Would You Punch a Nazi?

_The_Oracle_ · Feb 25, 2023

I would.

Great story here which reminds me of a time when advocating for violence against Nazis wasn’t called “woke.”

Might be the best thing this tabloid has ever produced:

Jewish gangsters once took on Nazis in the streets of NYC

In the late 1930s, America’s fascism problem was eventually solved — with some Jewish toughs and their fists, a new book reveals.

nypost.com

A former US congressman and judge named Nathan David Perlman saw the path the Bund was on, and he wanted it stopped. He knew their actions weren’t illegal, but the judge had a revelation one evening while enjoying a cocktail in a Manhattan saloon.

“What those Nazis need is a good ass-whipping,”

Perlman knew exactly who should deliver said “ass-whipping,” too. He called Meyer Lansky, New York’s preeminent Jewish gangster.

“You got some boys who might want to punch a Nazi?” he asked.

“I do, Judge,” the mobster answered. “Respectfully, you understand we can do better than punch? I know just the crew — in Brownsville. The boys in the press call them Murder, Inc.”

Lansky had grown up tough on the Lower East Side with gangsters Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel and Charles “Lucky” Luciano, helping to form New York’s “Five Families” organized crime outfit and becoming rich and powerful through bookmaking, bootlegging and opening casinos. Lansky was smart but tough, too, willing to get physical when necessary.

Perlman declined Lansky’s offer to kill the Nazis. Instead, he wanted Lansky to teach the Bund a lesson they wouldn’t soon forget.

Many of New York’s Germans lived in Yorkville (East 86th Street was nicknamed “Sauerkraut Boulevard”), where the Bund frequently held rallies and parades. To honor Hitler’s 49th birthday on April 20, those fascists planned a celebratory march from Carl Schulz Park to the Yorkville Casino.

Meyer Lansky, New York’s preeminent Jewish gangster, ran the Nazis out of New York.Library of Congress
Waiting for them at the casino were Meyer Lansky and his Jewish gangster friends, including members of Murder, Inc.: “Mendy” Weiss, who worked as a kidnapper and “choker”; “Buggsy” Goldstein, rumored to crack jokes while killing; Harry “Pep” Strauss, reputedly one of the most prolific contract killers; and Jacob Drucker, known as an “ice pick man” for his favorite means of murder.

After the parade, the Bund planned on listening to a speech from Kuhn in a ballroom decorated with swastikas and likenesses of the Fuhrer.

Lansky’s crew broke into three groups: Outside, five racketeers with baseball bats and pool cues waited to pound fleeing Nazis; on the second floor, five more planned on attacking from on high; and in the back of the casino ballroom sat Lansky and friends, Jewish men who listened to ugly speeches briefly before randomly unleashing haymakers. The gangsters attacked from three sides and 15 bouts of fisticuffs ensued, and although the gangsters were far outnumbered by the more than 3,000 Nazis, it wasn’t a fair fight — most Bund members cowered in fear, while the gangsters dealt in violence every day.

_The_Oracle_ · Apr 30, 2023