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Neighbors in Conflict Bayor, Ronald H. Published by Johns Hopkins University Press Bayor, Ronald H. Neighbors in Conflict: The Irish, Germans, Jews, and Italians of New York City, 1929-1941. Johns Hopkins University Press, 1978. Project MUSE. doi:10.1353/book.67077. https://muse.jhu.edu/. For additional information about this book https://muse.jhu.edu/book/67077 [ Access provided at 27 Sep 2021 07:22 GMT with no institutional affiliation ] This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. HOPKINS OPEN PUBLISHING ENCORE EDITIONS Ronald H. Bayor Neighbors in Conflict The Irish, Germans, Jews, and Italians of New York City, 1929–1941 Open access edition supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities / Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Humanities Open Book Program. © 2019 Johns Hopkins University Press Published 2019 Johns Hopkins University Press 2715 North Charles Street Baltimore, Maryland 21218-4363 www.press.jhu.edu The text of this book is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/. CC BY-NC-ND ISBN-13: 978-1-4214-2990-8 (open access) ISBN-10: 1-4214-2990-X (open access) ISBN-13: 978-1-4214-3062-1 (pbk. : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 1-4214-3062-2 (pbk. : alk. paper) ISBN-13: 978-1-4214-3102-4 (electronic) ISBN-10: 1-4214-3102-5 (electronic) This page supersedes the copyright page included in the original publication of this work. NEIGHBORS IN CONFLICT THE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY STUDIES IN HISTORICAL AND POLITICAL SCIENCE NINETY-SIXTH SEMES (1978) 1. Neighbors in Conflict: The Irish, Germans, Jews, and Italians of New York City, 1929-1941 By Ronald H. Bayor 2. Beverley Tucker: Heart over Head in the Old South By Robert J. Bragger Neighbors in Conflict The Irish, Germans, Jews, and Italians of New York City, 1929-1941 Ronald H. Bavor The Johns Hopkins University Press Baltimore and London This book has been brought to publication with the generous assistance of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Copyright © 1978 by The Johns Hopkins University Press All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, xerography, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Manufactured in the United States of America The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, Maryland 21218 The Johns Hopkins Press Ltd., London Originally published, 1978 Johns Hopkins paperback edition, 1979 ISBN 0-8018-2024-3 (hardcover) ISBN 0-8018-2370-6 (paperback) Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication data will be found on the last printed page of this book. For my wife, LESLIE, and my daughters JILL and ROBIN Contents Preface xi Acknowledgments xiii Chapter 1. The Ethnic Setting 1 Chapter 2. Economic Collapse 8 Chapter 3. La Guardia and the New Ethnic Order 30 Chapter 4. The Old World Influence 57 Chapter 5. Communism, Coughlinism, and the Church 87 Chapter 6. Going to War 109 Chapter 7. Winning the Votes 126 Chapter 8. In the Neighborhoods 150 Chapter 9. On Ethnic Conflict 164 Notes 168 Essay on Sources 221 Index 223 ILLUSTRATIONS Figures 1. Irish and Jewish percentage vote (Democratic), 1932-1941 52 2. Irish and Jewish percentage vote (Democratic plus ALP), 1932-1941 53 3. German and Italian percentage vote (Democratic), 1932-1941 54 4. German and Italian percentage vote (Democratic plus ALP), 1932-1941 55 Maps 1. Washington Heights, census tracts and selected streets 151 2. South Bronx, selected streets and health areas 158 ix X /CONTENTS TABLES 1. Unemployment by Industry in New York City, 1930 10 2. Relief by Industry in New York City, 1934 11 3. Unemployment by Industry in New York City, 1940 12 4. Unemployment by Occupation in New York City, 1940 13 5. Occupations: Italian-born Fathers of Children Bom in New York City in 1916 17 6. Occupations: Italian-born Fathers of Children Bom in New York City in 1931 18 - 7. Sample of Teachers in Manhattan Public Schools in 1936-1937, by Ethnicity and the Years Entered into Teaching 27 8. ALP Percentage of Ethnic Groups’ Vote in New York City, 1936-1941 41 9. Ethnic Vote for Lehman in New York City, 1932-1938 47 10. Attitudes toward Spanish Civil War, by Ethnic Group, February 1939 91 11. Voting Percentages for 1933 Mayoralty Election, by Ethnicity and Party 130 12. Voting Percentages for 1937 Mayoralty Election, by Ethnicity and Party 137 13. Voting Percentages for 1941 Mayoralty Election, by Ethnicity and Party 143 14. Roosevelt Percentage Vote in New York City, by Ethnicity, 1932, 1936, 1940 147 15. Roosevelt Percentage Vote in New York City, by Ethnicity and Class, 1940 148 16. Occupations of Employed Workers, by Health Area, 1940 160 Preface This book seeks to analyze the roots, development, manifestation, and culmina tion of group conflict within a multi-ethnic urban setting. Studying the four major white ethnic groups in New York City during the 1930s, I have tried to weave together the various strands of a very complex but commonplace phenomenon still evident in our society today. Group conflict was significant during this period and involved all four ethnic communities in varying degrees. However, each situation, although having within it certain basic components of conflict, was different. The major clash involved the Jews, and it arose from the tra ditional elements of anti-Semitism as well as from pluralistic America’s compe titive ethnic environment. The book is organized to provide a sense of the ethnic succession issues, related to long-term competition, interacting with explosive issues, largely emanating from concern over foreign events. The final parts of the study consider the role of political campaigns in fomenting ethnic friction and offer a look at the conflicts as they occurred at the neighborhood level. Since many events and factors took place concurrently, I have tried to tie them together in both text and notes in order to provide a coherent explanation. As is sometimes the case with historical works, it was difficult to pinpoint the exact year with which this study should end. Rather, the intent was to follow the sources and manifestation of the 1930s conflicts to their natural conclusion. For some groups this took me to 1945 and beyond; for others the story ended earlier. Since in many ways the subject of ethnic conflict deals with a survey of local opinions and reactions, I attempted to use only ethnic periodicals or organi zational publications which had solely a New York audience or were located in the City and therefore had a New York orientation. Because the ethnic and intergroup relations situation in other cities may have varied from New York on the basis of local differences, opinion of this sort was avoided if possible. In some cases it was necessary to look beyond the borders of the City. For example, xi xii / PREFACE the proceedings of the New York State Branch of the Catholic Central Verein had to be used when publications of the local federations of this group could not be found. In treating such a sensitive topic, I have tried to maintain a careful objectiv ity and to avoid taking up the banner for any of the involved groups. My purpose was not to criticize or blame any of the ethnic communities, but rather to explain with the hope of providing a better understanding of one of society’s crucial problems. I also hope that the questions and theories discussed in this study will inspire other historians to investigate ethnic pluralism in all its parts. Acknowledgments Many people have assisted me in the research and writing of this book. I would first like to thank Thomas C. Cochran, of the University of Pennsylvania, who guided this work through its dissertation stage. Seymour J. Mandelbaum, Uni versity of Pennsylvania, also provided valuable help in developing the disserta tion and continued to offer his keen insights as the work progressed into this book. He has always been both an astute critic and good friend over the years. My research also enabled me to meet such fine people as Bernard Wax, Director of the American Jewish Historical Society, and Rev. Silvano M. To rnasi, Director of the Center for Migration Studies. Both men kindly interrupted their busy schedules and provided assistance in the early stages of this work. A note of appreciation also goes to Joseph B. Frechen of the St. John’s University mathematics department and to William McAlpine, formerly of the Georgia Institute of Technology, who introduced me to quantitative techniques and helped in the development of the statistical data. I would like to thank Jerome Bakst of the Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith, New York; Harvey Johnson of the Central Bureau, Catholic Central Union of America; and Ward Lange of the Steuben Society of America. Their aid in finding various materials is appreciated. I owe a debt of gratitude also to the persons who granted me interviews. The personnel of a number of libraries and archives have also been helpful. I should like to express my appreciation to the staffs of the New York Public Library; the Municipal Archives and Records Center (New York); the Blaustein Library of the American Jewish Committee; the libraries of Columbia University, Brandéis University, St. John’s University, and the Georgia Institute of Technology; the American Jewish Historical Society; the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research (New York); and the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library. The Department of Social Sciences at the Georgia Institute of Technology provided necessary support which enabled me to complete this work.