Because the selection of families was based on quotas which were
proportional to the number of Jews living in the Washington area, only 7%
of
the pioneer Greenbelters were Jewish. "The town manager admired
that Jews provided and continue to provide a greater proportion of
community leaders than their numbers warrant" (Form,
218). Although some residents did experience or observe
anti-semitism, Jews were elected into high official positions. Form
hypothesized their elections could be attributed to the need for
leadership in the many new clubs and groups (Form,219).
Form observed that the residents who came from western, rural areas tended
to exhibit subtle forms of anti-semitism, as exemplified through comments
such as "'how can you know he is a Jew?'", "'I'll bet so and so is a Jew
at home'", and "'I never knew he was a Jew'" (Form, 220). The general
stereotype was that eastern Jews were not as good as the western Jews.
When office elections neared, religious affiliation became an element in
the
voting process. In general, Catholics accused the Jews of monopolizing
offices while Jews and Protestants felt the converse (Form, 220).
Generally, Jews had a lower status than non-Jews. Few residents admitted
any anti-semitic feelings they harbored.
Ethel Rosenweig, who has lived with her husband,
Ben, in "old" Greenbelt for over 50 years, did not personally experience
much anti-semitism in the community. She remembers some anti-semitic
remarks written on a garage door during Greenbelt's early years and the
defacement of a synagogue door about three years ago, but that's about it.
In order to improve religious relations, some members of different
religious affiliations established the Permanent Conference on Religious
Life in Greenbelt in 1939. Their goal was to limit and eliminate
religious prejudice and "foster interfaith understanding" (Washington Star, 1939) . Joint congregations
would allow people of various faiths to learn and see the other viewpoints
concerning religion.
In the 1950s, the Jewish community in Greenbelt sought to build the
Greenbelt Jewish Community Center at Ridge Road and Westway Road to
provide room for their various activities. It was to be built mostly by
volunteers and paid for mostly by contributions. Many non-Jews, including
members from St. Hugh's Catholic Church, Greenbelt Lutheran Church, and
Greenbelt Community Church, helped to build the civic center, donated
food, money, and offered professional advice for the construction of the
building. A newspaper, the Washington Star
publicized the teamwork mustered for the project throughout 1952 and 1953
in such headlines as "Catholics and Protestants Help Build Greenbelt
Jewish Center" and "All Creeds Unite at Greenbelt to Labor on Jewish
Center".
