Benjamin Akzin
Encyclopedia
Benjamin Akzin (1904–1985) was an early Zionist
activist and, later, an Israeli professor of law.
, Latvia
, then in Livonia in the Russian Empire
. He completed doctorates in political science and law at the universities of Vienna
and Paris
. He was an admirer of Ze'ev Jabotinsky and became active in the Jabotinsky's Revisionist movement
and served as secretary to Jabotinsky. Following Jabotinsky break with the Zionist Organization and his founding of the New Zionist Organization (NZO), Akzin served as head of the political division of NZO from 1936 to 1941.
In the late 1930s, Akzin travelled to the United States
to complete a third doctorate at Harvard University
. In 1940, Akzin was sent by the NZO to Washington to lobby support for Jewish statehood. He spent a period with the legal department of the Library of Congress
and was then appointed to a position on the staff of the War Refugee Board
(WRB), which had been established by president Franklin D. Roosevelt
in 1944, under pressure from the United States Congress
, Jewish activists and the Treasury Department
. In 1944, when the WRB began receiving reports of mass deportation of Jews to the gas chambers at Auschwitz and Birkenau, Akzin presented a memorandum to the WRB calling for the US to bomb the death camps themselves
, which went beyond earlier proposals of bombing the railroad lines leading to the camps. Although Akzin persisted in his efforts for such action to be taken, his proposals were rejected by the US administration. From 1945 to 1947, Akzin served as political advisor later secreatary of the US Zionist Emergency Committee.
In 1949, Akzin emigrated
to Israel
and joined the Faculty of Law at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
as professor of constitutional law and international relations. He served as dean of the faculty 1951-54, 1956–58 and 1961-63. In 1950, he founded the Department of Political Science of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the Hebrew University, and served as its department chair until the early 1960s.
Later, Aktzin was a founder of the University of Haifa
and served as its first rector.
Zionism
Zionism is a Jewish political movement that, in its broadest sense, has supported the self-determination of the Jewish people in a sovereign Jewish national homeland. Since the establishment of the State of Israel, the Zionist movement continues primarily to advocate on behalf of the Jewish state...
activist and, later, an Israeli professor of law.
Biography
Akzin was born in 1904 in RigaRiga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
, Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
, then in Livonia in the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
. He completed doctorates in political science and law at the universities of Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
and Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. He was an admirer of Ze'ev Jabotinsky and became active in the Jabotinsky's Revisionist movement
Revisionist Zionism
Revisionist Zionism is a nationalist faction within the Zionist movement. It is the founding ideology of the non-religious right in Israel, and was the chief ideological competitor to the dominant socialist Labor Zionism...
and served as secretary to Jabotinsky. Following Jabotinsky break with the Zionist Organization and his founding of the New Zionist Organization (NZO), Akzin served as head of the political division of NZO from 1936 to 1941.
In the late 1930s, Akzin travelled to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to complete a third doctorate at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
. In 1940, Akzin was sent by the NZO to Washington to lobby support for Jewish statehood. He spent a period with the legal department of the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
and was then appointed to a position on the staff of the War Refugee Board
War Refugee Board
The War Refugee Board, established by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in January 1944, was a U.S. executive agency created to aid civilian victims of the Nazi and Axis powers...
(WRB), which had been established by president Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
in 1944, under pressure from the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
, Jewish activists and the Treasury Department
United States Department of the Treasury
The Department of the Treasury is an executive department and the treasury of the United States federal government. It was established by an Act of Congress in 1789 to manage government revenue...
. In 1944, when the WRB began receiving reports of mass deportation of Jews to the gas chambers at Auschwitz and Birkenau, Akzin presented a memorandum to the WRB calling for the US to bomb the death camps themselves
Auschwitz bombing debate
The issue of why Auschwitz concentration camp was not bombed by the Allies during World War II continues to be explored by historians and Holocaust survivors....
, which went beyond earlier proposals of bombing the railroad lines leading to the camps. Although Akzin persisted in his efforts for such action to be taken, his proposals were rejected by the US administration. From 1945 to 1947, Akzin served as political advisor later secreatary of the US Zionist Emergency Committee.
In 1949, Akzin emigrated
Aliyah
Aliyah is the immigration of Jews to the Land of Israel . It is a basic tenet of Zionist ideology. The opposite action, emigration from Israel, is referred to as yerida . The return to the Holy Land has been a Jewish aspiration since the Babylonian exile...
to Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
and joined the Faculty of Law at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem ; ; abbreviated HUJI) is Israel's second-oldest university, after the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. The Hebrew University has three campuses in Jerusalem and one in Rehovot. The world's largest Jewish studies library is located on its Edmond J...
as professor of constitutional law and international relations. He served as dean of the faculty 1951-54, 1956–58 and 1961-63. In 1950, he founded the Department of Political Science of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the Hebrew University, and served as its department chair until the early 1960s.
Later, Aktzin was a founder of the University of Haifa
University of Haifa
The University of Haifa is a university in Haifa, Israel.The University of Haifa was founded in 1963 by Haifa mayor Abba Hushi, to operate under the academic auspices of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem....
and served as its first rector.
Selected works
- Problèmes fondamentaux du droit international publique (1929)
- The Palestine Mandate in Practice (1939)
- Studies in Law (editor), Scripta Hierosolymitana, Vol. V (Hebrew University Magnes Press, 1958)
- New States and International Organizations (1955)
- The Role of Parties in Israeli Democracy (1961)
- Torat ha-Mishtarim (1963)
- State and Nation (Anchor Books, 1964)
- The political status of Diaspora Jews (the Institute of Contemporary Jewry, 1966)
- Sugyot ha-Mishpat u-ve-Medina'ut (1966)
- Riga to Jerusalem (the Library by the World Zionist Organization, 1989) - autobiography published after his death