THEY GOT THE BLAME: THE STORY OF SCAPEGOATS IN HISTORY
New York; Associated Press, 1946. Item #42339
Original Wrappers. 8vo. 63 pages. 21 cm. Text by Kenneth M. Gould; foreword by Elmer Davis, drawings by Jacob Landau. Copyright 1942 by the International committee of Young men's Christian associations. One of the many pamphlets emerging during the war years and for a brief period of the post-war period which pushed for an inclusive democratic outlook and meant to combat prejudice and anti-semitism. This pamphlet traces intolerance in history in a few major sections, that of Religious Persecution, The Black Man’s Burden, The Jew as Scapegoat; with smaller sections devoted to the history of the term scapegoat, the scapegoating of Labor, or Foreign born in America, and of Masonry. A very interesting pamphlet, which both serves to tell of the history of intolerance in America and the immediate necessity of shifting away from that and democratizing society in the states, as well as serves to give reasons why the war is being fought, with a detailed description of anti-semitism in Germany and the need to defeat fascism everywhere. Includes appendix of questions and activities to help spur group discussions. With nine black and white drawings by Jacob Landau (1917-2001) , a printmaker, painter, humanist and teacher; he was an artist whose works explored the basic themes of human existence and morality with an insight that was both passionate and indignant. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he began as an illustrator, he lived most of his adult life in Roosevelt, New Jersey, a town founded in the 1930s as an agro-industrial cooperative for, primarily, Jewish garment workers from New York City. The author of the foreword, Elmer Davis, (1890 –1958) was a well-known news reporter, author, and the Director of the United States Office of War Information during World War II, in the capacity of which Davis recommended to President Roosevelt that Japanese-Americans be permitted to enlist for service in the Army and Navy and urged him to oppose bills in Congress that would deprive Nisei of citizenship and intern them during the war. He argued that Japanese propaganda proclaiming it a racial war could be combated by deeds that counteracted this. This publication was published throughout the Holocaust and DP period, from 1942 until 1952, by the YMCA, and a seven page excerpted edition consisting of the drawings and selected passages was distributed by the Congress of Industrial Organizations as well. The booklet was featured in a 2022 exhibit on the American Jewish Committees work in the 1930s and 40s to combat hate at the New York Historical Society; see https://www.jpost.com/j-spot/article-712950. Subjects: Antipathies and prejudices. United States - History - Miscellanea. Scapegoat. Prejudices - History. Light wear and sunning to covers with a few light stains. Internally very clean, Good condition. (HOLO2-95-27A).
Price: $100.00