On this episode of Our American Stories, President Theodore Roosevelt is known for his many accomplishments: the Panama Canal, his wartime service, and national parks… but there’s one forgotten story that deserves to be remembered as well. As an icon of the Protestant elite, Roosevelt was an unlikely ally of the waves of impoverished Jewish newcomers who crowded the docks at Ellis Island — and he stood up against antisemitism in his city in an astonishing way. Here to tell the story is Arizona State history professor Andrew Porwancher, author of American Maccabee: Theodore Roosevelt and the Jews.
Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
And we continue with our American stories. As an icon
of the Protestant elite, Theodore Roosevelt was an unlikely ally
of the waves of impoverished Jewish newcomers who crowded the
docks at Ellis Island. Here to tell the story is
Arizona State History Professor Andrew Poorwancher. Andrew is the author
(00:31):
of American Maccabee, Theodore Roosevelt and the Jews. Let's take
a listen.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
I wish I had a little jew ibne. Theodore Roosevelt
once mused to a friend, not a drop of Jewish
blood coursed through his veins. If anything, Roosevelt was the
ultimate insider of the Protestant elite that dominated American life
in his era. His father descended from a New York
(00:59):
political dynasty whose eminence in Manhattan dated back to the
days of Dutch colonial rule. His mother was a Southern
belle of such renown that many believed her to be
the inspiration for the character of Scarlett O'Hara. Theodore lived
a life consistent with his patrician pedigree, enrolling at Harvard,
(01:21):
serving as a military officer, and seizing the grandest prize
of all, the Oval office. Roosevelt was a silver spoon
statesman who had grown up in the fashionable neighborhood of
Gramercy Park in New York. He had little in common
with the Yiddish speaking immigrants moistening their brows in the
sweatshops of the Lower east Side just a short walk away.
(01:46):
Roosevelt's privileged path was even further removed from the dreadful
subsistence of Jews struggling to survive in Eastern Europe. And yet,
for all the differences between tr and battled Jews on
both sides of the Atlantic, their causes became pivotal to
his life. He would shape their lives and they, in
(02:09):
turn his legacy. As the enterprising police Commissioner, the thirty
six year old Theodore Roosevelt barnstorm this Jewish enclave, giving
speeches to packed halls of Jewish immigrants where he espoused
his egalitarian ethos. He became so revered that Roosevelt was
often a guest of honor at Jewish weddings. Jews particularly
(02:33):
appreciated his willingness to stand up to anti Semitism. The
most vivid example of Commissioner Roosevelt's fight against jew hatred
came during Hanukkah. In his first year leading the force,
a vicious Jew hater from Germany named Hermann Alvart was
planning a trip to New York City to spread his
(02:55):
invidious message. Alvart was cartoonishly villainous in the late eighteen eighties.
He had been sacked as a school headmaster after the revelation,
but he had stolen funds designated for the children's Christmas party.
The disgraced Albart sought public redemption through anti Semitism, winning
a seat in the German Parliament by persuading farmers in
(03:19):
a rural district that Jews had secretly orchestrated the global
downturn in crop prices. When Albert set his sights on
an American speaking tour, including a planned lecture on the
Lower East Side, anxious Jews approached Commissioner Roosevelt. They asked
TR to bar Albert from speaking, or at least to
(03:41):
deny him police protection, but Roosevelt could not grant their
request without violating the principle of free speech, and even
absent that constitutional right, TR believed that government censorship would
only serve to turn Albart into a martyr. To that end,
tr devised an exceedingly clever scheme. He would provide all
(04:06):
of Art a police detail comprised entirely of Jewish officers.
Roosevelt summoned a subordinate on his force and instructed him,
I wish a list made of thirty good, trusty, intelligent men,
all Jews. It was crucial to Roosevelt that these officers
(04:27):
look unmistakably Jewish, as he told the subordinate, don't bother
yourself to hunt up their religious antecedents. Take those who
have the most pronounced Hebrew physiognomy. The stronger their ancestral marking,
the better. The Jewish policemen selected for duty were brought
(04:49):
to the Commissioner for inspection. With his blue eyes and
golden glasses, Roosevelt surveyed the assemblage, announcing, now I am
going to assign you men to the most honorable service
you have ever done, the protection of an enemy and
the defense of religious liberty and free speech in the
(05:12):
chief city of the United States. You all know who
and what doctor Olivart is. I am going to put
you in charge of the hall where he lectures, and
hold you responsible for perfect good order there throughout the
evening I have no more sympathy with jewbating than you have.
But this is a country where your people are free
(05:34):
to think and speak and act as they choose in
religious matters, as long as you do not interfere with
the peace and comfort of your neighbors. And doctor Olivart
is entitled to the same privilege. It should be your
pride to see that he is protected. That will be
the finest way of showing your appreciation of the liberty
(05:55):
you yourselves enjoy under the American flag. On the second
night of Hanukkah, around one hundred and fifty people gathered
at Cooper Union, an iconic venue on the Lower East Side,
to hear Alivart's much anticipated speech. The press estimated that
(06:16):
fully a third of those in attendance were policemen and detectives,
another third were Jews who had come in protest, and
the last third consisted of gentiles of bearing nationalities who
were presumably amenable to the speaker's agenda. Olivart took the
stage at eight that evening. His remarks inevitably veered into
(06:37):
anti Semitism, and the Jews in the crowd taunted him
in turn with quote a perfect Niagara of hisses and
cries in the words of the New York Times. Despite
the heckling, the galling grin plastered on Alvart's face remained unbroken.
The Knight's greatest drama unfolded when Alvart denounced Jews for
(06:59):
their odious peculiarities in his words, which prompted an eastsider
named Lewis Silverman to cock his arm. Egg in hand,
a reporter recounted, a nice white egg performed a graceful
parabola through the air in the direction of Albert's smiling face.
He danced aside with a degree of agility not indicated
(07:21):
by his portly form, and the egg smashed and spluttered
on the chair behind him. This episode would become part
of Roosevelt's lore with the Jewish community. With great pride.
He would routinely recall how Alivert delivered his violent terigns
against the men of Hebrew faith, owing his safety to
(07:44):
the fact that he was scrupulously protected by men of
the very race which he was denouncing. Roosevelt understood that
the sight of Jewish policeman selflessly guarding the German jew
hater did fall more to undermine all of Art's repugnant
ideas than preemptive censorship ever could have. Reflecting on the
(08:08):
incident years later in his autobiography, Roosevelt remarked, it was
an object lesson to our people, whose greatest need it
is to learn that there must be no division by
class hatred, whether a creed against creed, nationality against nationality,
(08:28):
section against section.
Speaker 1 (08:31):
And a terrific job on the production, editing, and storytelling
by our own Greg Hengler, and a special thanks to
Arizona State History Professor Andrew Poorwancher. Andrew is the author
of American Maccabee Theodore Roosevelt and the Jews and what
a story this is and what an abject lesson and
what it means to be an American. Roosevelt craftily asks
(08:53):
as police commissioner, the Jews not only protect him, but
they protect this awful Neo nih and his right to
speak freely. And this is one of our favorite free
speech stories, right up there with David Gardiner and his
defense of Neo Nazis in Illinois leading to the Skokie case.
(09:13):
Gardner was himself Jewish, And of course our favorite free
speech story, John Adams defending the Redcoats in the Boston
massacre trial, the story of Theodore Roosevelt and the Jews.
Here on our American stories.
And we continue with our American stories. As an icon
of the Protestant elite, Theodore Roosevelt was an unlikely ally
of the waves of impoverished Jewish newcomers who crowded the
docks at Ellis Island. Here to tell the story is
Arizona State History Professor Andrew Poorwancher. Andrew is the author
(00:31):
of American Maccabee, Theodore Roosevelt and the Jews. Let's take
a listen.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
I wish I had a little jew ibne. Theodore Roosevelt
once mused to a friend, not a drop of Jewish
blood coursed through his veins. If anything, Roosevelt was the
ultimate insider of the Protestant elite that dominated American life
in his era. His father descended from a New York
(00:59):
political dynasty whose eminence in Manhattan dated back to the
days of Dutch colonial rule. His mother was a Southern
belle of such renown that many believed her to be
the inspiration for the character of Scarlett O'Hara. Theodore lived
a life consistent with his patrician pedigree, enrolling at Harvard,
(01:21):
serving as a military officer, and seizing the grandest prize
of all, the Oval office. Roosevelt was a silver spoon
statesman who had grown up in the fashionable neighborhood of
Gramercy Park in New York. He had little in common
with the Yiddish speaking immigrants moistening their brows in the
sweatshops of the Lower east Side just a short walk away.
(01:46):
Roosevelt's privileged path was even further removed from the dreadful
subsistence of Jews struggling to survive in Eastern Europe. And yet,
for all the differences between tr and battled Jews on
both sides of the Atlantic, their causes became pivotal to
his life. He would shape their lives and they, in
(02:09):
turn his legacy. As the enterprising police Commissioner, the thirty
six year old Theodore Roosevelt barnstorm this Jewish enclave, giving
speeches to packed halls of Jewish immigrants where he espoused
his egalitarian ethos. He became so revered that Roosevelt was
often a guest of honor at Jewish weddings. Jews particularly
(02:33):
appreciated his willingness to stand up to anti Semitism. The
most vivid example of Commissioner Roosevelt's fight against jew hatred
came during Hanukkah. In his first year leading the force,
a vicious Jew hater from Germany named Hermann Alvart was
planning a trip to New York City to spread his
(02:55):
invidious message. Alvart was cartoonishly villainous in the late eighteen eighties.
He had been sacked as a school headmaster after the revelation,
but he had stolen funds designated for the children's Christmas party.
The disgraced Albart sought public redemption through anti Semitism, winning
a seat in the German Parliament by persuading farmers in
(03:19):
a rural district that Jews had secretly orchestrated the global
downturn in crop prices. When Albert set his sights on
an American speaking tour, including a planned lecture on the
Lower East Side, anxious Jews approached Commissioner Roosevelt. They asked
TR to bar Albert from speaking, or at least to
(03:41):
deny him police protection, but Roosevelt could not grant their
request without violating the principle of free speech, and even
absent that constitutional right, TR believed that government censorship would
only serve to turn Albart into a martyr. To that end,
tr devised an exceedingly clever scheme. He would provide all
(04:06):
of Art a police detail comprised entirely of Jewish officers.
Roosevelt summoned a subordinate on his force and instructed him,
I wish a list made of thirty good, trusty, intelligent men,
all Jews. It was crucial to Roosevelt that these officers
(04:27):
look unmistakably Jewish, as he told the subordinate, don't bother
yourself to hunt up their religious antecedents. Take those who
have the most pronounced Hebrew physiognomy. The stronger their ancestral marking,
the better. The Jewish policemen selected for duty were brought
(04:49):
to the Commissioner for inspection. With his blue eyes and
golden glasses, Roosevelt surveyed the assemblage, announcing, now I am
going to assign you men to the most honorable service
you have ever done, the protection of an enemy and
the defense of religious liberty and free speech in the
(05:12):
chief city of the United States. You all know who
and what doctor Olivart is. I am going to put
you in charge of the hall where he lectures, and
hold you responsible for perfect good order there throughout the
evening I have no more sympathy with jewbating than you have.
But this is a country where your people are free
(05:34):
to think and speak and act as they choose in
religious matters, as long as you do not interfere with
the peace and comfort of your neighbors. And doctor Olivart
is entitled to the same privilege. It should be your
pride to see that he is protected. That will be
the finest way of showing your appreciation of the liberty
(05:55):
you yourselves enjoy under the American flag. On the second
night of Hanukkah, around one hundred and fifty people gathered
at Cooper Union, an iconic venue on the Lower East Side,
to hear Alivart's much anticipated speech. The press estimated that
(06:16):
fully a third of those in attendance were policemen and detectives,
another third were Jews who had come in protest, and
the last third consisted of gentiles of bearing nationalities who
were presumably amenable to the speaker's agenda. Olivart took the
stage at eight that evening. His remarks inevitably veered into
(06:37):
anti Semitism, and the Jews in the crowd taunted him
in turn with quote a perfect Niagara of hisses and
cries in the words of the New York Times. Despite
the heckling, the galling grin plastered on Alvart's face remained unbroken.
The Knight's greatest drama unfolded when Alvart denounced Jews for
(06:59):
their odious peculiarities in his words, which prompted an eastsider
named Lewis Silverman to cock his arm. Egg in hand,
a reporter recounted, a nice white egg performed a graceful
parabola through the air in the direction of Albert's smiling face.
He danced aside with a degree of agility not indicated
(07:21):
by his portly form, and the egg smashed and spluttered
on the chair behind him. This episode would become part
of Roosevelt's lore with the Jewish community. With great pride.
He would routinely recall how Alivert delivered his violent terigns
against the men of Hebrew faith, owing his safety to
(07:44):
the fact that he was scrupulously protected by men of
the very race which he was denouncing. Roosevelt understood that
the sight of Jewish policeman selflessly guarding the German jew
hater did fall more to undermine all of Art's repugnant
ideas than preemptive censorship ever could have. Reflecting on the
(08:08):
incident years later in his autobiography, Roosevelt remarked, it was
an object lesson to our people, whose greatest need it
is to learn that there must be no division by
class hatred, whether a creed against creed, nationality against nationality,
(08:28):
section against section.
Speaker 1 (08:31):
And a terrific job on the production, editing, and storytelling
by our own Greg Hengler, and a special thanks to
Arizona State History Professor Andrew Poorwancher. Andrew is the author
of American Maccabee Theodore Roosevelt and the Jews and what
a story this is and what an abject lesson and
what it means to be an American. Roosevelt craftily asks
(08:53):
as police commissioner, the Jews not only protect him, but
they protect this awful Neo nih and his right to
speak freely. And this is one of our favorite free
speech stories, right up there with David Gardiner and his
defense of Neo Nazis in Illinois leading to the Skokie case.
(09:13):
Gardner was himself Jewish, And of course our favorite free
speech story, John Adams defending the Redcoats in the Boston
massacre trial, the story of Theodore Roosevelt and the Jews.
Here on our American stories.
Host
Lee Habeeb
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.