A rare issue of the Nazi - controlled Jewish newspaper Yudishe Zeitung. Krakow, 1942

A rare issue of the Nazi - controlled Jewish newspaper Yudishe Zeitung. Krakow, 1942

יודישע צייטונג - GAZETA ZYDOWSKA - A rare issue of the Jewish newspaper operated in disguise under Nazi control alike Jewish Newspaper named 'יודישע צייטונג'. Krakow, January 4, 1942. Polish.

The "Jewish newspaper" was one of the two Jewish magazines allowed by law published by the Jews during the Nazi occupation. The paper was published two to three times a week from July 23, 1940 to August 28, 1942. The paper's editors were based in Krakow and Warsaw, and its distribution included the whole Generalgouvernement. The appearance of the newspaper was Jewish with a Star of David on the title page and the name of the newspaper in Yiddish and published in it Jewish business, but in fact it was a propaganda tool disguised by the Germans, who controlled the content in order to hide their crimes against the Jews in the occupied lands, and to paint a 'normal' and peaceful reality for the Jews in the German-occupied territory, and especially to hide the fact that the Jews were deported from the ghettos to the extermination camps. The Germans allowed Jewish writers freedom to write on cultural issues, but the news and reporting sections were controlled by them. In this way, they created a false representation within the Jewish population as if 'life as usual', as the Jewish newspaper allegedly reports on it. The reports about the Jewish areas were positive and described a peaceful reality of economic, social, and cultural activity, as well as charities operating within and for the benefit of the Jewish population, while the severe famine and killings and massacres were already in full swing.

The 'method' also appears in the issue before us. On the title page of the issue before us are new articles about the various German war fronts. The interior articles all report a pleasant and endearing reality: on page 2 there is an 'innocent' article about food distribution to poor families in Warsaw, the opening of several eateries for the benefit of the poor Warsaw, as well as winter cultural events featuring Jewish artists and addresses where tickets can be obtained for free. Another article deals with a special conference on the importance of Jewish education, and on cultural events and Jewish theater. There is also an article reporting on 1,200 free meals distributed daily to the poor of Lublin, and emergency allowances for free medical care for children. At the back of the newspaper are many advertisements for Jewish businesses.

Of course that the reality in the ghetto was completely different. By the time the issue before us came out, the famine and overcrowding in the Warsaw ghetto were already at their peak. The allocation of food to the Jews of the ghetto was 184 calories per day per person; About 15% of the amount required for a working person or a teenager. At the same time corpses began to accumulate in the streets. In the same year, there were 43,258 deaths in the ghetto, a third of them due to malnutrition.

Attached is a photocopy from the Russian archives in which a Jewish boy in Krakow is seen selling a newspaper in a stall holding the GAZETA ZYDOWSKA , with the newspaper is seen in the background.

4 pages. Complete sheet. Good condition.