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Therry Schwartz, who has researched the American involvement in World War I for the past quarter-century, will present a lecture and slide show on “The Jewish Soldier of World War I: His Life and Memory,” at noon, Friday, October 29, in the auditorium of Lafayette's Kirby Hall of Civil Rights.
The event is free and open to the public, and lunch will be available at no charge. It is sponsored by the Friends of Skillman Library, the Jewish Studies program, and the department of religion.
“There is very little material on the role the Jewish soldier played in the war,” says Schwartz, a 1985 Lafayette graduate who works in the Interlibrary Loan department in the College's Skillman Library. “He was just a soldier doing what soldiers are supposed to do, which is defend his country. World War I was a global war and even though anti-Semitism was widely spread, it found almost no place in the trenches. Jewish soldiers of all nations were drafted and volunteered for service throughout the war years (1914-1918). They were not treated differently, and there were many Jews who held high-ranking positions.
“These soldiers lived in the trenches and therefore died there also,” adds Schwartz, whose research has included many hours spent on French battlefields. “This is where the differentiation occurred. Once a Jewish soldier was killed, his body was retrieved and identified as Jewish. He was buried under a symbol of his faith, the Star of David, and Jewish services were held. Jews of all the combatant nations were treated as such, whether they were British, French, American or German. World War I was the only war in which this occurred.”
Schwartz has compiled an extensive archive on Lafayette College's role in World War I. Through his research, five names were added to the college's war memorial on the esplanade in front of Alumni Gymnasium. His recent research has focused on winners of the Medal of Honor and the Distinguished Service Cross. He also collects memorabilia of the American Expeditionary Force.