Report to the ... Zionist Congress and to the Council of the Jewish Agency in ... · 1935-08-01 · 8.1935 · p. Seite 241

countries who have found their way to Tunis and have expressed a desire to settle in Palestine. We have applied to Jerusalem for immigration certificates for a number of Tunisian Jews whose training for settlement in Palestine is supervised by our office. UNITED STATES. 1. Organisation.—It is very gratifying to report that since the last Congress year, the Zionist Organisation of America has made considerable progress in all its branches : numerical strength, financial income and cultural activities. On May 1st, 1935, when this statement was prepared, the Zionist Organisation of America and its affiliated bodies numbered close to 1,500 Zionist units operating in practically every one of the 48 states comprising the United States of America. These include 243 districts of the Zionist Organisation of America, 274 chapters of Hadassah, the Women's Zionist Organisation, 52 camps of the Order Sons of Zion, the fraternal order of the Z.O.A., 210 chapters of Junior Hadassah, the Young Women's Zionist Organisation, 50 groups of Masada, the Youth Zionist Organisation, 50 chapters of Avukah, the Student Zionist Body, active in over thirty colleges, and about 600 clubs of Young Judaea, the National Junior Zionist Division—the regular membership amounting to over 80,000 in all. The membership growth is indicated by this fact : of the 88,000 Shekolim reported from the United States to the last Zionist Congress, the Zionist Organisation of America and its affiliates disposed of over 80,000, while the report to the coming Congress will show that of the 140,000 shekel payers the United States expects to register, the Zionist Organisation of America and its affiliates will have secured close to 110,000. A notable achievement of the Organisation in the past year was the holding of the National Conference for Palestine, which took place on January 20th, 1935, at Washington, D.C. This Conference, initiated and sponsored by the Zionist Organisation of America, was attended by representatives of 52 national Jewish organisations in the United States as well as by 1,337 elected delegates from 141 communities. This was the most representative gathering ever held in the history of American Jewry and achieved the purpose of mobilising the sentiment of American Jewry for Palestine upbuilding. As a result of the Conference a Committee was elected to formulate plans for the active participation of the non-Zionist elements of American Jewry in the economic development of Palestine, as well as to submit proposals for a planned economy in Palestine. 2. Propaganda.—In the past year over 350 meetings have been addressed by speakers sent by Z.O.A. Headquarters, in addition to numerous cultural and propaganda meetings that were held by the Districts, Hadassah Chapters, Masada and Avukah groups, them- 241 16