"In my opinion, condemning the Zionist movement as "nationalistic" is unjustified. Consider the path by which Herzl came to his mission. Initially he had been completely cosmopolitan. But during the Dreyfus trial in Paris he suddenly realized with great clarity how precarious was the situation of the Jews in the western world. And courageously he drew the conclusion that we are discriminated against or murdered not because we are Germans, Frenchmen, Americans, etc. of the "Jewish faith" but simply because we are Jews. Thus already our precarious situation forces us to stand together irrespective of our citizenship. Zionism gave the German Jews no great protection against annihilation. But it did give the survivors the inner strength to endure the debacle with dignity and without losing their healthy self respect. Keep in mind that perhaps a similar fate could be lying in wait for your children."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
c. 1946, p. 63-64.
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein_and_politics
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Albert Einstein and politics
115 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Albert Einstein and politics →
Related Quotes
"Man begreift schwer beim Erleben dieser "großen Zeit", daß man dieser verrückten, verkommenen Spezies angehört, die s…"
"Ich bin der Abstammung nach ein Jude, der Staatszugehörigkeit nach ein Schweizer und der Gesinnung nach ein Mensch un…"
"In Lenin I honor a man, who in total sacrifice of his own person has committed his entire energy to realizing social …"
"In America, more than anywhere else, the individual is lost in the achievements of the many. America is beginning to …"
"We are inclined to overemphasize the material influences in history. The Russians especially make this mistake. Intel…"
"Bolshevism is an extraordinary experiment. It is not impossible that the drift of social evolution henceforward may b…"
"It is quite possible to be both. I look upon myself as a man. Nationalism is an infantile disease. It is the measles …"
"We Jews have been too adaptable. We have been too eager to sacrifice our idiosyncrasies for the sake of social confor…"
"I do not believe in race as such. Race is a fraud. All modern people are the conglomeration of so many ethnic mixture…"
"Autoritätsdusel ist der größte Feind der Wahrheit."