The history of the Jewish people is full of discrimination and persecution. None of the atrocities committed by the Nazis against the Jews during the Holocaust were original. In England in 1189, apparently for no reason, a bloody massacre of the Jews occurred. Subsequently, the Fourth Lateran Council under Pope Innocent III required Jews to wear a badge so that everyone could know their race, and then had them locked up in walled and closed ghettos, where the Jewish community primarily remained until the mid-18th century . When the Black Death devastated Europe in the Middle Ages, many Europeans blamed the Jews (Taft 7). However, the only thing that might be scarier than such brutal persecution might just be the failure of others and their utter refusal to intervene. This is the case for non-Axis countries during World War II; these nations failed miserably in their responsibility to guarantee basic human rights – including the right to life – to Jewish immigrants before World War II. Jewish people and culture have always been an integral part of Western society. Many of society's core values and perspectives are derived from those of the Jews (Cahill 3). Every economy involved the Jews. Some of their most common professions were bankers and doctors; even when one neglects to consider the necessity of these professions, one must consider that simply by existing they have boosted the economy through trade (Taft 1). The New York Times recorded that in London in 1902 it was “astonishing how quickly they improved their conditions and began to save money” and were building a tailoring business to rival Germany (“Jewish Immigration to London”). According to then former President Taft, in 1919 Jews were granted legal equality in all countries except Romania and Russia, a... means of paper... an occupation (the suppressors of their rights). It helped to understand a good part of the political and cultural aspects in a key part of Europe. Zollman, Joellyn. “Jewish Immigration to America: My Jewish Learning.” Jewish Immigration to America: My Jewish Learning. Np, nd Web. 08 November 2013. . Joellyn Zollman described three "waves" of Jewish immigration to America. First came the Sephardic settlers starting in 1654 and several decades later, then the German Jews (primarily to escape oppression and denial of rights, including basic human rights) in the 1840s, and finally the Europeans of 'East after 1880. It provided information on the history of Jewish immigration to the United States, along with the reasons for it: These reasons appeared to be part of a trend throughout history.
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