New York (Jan. 15)
Facts concerning Jewish men in the U.S. armed forces during the first year of the war which indicate that American Jews are contributing their full share to the national war effort, were released here today by the National Jewish Welfare Board in a report entitled “In The Nation’s Service.”
The JWE reports opens with a statement by General George C. Marshall, Chief of Staff, to the effect that “there are thousands of Jewish soldiers in the ranks of the Army, and many officers of that faith.” The statement emphasizes that the U.S. Army is composed of people of many religions and that all of them “are Americans and all are involved in our effort to promote peace and justice in the world.” A section of the report also carries statements from American generals and admirals praising the Jewish servicemen as ably upholding the tradition of Americans in combat, proving themselves to be among the best fighters in the world.
Reviewing the record of Jewish heroism in this war, the report points out that “despite the relatively small percentage of Jews in the general population, men of Jewish faith have distinguished themselves in almost every major encounter in the war.” It enumerates outstanding acts of heroism by Jewish servicemen at Pearl Harber, Bataan, Corregidor, Java, Australia, Wake Island, Midway, New Guinea, the Solomons, the Aleutians and other fronts, revealing that in the North African campaign Lieut. Colonel A.H. Rosenberg is credited, among others, with leading the first American troops into Algiers. In addition the report carries an incomplete listing of names, deeds and citations of Jewish servicemen who have been decorated for valor since Pearl Harbor.