- Headline
-
LaGuardia Calls Nazi Bund Rally Cootie Exhibition
- Sub-Headline
- Heads Civic Leaders in Anti-Dictator Meeting
- Publication Date
- Saturday, March 4, 1939
- Historical Event
-
American Nazis Rally in New York City
This database includes 1,208 articles about this event - Article Type
- Newspaper
- Location
- Page Section and Number
- 9
- Author/Byline
- AP
- Article Text
- NEW YORK, March 4. — (By A.P.) —Civic leaders led by Mayor LaGuardia defended America's Democratic liberties last night at a "tolerance meeting" held in reply to the Washington birthday rally of the German - American bund.
The stocky little mayor, who last month granted the bund permission to hold its rally on the ground that all factions were entitled to freedom of speech and assembly, told a crowd of more than 3000 that overflower[sic] Carnegie Hall:
"I believe in exposing the cooties to the sunlight, and we recently had an exhibition of international cooties."
LaGuardia, a wartime flier, said he was not fearful of Naziism gaining ground in New York, but "the people of the world can not be safe as long as any country is controlled by irresponsible dictators."
Declaring that the language of diplomacy could be used only when dealing with "gentlemen," he added:
We must necessarily depart from that language and tell these dictators that their ideas are not wanted in this country and that their entry in any part of the Western Hemisphere is verboten."
Catholic, Jewish and Protestant leaders denounced the bund for the "un-Aemrican[sic] nature and utterances" of its recent mass meeting.
The meeting, sponsored by the council against intolerance in America as "New York's answer to the bund," was guarded by 30 policemen. (Seventeen hundred officers were assigned to prevent violence at the bund rally at Madison Square Garden, which was attended by more than 20,000 persons.)
Gov Lehman sent a message from Albany saying that despotism would never prevail in the United States if "we, as a nation, militantly safeguard those civil, religious and personal liberties guaranteed us by our form of government."
District Attorney Thomas E. Dewey in another message termed the bund members "disciples of bigotry" and said their rally has disgusted "millions of citizens."
An ovation greeted Dorothy Thompson, newspaper columnist who was escorted from the bund rally after she laughed at a speaker's remarks. She urged enactment of laws to prevent "a systematic campaign against race and religion with the idea of depriving members of that race and religion of their constitutional rights."
Rep. Bruce arton[sic] (R., N. Y.), Walter Damrosch, composer; Fannie Hurst, novelist; Rabbit Stephen S. Wise, president of the American Jewish Congress, and Lieut.-Gov. Charles Poletti were other speakers.
Fritz Kuhn, bund leader, was invited to attend the meeting, but refused.
"Those people are nine-tenths Jews and others are Communists," he said. "They wont' allow me to talk anyways. We don't consider them worthwhile."
A city inquiry into bund tax paymqents[sic], at which Kuhn was subpoenaed for testimony yesterday, will be resumed Monday. - History Unfolded Contributor
- Dianna I.
- Location of Research
- Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com)
Learn More about this Historical Event: American Nazis Rally in New York City
- German American Bund (Holocaust Encyclopedia)
- Nazis in America (Americans and the Holocaust online exhibition)
- A Night at the Garden (Marshall Curry Productions, LLC.)
- When Nazis Took Manhattan (National Public Radio)
Bibliography
Bernstein, Arnie. Swastika Nation: Fritz Kuhn and the Rise and Fall of the German-American Bund. New York: St. Martin's Press,, 2013.
Churchwell, Sarah. Behold, America.: A History of America First and the American Dream. London: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2018.
Hart, Bradley W. Hitler’s American Friends. New York: Thomas Dunne Books, 2018.
All articles about this event