Clarifying 70 Years of Whitewashing and ... - Shelomo Alfassa
Clarifying 70 Years of Whitewashing and ... - Shelomo Alfassa
Clarifying 70 Years of Whitewashing and ... - Shelomo Alfassa
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Bulgaria Passes Anti-Jewish Laws<br />
Page | 8<br />
In January 1941, to the shock <strong>of</strong> the well-integrated Jews throughout S<strong>of</strong>ia <strong>and</strong> other Bulgarian cities, the<br />
‘Law for the Defense <strong>of</strong> the Nation’ 30 was passed by the Sobranye (Bulgarian Parliament.) 31 This anti-<br />
Jewish set <strong>of</strong> legal regulations, stipulated, in part, the following: Jews shall not be members <strong>of</strong> political<br />
parties; Jews cannot be elected into any section <strong>of</strong> national politics, sports, academia, etc.; Jews cannot<br />
enter in civil service; Jews shall not serve in the army; Jews shall work in labor camps; Jews may not start<br />
any new businesses; Jews must sell their real estate at 50% <strong>of</strong> the 1932 market price to non-Jewish<br />
Bulgarians; 32 Jewish children could not be accepted into institutions <strong>of</strong> learning; Jews could not own<br />
radios or telephones in their homes; food rations for Jews would be a fraction <strong>of</strong> food rations for<br />
Bulgarians; all Jewish associations <strong>and</strong> organizations must be disb<strong>and</strong>ed; Jews over 10 years <strong>of</strong> age must<br />
purchase (from the government) <strong>and</strong> wear a yellow Star <strong>of</strong> David on all <strong>of</strong> their clothing. 33<br />
In 1941, the Bulgarians m<strong>and</strong>ated that signs indicating “Jew Shop” be hung in the windows <strong>of</strong> Jewish<br />
owned stores, each store soon-after having all <strong>of</strong> its merch<strong>and</strong>ise registered. 34 The people living in the<br />
town had their names registered, <strong>and</strong> the following year, a sign saying “Jew Home” had to be affixed to<br />
residences <strong>of</strong> Jews. 35<br />
In January 1942, German <strong>of</strong>ficials at the Wannsee Conference 36 established that they were ready to deport<br />
48,000 37 Jews from Bulgaria, <strong>and</strong> the Bulgarian government gave its commitment for the same. 38 By the<br />
summer <strong>of</strong> that same year, Bulgaria would legally allow the full deportation <strong>of</strong> all Jews from its country,<br />
<strong>and</strong> be ready to absorb all <strong>of</strong> their property. In May <strong>of</strong> 1942, Jews were required to declare all <strong>of</strong> their<br />
possessions to the Bulgarian National Bank. 39<br />
30<br />
Browning, Christopher R. The Origins <strong>of</strong> the Final Solution: The Evolution <strong>of</strong> Nazi Jewish Policy. Yad Vashem: Jerusalem,<br />
2004. 212<br />
31<br />
Chary, Frederick B. The Bulgarian Jews <strong>and</strong> the Final Solution, 1940-1944. Univ. <strong>of</strong> Pittsburgh Press, 1972. 39-40<br />
32<br />
Tamir. 1<strong>70</strong>-172<br />
33<br />
Instructions based on Decree No. 4567 by the Council <strong>of</strong> Ministries.<br />
34<br />
Oren, Uri. A Town Called Monastir. Dror Publications, Tel Aviv, 1971. 184 (After the war, a special commission found that<br />
Bulgarians <strong>and</strong> Germans, together, robbed the Jewish people <strong>of</strong> Monastir <strong>of</strong> some 538 millions Yugoslav dollars <strong>and</strong> another 32<br />
million from five ransacked synagogues.) Oren 185<br />
35<br />
Oren. 186<br />
36<br />
The Wannsee Conference was a discussion by a group <strong>of</strong> German <strong>of</strong>ficials about the “Final Solution <strong>of</strong> the Jewish Question.”<br />
It took place January 20, 1942 in the Wannsee Villa in Berlin <strong>and</strong> would lead to the Holocaust.<br />
37<br />
Mendelsohn, John. ed., The Holocaust: Selected Documents in Eighteen Volumes. Vol. 11: The Wannsee Protocol <strong>and</strong> a 1944<br />
Report on Auschwitz by the Office <strong>of</strong> Strategic Services. New York: Garl<strong>and</strong>, 1982. 18-32.<br />
38<br />
Tamir. 185<br />
39<br />
The New York Times “Bulgaria Adds Curbs on Jews” May 16, 1942.<br />
Judaic Studies Academic Paper Series / Library <strong>of</strong> Congress ISSN No. 2156-0390 © <strong>Shelomo</strong> <strong>Alfassa</strong> (shelomo@alfassa.com)