Acta Oeconomica Pragensia 2007, 15(7):448-459 | DOI: 10.18267/j.aop.232

Boycott of German Goods in Poland, 1933-1935

Jerzy Tomaszewski
Prof. dr hab. Jerzy Tomaszewski - vědecký pracovník; Stowarzyszenie Żydowski Instytut Historyczny w Polsce, Warszawa (rawiw@neostrada.pl).

Anti-Jewish riots in Germany were the reason for a proposal of economic boycott presented by delegates from Poland at the Jewish Congress in Geneva in August 1932. A similar proposal was presented at the session of the Executive Committee of the American Jewish Congress in March 1933. The AJC proclaimed the boycott only in August of that year. The Jewish members of the Parliament in Poland proclaimed boycott as early as March 15, 1933. This was the beginning of the boycott campaign which was directed in Poland by the United Jewish Committee for Countervailing Persecution of Jews in Germany (Zjednoczony Komitet Żydowski do walki z prze¶ladowaniem Żydów w Niemczech). Local committees were created and the boycott was supported by the trade unions.
The persecution of Jews in Germany affected Polish citizens and also influenced Polish-German relations. Polish official representatives in Germany engaged themselves in their defense; the boycott supported Polish diplomacy. From the end of May 1933, Polish-German relations were slowly changing for the better. The boycott became embarrassing for Poland after signing the German-Polish declaration on the nonuse of force. The Central Committee of the boycott had to cease its activities in June 1935. This was not the end of the boycott however it could no longer be promoted openly.
It would be impossible to estimate the boycott's impact on the German economy. Fragmentary information indicates that certain branches suffered. The economic as well as moral significance of the boycott was however diminished because of the agreement between the Jewish Agency and the Third Reich (Ha-avara Agreement). Germany agreed to allow Jews to emigrate with a part of their capital, however on a condition that this could only be done in the form of export of German industrial goods. The agreement was the subject of violent arguments at the Zionist Congresses.

Keywords: boycott, Germany 1933-1935, Poland 1933-1935, persecution of Jews 1932-1935

Published: December 1, 2007  Show citation

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Tomaszewski, J. (2007). Boycott of German Goods in Poland, 1933-1935. Acta Oeconomica Pragensia, 15(7), 448-459. doi: 10.18267/j.aop.232
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