LETTER: Typed letter signed, to Mr. Garner re FDR's Jewish Policies.
Eleanor Roosevelt on FDR’s Jewish Policies
Roosevelt, Eleanor. Typed letter signed “Eleanor Roosevelt” to Martin Garner, July 30,
1951; one leaf of Val-Kill Cottage stationery; recto only; folded. In a specially-made quarter morocco
slipcase.
Together with:
Garner, Martin. Typed letter carbon signed “Martin Garner” to Eleanor Roosevelt, July 25, 1951; one leaf of carbon paper, folded.
Roosevelt’s letter is in response to Garner’s queries regarding the death and burial of FDR, as well as FDR’s relationship with Roosevelt. Garner explains that he was conversing with friends who believed that FDR is not buried at Hyde Park, was not laid in state, and that he might have even committed suicide. Garner goes on to say that the same friends questioned Roosevelt’s service to Jews, and were convinced that FDR and Roosevelt were unhappy together.
Garner closes by mentioning that he broadcast the news of FDR’s death over the radio in California; he says, “I didn’t know what it was I was going to read as it was given to me while I was announcing. I thought my own life had been taken from me.”
Roosevelt begins her letter by remarking, “It always amazes me to hear of the nonsense some people believe and repeat.” She goes on to clarify all of the issues Garner raised. In part:
My husband did not lie in state because he did not want to and there is no law requiring it. Several people, including myself, saw him after death and he was attended by a highly reputable doctor.
It was the United Nations which created Israel and of course President Truman and the United States participated in the decision. No President could create an independent state by himself.
My husband did as much for the Jews as for anyone else. He was President of the entire United States and treated every citizen alike.
I am really not concerned over what is said about me. I act and think according to my honest beliefs.
Garner may have been a Brooklyn-born (b. 1927) character actor of the stage and screen – and, perhaps, radio personality – who served in the Navy during World War II (which could corroborate his having been “stationed in California”); he is buried in Calverton National Cemetery.
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