Jacob H. Schiff, German born Jew, but
"an American"
Jacob H. Schiff only publicly dropped his opposition to Zionism in 1919 (probably after he was convinced that "Zionism is but an incident of a far reaching plan"). But back in 1907 he wrote something which is still poignant today:Speaking as an American, I cannot for a moment concede that one can be at the same time a true American and an honest adherent of the Zionist movement. They who believe and hope and labor for an ultimate restoration of Jewish political life and the reestablishment of a Jewish nation place a prior lien upon their citizenship, which, if there would be a possibility for their desires and plans to become effective would prevent them from maintaining allegiance to the country of which they now claim to be good citizens.Schiff was quoted in the New York's The Sun having written this by Isidore Singer, the editor of the Jewish Encyclopaedia. I found a slightly different variation of this quote in a letter Schiff wrote August 8, 1908, and in 1982, Deborah Lipstadt also selectively quoted from that letter by Schiff.
