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B'nai B'rith International CercaNota d'ambito
Use when survivors discuss their experiences with this organization. (en-US)
Definizione
B'nai B'rith is the world's oldest and largest Jewish communal service organization. On October 13, 1843, twelve German Jewish men on the Lower East Side of New York created a Jewish fraternal order to provide financial support and social services to the Jewish community as well as to the general community in which they lived.
Over the years B'nai B'rith has established education centers, libraries, hospitals, orphanages, and rest homes throughout the world. Even before the establishment of the Red Cross, B'nai B'rith members gathered food and clothing for victims of natural disasters and accidents; the Disaster Relief Fund continues to provide manpower and sustenance to victims of disasters. B'nai B'rith worked to protect the rights of Jews impacted by the Civil War and encouraged the United States in the 1870s to request better treatment for Romanian Jews who were being persecuted in their own country. The B'nai B'rith Center for Public Policy continues to work with governments locally and worldwide. Beginning in the 1880s, B'nai B'rith opened trade schools, provided financial assistance, and taught language and acculturation programs to thousands of European immigrants to the United States. The organization worked with the Baron de Hirsch Fund to relieve the burden on the New York community by helping to settle Jews throughout the United States. In 1882 B'nai B'rith expanded overseas by opening a lodge in Germany; it founded its first lodge in Palestine in 1888. In 1897 a group of San Francisco women started a ladies' auxiliary chapter, leading to the creation of B'nai B'rith Women.
In 1913, in response to a marked increase in antisemitic events in America, B'nai B'rith created the Anti-Defamation League to protect and support Jewish rights, to promote and improve cooperation with other religious groups, and to stimulate better relations among all races. In 1923 B'nai B'rith started the Hillel Foundation to provide religious and social support to university students and to promote Jewish educational opportunities within school curricula; by 1999, Hillel reached tens of thousands of students at 440 universities in the United States and sixteen other countries. In 1924 B'nai B'rith founded a Jewish youth movement, BBYO, which has three sections: Aleph Zadik Aleph (A.Z.A.) for male teens, B'nai B'rith Girls (B.B.G.) for female teens, and B'nai B'rith Young Adults (BBYA); by 1999, BBYO had more than 30,000 members worldwide.
During World War II, B'nai B'rith officers preferred quiet, behind-the-scenes activities to bring attention to the situation of the Jews in Europe. They were concerned that an activist, public stance against Germany and a boycott of German products would worsen the situation for Jews in Europe. When the Gestapo raided the B'nai B'rith offices in Berlin and arrested all the officers in 1937, the international president asked the United States government to appeal the action on humanitarian grounds. He still refused to arrange public protests, however, believing that diplomacy would be more effective. After receiving news reports about death camps and other means of persecuting European Jews, B'nai B'rith helped found the American Jewish Conference. The American Jewish Conference set the rescue of European Jews as one of its priorities.
After the war, both B'nai B'rith and the American Jewish Conference helped survivors resettle in America. In 1990 B'nai B'rith voted to allow female membership; B'nai B'rith Women has continued as a separate organization that supports women's issues. As of 1999, B'nai B'rith was the largest supporter of non-sectarian housing for the elderly poor in the United States. Most recently, B'nai B'rith had lodges and chapters in fifty-six countries and a membership of over 250,000. It publishes the B'nai B'rith Internal Jewish Monthly magazine (originally known as "Menorah"). B'nai B'rith also helps survivors file compensation claims forms, assists with the search and prosecution of perpetrators, and works with legislators in support of compensation claims and victims' rights. The organization's broad mission continues to be: to support formal and informal Jewish education; to influence government policies on Israel, refugees, and civil rights; to provide social services and financial support to the Jewish and non-Jewish needy; to assist with disaster relief locally and worldwide; to provide medical care; and to support projects and programs in Israel. (en-US)
Fonte
B'nai B'rith Interactive. "What is B'nai B'rith?" 2001. http://bbi.koz.com/bbi/what (12 July 2001).