RIOTING IN BROADWAY

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 83, Issue 44, 22 February 1939, Page 7

RIOTING IN BROADWAY

GREAT FASCIST RALLY PROTESTING ANTI-NAZIS RECORD CONCENTRATION OF POLICE [By Telegraph—Press Association —Copyright] Received Feb. 21, 11.5 p.m. NEW YORK, Feb. 20. A crowd of 25,000 jammed every street leading to Madison Square Garden to-night when the German American Bund held an “Americanisation rally” beneath mingled swastika and American flags, and placards reading “Stop Jewish domination of Christian Americans.”

Protesting anti-Nazis, many of whom were trampled in the crush, were held back by 1600 police. Two hundred Socialists staged a ten-min-ute riot with 100 patrolmen and drove the police back until mounted reinforcements rushed up. Fists, banners and batons were swung freely, while grey-shirted Storm Troopers paraded within the building, answering orders in German. The crowd later swelled to 100,000 and rioting broke out all #ver the Broadway district. The greatest concentration of police in the department’s history fought men and women on the pavements and amongst the jammed traffic mounted troops were constantly moving from place to place breaking up disturbances. Meanwhile, 22,000 Nazis within Madison Square Garden demonstrated comparatively without interruption. Patrolmen numbering 1745 outside and tear gas squads on the roof made the building as impregnable as a fortress. However, a man named Greenbaum, who had evaded the police and 3000 Storm Troopers, suddenly leaped on to the platform while the Bund lead,er, Fritz Kuhn, was speaking and dashed towards the fuhrer obviously intending to attack him. He was seized by grey-shirted Storm Troopers and kicked and beaten before the police rescued him. He was taken away to the police station while Kuhn continued speaking. Dorothy Thompson, the New York Herald-Tribune columnist, and wife of Sinclair Lewis, was removed after persistently laughing. The police brought her back and placed a guard over the press section. She explained, “I laughed to prove that s?ee speech is not tolerated in this hall.”