Had ten minutes conversation with Henry Morgenthau about Jewish ship in Palistine. Told him I would talk to Gen[eral] Marshall about it. He'd no business, whatever to call me. The Jews have no sense of proportion nor do they have any judgement on world affairs. Henry brought a thousand Jews to New York on a supposedly temporary basis and they stayed. When the country went backward - and Republican in the election of 1946, this incident loomed large on the DP [Displaced Person] program. The Jews, I find are very, very selfish. They care not how many Estonians, Latvians, Finns, Poles, Yugoslavs or Greeks get murdered or mistreated as DP as long as the Jews get special treatment. Yet when they have power, physical, financial or political neither Hitler nor Stalin has anything on them for cruelty or mistreatment to the under dog. Put an underdog on top and it makes no difference whether his name is Russian, Jewish, Negro, Management, Labor, Mormon, Baptist he goes haywire. I've found very, very few who remember their past condition when prosperity comes. Look at the Congress[ional] attitude on DP - and they all come from DPs.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Truman expresses antisemitic and nationalist biases regarding Jewish displaced persons and their treatment.
- In plain terms
- He claims Jewish people are selfish and have no proportion in their demands.
- What can you take from it?
- This quote reflects harmful stereotypes and prejudice.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Why do biases form?
- How does language shape views?
Another view
The statements are factually incorrect and promote hate.
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