Bridr Yidn: American Jewish Responses to Mikhoels and Fefer’s Tour of the United States

• In Event: Soviet Jews: Survival and Flight

Abstract

In 1943, Solomon Mikhoels and Itsik Fefer were sent on a tour of the United States, Canada, and Mexico as leaders of the Jewish Anti-Fascist Committee in order to solicit the financial support of the Jewish communities in these countries in waging the war effort. This paper examines the role of American Jewish organizations like the World Jewish Congress and the American Committee of Jewish Writers, Artists, and Scientists in arranging Mikhoels and Fefer’s visit and the response of American Jews to their public appearances. This paper also explores the ways in which this tour might have shaped Mikhoels and Fefer’s conception of the role of the Jewish Anti-Fascist Committee with respect to Soviet Jews.

Author

• Susan Zayer Rupp, Wake Forest U