood. The KKK would, "not allow this kind of family life", and vowed to do what they could to stop it. That is probably the only main difference between Ford and Evans. Ford wrote a book to bring awareness to the situation. Evan made the situation visible, but also had the means and mentality to do something about it.