ABSTRACT
The effectiveness of American Jewry's aid in revitalizing European Jewry came from a weltanschaung of helping Jews and Jewish communities to help themselves and not being directly operational; and being non-political and inclusive, serving all elements of the community. The Joint's approach to the revitalization of Europe has been to help develop indigenous human resources, financial resources, and regional and local communal infrastructures. The political role of American Jewry in the revitalization of European Jewish communities cannot be underestimated. The existence and activity of this Committee gave the survivors a stronger position, in addition to the awareness that they had not been forgotten. American Jewry was a major factor, since Eastern European countries were eager for US government assistance and perceived American Jews as capable of swaying American policy. A revitalized Eastern and Western Europe, as an entity, is possible only through a trilateral association among Israel, Europe, and other diaspora communities such as American Jewry.
