Jewish Activities in the United States: Volume II of The International Jew; A Second Selection of Articles from The Dearborn Independent

Dearborn, MI: The Dearborn Publishing Co, 1921. Presumed First Edition, First printing thus. Wraps. Fair. 255, [1] p. Spine has been repaired with tape. Front and back cover is worn, soiled, torn and chipped. This reprints articles that appeared from Oct. 9, 1920 to March 19, 1921. This is a rare example of the rampant anti-semitism that experienced a resurgence after the end of the First World War. It is part of the fabric of an era that saw the Rise of the Ku Klux Klan and and early Red Scare period of anti-communism/anti-bolshevism. Henry Ford, a noted anti-semite, had a close association with Dearborn, MI. Ford did not write the articles. He expressed his opinions verbally to his executive secretary, Ernest Liebold, and to William J. Cameron. Cameron had the main responsibility for expanding these opinions into article form. Liebold was responsible for collecting more material to support the articles. The Dearborn Independent, also known as The Ford International Weekly, was a weekly newspaper established in 1901, and published by Henry Ford from 1919 through 1927. The paper reached a circulation of 900,000 by 1925, second only to the New York Daily News, largely due to a quota system for promotion imposed on Ford dealers. Lawsuits regarding antisemitic material published in the paper caused Ford to close it, and the last issue was published in December 1927. The publication's title was derived from the Detroit suburb of Dearborn, Michigan. Derived largely from information found posted on line: Convinced that "bankers" and "the Jews" were responsible for a whole range of things he didn't like, from the world war to short skirts to jazz music, Henry Ford used his newspaper, the Dearborn Independent, to carry on an active anti-Semitic campaign. Between 1920 and 1922 a series of articles denounced all things Jewish. While officially apologizing for the articles in 1927, Ford's anti-Jewish sentiments ran deep. In January 1919, Henry Ford began publication of the Dearborn Independent, a small community weekly he had purchased the previous year. Carrying the subtitle, The Chronicler of the Neglected Truth, the paper primarily served as a forum for Henry Ford's views. Each issue of the Independent carried "Mr. Ford's Own Page," an editorial expressing his opinions, written by William J. Cameron. The Ford Motor Company pressured car dealers to buy multiple subscriptions and hand out copies to customers. The newspaper was popular, and circulation reached 900,000 in 1926. The Dearborn Independent would, most likely, have remained a sidebar in Ford's biography were it not for a controversial series that began on May 22, 1920 and lasted for several years. Appearing on the front page every week, "The International Jew: The World's Problem" examined a purported conspiracy launched by Jewish groups to achieve world domination. The basis for the articles was a notorious forgery, The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, an anti-Semitic hoax, first published in Russia in 1903. Many have accused Ford's personal secretary, Ernest Liebold, of being the source of the campaign, and Liebold's anti-Semitic views are well documented. William Cameron, editor of the Independent, was an enthusiastic supporter of the publication of the anti-Semitic diatribes. However, Ford's own attitudes towards Jews were the major reason for the publication of "The International Jew." His anti-Semitic beliefs formed along several strands from his upbringing, attitudes, and personal beliefs. A common stereotype at the time led some people to assume that Jews controlled the international banking system; that belief may have fed his anti-Jewish feelings. The publication of "The International Jew" caused an uproar. In some quarters, such as anti-immigrant and nativist groups, the series confirmed their own beliefs. Others were appalled by the series, published demands for a retraction, removed the paper from public libraries, and promoted a boycott of Ford automobiles. Some Ford dealers refused to carry the paper. Responding to this pressure, Ford halted publication of the anti-Jewish series in January 1922, only to start it up again less than a year later.