“We Will Never Die”

Antisemitism: The Fight in WWII America

In response to pro-Nazi groups and figures, activists like Peter H. Bergson, a Jewish immigrant from Lithuania, led a publicity campaign with theatrical flourishes to encourage Americans to act against Hitler’s murderous policies. Bergson’s “Committee for a Jewish Army” produced a 1943 staging of the We Will Never Die pageant at Madison Square Garden—a sold-out show that was a counterpoint to the pro-Nazi rally held there four years earlier.

Stephanie Hinnershitz, PhD, fellow with The National WWII Museum’s Jenny Craig Institute for the Study of War and Democracy, discusses the Pageant and its impact with Rebbeca Erbelding, PhD, historian, author, curator, and archivist at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

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