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UNITED NATIONS RESOLUTION 181 | |
| November 29, 1947 | ||
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INTRODUCTION Seventy years ago an historic event took place: the United Nations resolution 181 that partitioned the British Mandate into Jewish and Palestinian sections. Clevelanders took special joy in that vote. Our own Rabbi Abba Hillel Silver had led the mobilization of U S support for a State of Israel and the fight for resolution 181. Like most Zionist leaders Silver shared the dream of a unified Israel and opposed partition. When it appeared that such a goal would not succeed, with so many Jews trapped in displaced persons camps, unwilling to return to their former homes, and other nations, including ours, slow to accept them, he and the Zionist leadership supported partition as their only hope. A 2/3 vote was needed for passage and the vote was taken on the last day of the General Assembly. The next day's Cleveland Jewish News, which is a strong supporter
of Israel, made no mention of this anniversary,
nor did the websites of Forward and the Jewish Telegraphic
Agency. |
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Cleveland's Coverage of the Event
The resolution passed Saturday afternoon, November 29, 1947 Below: the front page of the Plain Dealer of Sunday November 30, 1947. From the Plain Dealer online archives |
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Below: As the the Jewish Independent
published only on Friday, the event was announced
on Friday December 6, 1947, at the top of the front
page.
Source: the Archives Cleveland Jewish News |
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Below: Map of 1947 partition plan (from Wikipedia) |
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Read the resolution on the United Nations website
The Partition Plan in Wikipedia Second is the vote of the General Assembly a few days later, Saturday ,November 29, the last day of the U N session. It took place in an enormous auditorium (see image above). Speakers stood on the platform at the front of the auditorium and spoke into a microphone, in part to support concurrent translation to many languages. The vote was close, 30-13, barely exceeding the required two-thirds majority. For dramatic effect many videos move back and forth between the General Assembly vote and the committee hearing that preceded it by days. Some videos include scenes of persons in Jerusalem listening to the vote and then rejoicing in the streets. Older Clevelanders, awed (as I was) by Silver speaking on any podium may remember him addressing the U N and convincing delegates to vote for a Jewish State. The true story is much more complex and dramatic. It was years of organizing and persuading, the horror of the Holocaust and the plight of displaced persons that led to the passing of Resolution 181. Silver's great contributions were the behind the scene organizing, stirring the Republican party to support a Jewish state, and, possibly last, his eloquence.
Other websites |
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