We Refugees Archive

This collection contains fragments and various versions of the Statement of Purpose of the American Guild for German Cultural Freedom. These documents are not dated, and it is not always clear who the author is. However, some assumptions can be made on which documents were created first. There is a progression from handwritten, to typed with handwritten notes and solely typed without handwritten notes.

1. “American Guild for German Cultural Freedom” (handwritten, 3 pages)
2. “American Guild for German Cultural Freedom” (typed with notes, 3 pages)
3. Statement of Purpose draft (2 pages)
4. Fragment of another Statement of Purpose draft (numbered, p.2-4)
5. Fragment of another Statement of Purpose draft (numbered, p.3-4)“American Guild for German Cultural Freedom” by Alvin Johnson and Henry Seidel Canby with list leadership positions

American Guild for German Cultural Freedom

For centuries world civilization has been civilized by the contribution of German culture.

Germany gave the world such genesis as that of Goethe, Schiller, Kant, Bach, Händel, Mozart, Beethoven, Wagner, Dürer, Holbein, and lots of others. Their influence on American their humanity culture has been profound.

Today, there are such men as the German spirit is alive in men like Thomas Mann, Segmund Freud, Albert Einstein, Otto Klemperer, Franz Werfel, Alfred Neumann, and others of great humanistic achievements. Who are the represent Their thought finds root in those German meders of the past.

Today, German culture is in agony in the Reich

[Could not decipher]

But the spirit of is alive. It is creative alive in men like…and others of such great talent. Their whose thought finds root in those great German workers of the past. They are the representatives of German culture.

A generation is following of great promise of young writers, scholars and artists is rising behind them from whom the world has not yet heard. Struck by the hardships of exile they have could not yet make a name for themselves. They are scattered were driven from their homeland and scattered all over the world. Many of them are in dire need.

Those who dictate at the present time dictate the destinies of Germany have decided that the tradition of a great free and humanistic German culture  which the world advised, shall betorn from the soil and shall destroyed that shall be burnt. Its seed scattered in exile shall perish in exile.

In Germany they have the this has been accomplished. No longer does German culture exist within the borders of the Reich. It has fallen prey to ruthless barbarism.

Shall the destruction proceed beyond the borders of the Reich? Shall it those young men an women, who carry in themselves the achievements of a glorious great past and promises of a brighter future fall victims to at the relentless wrath of a relentless totalitarianism?

Shall the creative forces of a nation which in the past has so much enriched the spiritual life of the world be delivered allowed to perish?

We cannot believe it. We believe that all free-spirited men and women will raise not suffer such abomination and that we believe that there the millions who raise their voice for freedom and justice will come to the rescue. Indeed, they have already come. It is not without emotion that we which the world chose we the the spectacle of noble efforts made all over the world, and above all this great country, to save the seeds upon whom we build the hope of the future.

AMERICAN GUILD FOR GERMAN CULTURAL FREEDOM

For centuries world civilization has been enriched by the contributions of German culture. Germany gave the world such genius as that of Goethe, Schiller, Kant, Bach, Händel, Mozart, Beethoven, Wagner, Dürer, Holbein, and a host of others. Their influence on humanity has been profound.

Today, German culture is in agony no longer exists within the German Reich. With fire and sword has it been extinguished. But the spirit they could not kill. It is alive in men like Thomas Mann, Sigmund Freud, Albert Einstein, Otto Klemperer, Franz Werfel, Alfred Neumann, and other of high humanistic distinction. Their thought finds root in those German masters of the past. They are today the representatives of German culture.

A generation of younger writers, scholars and artists of great promise is rising behind them from whom the world has not yet heard. Struck by the blows of ruthless persecution, suffering from the hardships of exile, they could not yet make a name for themselves. They were driven from their homeland in the years of promise and scattered all over the world.

They have left Germany and Austria, not because of race or religion, but because they were unable to breathe the air of a totalitarian state distasteful to them. Had they remained, they could not have kept faith with their ideals nor have gone on with their work. They have preferred even to make their precarious livelihoods as actors, workers, porters and laborers rather than submit to suppression and regimentation of spirit. For the spirit must be free or it will die.

It is surprising to count the numbers of these younger men and women of talent who, voluntarily or involuntarily, are now resident outside of the Reich. In proportion their numbers are by far greater than those of any other profession or trade. But also their need is by far the greatest.

They are trying to keep themselves alive in foreign lands by honest means at their command. But if it is not the United States of America, which country will grant them today the permission to enter, to stay or even to work?

The great promise which these men carry within them may perish in the adversities of exile in the effort to survive a desperate physical and spiritual crisis which is near to overcome so many of these refugees who are more and more abandoned of all assistance. Suffering from the attack on civilization in their own country, wearied by the daily struggle of their lives, cut off from audiences for their creative work, they are driven to the edge of despair. Their plight is tragic, and, unless we come to their assistance, hopeless. If we fail, they will perish.

It may be gratifying to those who at the present time dictate the destinies of Germany that this is so. They have decided that the tradition of free German culture shall be torn from the soil and shall be destroyed. Its seed, now scattered in exile, shall perish. It is not, however, gratifying to the world at large.

In Germany, the work of destruction has been accomplished. No longer does German culture exist within the borders of the Reich. It has fallen a prey to ruthless barbarism.

Shall we look on that the destruction proceed beyond the borders of the Reich? Shall those young men and women who carry in themselves the achievements of a great past and the promises of the future, before the victims of a relentless doctrine? Shall the creative forces which have so much enriched the world be allowed to perish?

We cannot believe it. We believe that all free spirited men and women will not suffer such abomination, and that the millions who raise their voice for human dignity and liberty will come to the rescue. There is a great humanitarian work to be accomplished and it is not circumscribed to one are or one class. It is a world-wide and universal cause which affects all people. And every individual. To every single man we may say therefore: it is indeed YOUR cause.

World civilization depends on the culture of the individual nations. The culture of a nation is the total of accomplishment of its men of genius. Therefore, the development of civilization as a whole must finally depend upon men and what they create.

Just as there can be no work……….uniformity.

To stifle………of civilization.

There can be no work for men to do unless some are left free to create and plan that work. There can be no progress without scholars and artists and writers who, building upon the past, project their ideas and ideals for the present and for the future. Genius can continue to create only through imagination, unrestricted by partisan censorship, unharmed by dictatorial mandate and free regimented uniformity.

To stifle even one voice, great or small, in the universe of cultural expression is to build a barrier against theupward struggle of mankind. To wipe out the cultural traditions and values of a great nation is to precipitate a landslide of the progress of civilization.

The problem calls for action in three directions:

1. The exiled writers, scholars and artists, whose medium of expression is German, must be encouraged by spiritual and material means to carry on their work.
2.  The life of a free German culture outside of the Reich must be strengthened and in some measure reorganized.
3. The American and other civilizations must be made to share the fruits of these creative efforts.
   ….. .. ………..

The structural organization of the American Guild for Cultural Freedom consists of

1. The American Guild as the executive, financial, and controlling unit;
2. The European Council, composed of eminent German intellectuals, who act as trustees for German culture in exile. It is upon their recommendations that all scholarships and subsidies are considered.
3. The Committee on Awards and Scholarships for Arts and Letters, which is an independent group within the American Guild deciding on awards and scholarships.

During the last year, over sixty scholarships have been awarded for the completion of meritorious works; printing subsidies have been given for their publication in the German language; a literary prize contest has been inaugurated in collaboration with publishers from nine countries; a book club has been established under the auspices of the American Guild; organizations have been sponsored which are working on special schemes within the framework of the comprehensive scope of the Guild.

It is not enough ….….important objectives.

May one of these young men,  lyrical poet of great promise, who received a scholarship from the American Guild, speak for himself:

We cannot believe it. We believe that all free-spirited  men and women will not suffer such abomination, that the millions who raise their voice for human dignity and freedom will come to the rescue.

Action is required in three directions.

1. Material aid and moral support must be given to the German writers, scholars and artists in exile, so that they may be able to continue their creative efforts.
2. The German public outside the Reich, natural outlet for the works of German culture in exile, must be encouraged and in some way reorganized.
3. World Civilization must be given opportunity to share the fruits of German culture in exile.

The American Guild for German Cultural Freedom has made its scope to solve these problems. It proposes:

1. To foster the traditions of free German culture and in particular, to provide a medium through which German writers, scholars and artists in all fields may express themselves freely in the tradition of German culture and scholarship unhindered by political censorship and oppression;
   2. To encourage and protect the German intellectuals in exile;
   3. To set up awards and prizes in the various fields of arts and letters;
   4. To create subsidies for meritorious works in progress;
   5. To assist in the translation, publication and distribution of these works;
   6. To promote worthwhile contributions in the fields of theatre, music and the graphic and plastic arts;
   7. To combat the false theories of race which are propogated by the National Socialist Party;
   8. To sponsor all organizations which may be working on special projects within the comprehensive scope of the Guild;
   9. To encourage all efforts to make the works of true German culture available to the Millions of Germans outside of the Reich and to the world public at large.

There can be no work for men to do unless some are left free to create and plan that work. There can be no progress without the scholars and artists and writers who, building upon the past, project their ideas and ideals from the present into the future. Genius can continue to create only through imagination, unrestricted by partisan censorship, unhampered by dictatorial mandate and free from regimented uniformity.

To strengthen even one voice, great or small, in the universe of cultural expression is to build a barrier against the menace of barbarism. To wipe out the cultural tradition and values of a great nation, however, is to precipitate a landslide before the progress of civilization.

World civilization is built upon the culture of the individual nations. The culture of a nation is the total of accomplishments of its men of genius. Therefore, the development of civilization must finally depend upon men and what they create.

This is the reason why it is so important to offer aid and encouragement to those younger men and women of letters, scholars, musicians and composers, artists in marble and on canvas. They represent not only their nation’s culture, but a part of the culture of the world.

Their plight is our plight, it is a universal cause. The American Guild for German Cultural Freedom believed that, given the support of all well-meaning people, the problem can be solved. Therefore, the Guild seeks contributions from all who feel a responsibility to help in this noble cause.

AMERICAN GUILD FOR

GERMAN CULTURAL FREEDOM

The American Guild for German Cultural Freedom is based on the premise that a major part of German talent in the liberal arts is now, more or less, involuntarily resident outside of Germany. This is true of novelists, poets, musicians, painters and sculptors. It is not primarily a matter of race. Artists and scholars like Thomas Mann, Fritz von Unruh, Rene Schickele and Otto Klemperer cannot function in a totalitarian state. They are not exiled, but their art is exiled.

We believe that it is possible to create a situation in which the German culture of Goethe, Beethoven and Mendelssohn can function outside of Germany, until a happier day when it can again function on its own soil. We believe that this art is a constituent part of modern culture, and worth the effort to keep it alive.

Outside of Germany, there are approximately 35,000,000 people who read German or otherwise participate in German culture. In the past, these 35,000,000 Germans have been the market for the expression of a free German culture. Since the advent of the present regime in Germany, most of these people have been fed the propaganda designed to keep the National Socialist Party in control of the German Government. It is the purpose of the American Guild again to establish connections between the 35,000,000 Germans and the intellectuals in exile. If the work of the artists, writers and musicians is encouraged through various subsidies, a free German culture will again flow to the German-speaking people outside of the Reich. In order to provide such subsidies, the American Guild for German Cultural Freedom is raising an amount to cover its annual budget of one hundred thousand dollars.

We believe that material and spiritual encouragement to the scholars in exile will insure for the future the preservation of the German culture of the past. We believe that upon this culture the future Germany can be rebuilt. On this premise, the American Guild for German Cultural Freedom seeks the moral and material support of every person who valued academic freedom and its contribution to world civilization.

THE AMERICAN GUILD FOR GERMAN CULTURAL FREEDOM

Alvin Johnson

Henry Seidel Canby

22 West 77th Street

New York City

SUsquehanna 7-4995

Some of the leadership in American Guild for German Cultural Freedom’s effort are:

Gov. Wilbur I. Cross, President

Senator Robt. F. Wagner.  Honorary Chairman:

Dr. Alvin Johnson, Director, New School for Social Research

Prof. Robert M. Hutchins,       President, Chicago University

Dr. Frank Kingdon,                 President, Newark University

Prof. Robert MacIver              Chairman, Dept. of Sociology,

Columbia University

Dr. James T. Shotwell            Director, Division of Economics

and History, Carnegie Endowment

For International Peace

Dr. Henry Seidel Canby,        Former editor, The Saturday

Review of Literature

Leopold Stokowski,                Conductor

George N. Schuster,               Associate Editor, The Commonweal

Prof. T. V. Smith,                    Chicago University

Dr. Jerome Kerwin,                 Chairman, Dept. of Social

Service, Chicago University

*      *      *

Some of the men who compose the present European Academy are as follows:

Thomas Mann, Chairman

Lion Feuchtwanger                                         Father Dr. Georg Moenius

Bruno Frank                                                    Robert Musil

Leonard Frank                                                Rudolph Olden

Sigmund Freud                                               Melchior Palvi

Bronislav Hubermann                                     Rene Schickely

Otto Klemperer                                               Erwin Schroedinger

Emil Lederer                                                   Ernst Toch

Heinrich Mann                                                Fritz von Unruh

*      *      *

The Provincial Committee that is now directing the work of the Guild is headed by Dr. Alvis Johnson. The acting General Secretary is Prince Hubertus zu Loewenstein.

Please mail checks to: Samuel L. M. Barlow, Treasurer, American Guild for German Cultural Freedom. 22 West 77th Street, New York.

Declaration of Intent of the American Guild for German Cultural Freedom © Deutsches Exilarchiv 1933–1945 der Deutschen Nationalbibliothek –  German Exile Archive 1933-1945 from the German National Library.