Henry Ford and the Jews: The Mass Production of Hate

Rating:
Summary: A very important book
Review: For all his business acumen, Henry Ford was a vicious, rabid anti-Semite and this book does an excellent job in documenting his lifelong crusade against the Jewish people. Ford didn't even try to hide his anti-Semitism and it's amazing that there is still a huge portion of the population that has no clue about the racist and discriminatory practices of the Ford Motor Company and the beliefs of its founder and guiding force.This book is indeed very important in that it exposes the truth about Ford and his company for the current generation. Well-written and well-researched. An excellent book.

Rating:
Summary: Always Necessary
Review: History must be revised when any new and accurate information appears. Neil Baldwin's book, "Henry Ford And The Jews The Mass Production Of Hate", utilizes some information that was only opened from archives in March of 2001. Further, no matter how much time may pass, history as portrayed in this book must always be available to new generations of readers. I believe that the darker aspects of this country's or any nation's history, must be documented accurately and fairly. Reality has demonstrated that with the passage of time facts are forgotten, and become the target for revisionists who replace history with fiction. Historical events like The Holocaust have been defended in court within the last 2 years. The defense was required to prove The Holocaust took place.

Mr. Baldwin has documented the actions of one of the most influential businessmen of the 20th Century. Mr. Henry Ford's achievements in the production of his cars are a fact of history. Mr. Ford was a talented man, and had he confined himself to what he was competent to conduct, his memory would be a very different one. Mr. Ford is portrayed in this book by a wide variety of sources as a man who was amazingly ill informed, a man who placed no value on education, was a tyrant to those who made his fortune, and a man who had the distinction of having his portrait on the wall of Adolph Hitler's Office. Like other notable names in American History he accepted the highest honor bestowed on a non-German by Hitler. Another recipient Charles Lindbergh could claim he had no idea he was to be presented with the, "Honor". Mr. Ford accepted his on the occasion of his birthday with 1500 invited guests. Another famous recipient of the award was Mr. Thomas Watson of IBM fame. Of the 3 men, only the latter had the common sense to return the medal. Mr. Ford proudly stood for photographs of his presentation on July 30, 1938. At this point there is no conceivable defense for claiming not to know what Hitler was about.

Mr. Ford claimed to hate those who were profiteers of war. His views changed as Ford operated in Germany throughout World War II producing tens of thousands of military trucks and cars, and unlike other companies, Ford was never nationalized, and retained majority ownership throughout the war. As the Nazi's invaded other nations they handed the production of cars over to Ford.

It helps to bring the idea of how influential this man was forward in time. Today you would need to take the head of one of the world's largest companies, and then imagine his conducting himself as Ford did. Today it is inconceivable that a person could buy a newspaper for the express purpose of spreading Anti-Semitic hatred, that a person could publish countless thousands of copies of, "The Protocols Of The Elders Of Zion", and continue to claim they were anything but the fiction they were. But this is what he did, for decades. He continually tried to force anyone who bought one of his cars to buy a subscription to his paper; he demanded that dealers tie his anti-Semitism to every sale.

Mr. Ford is often spoken of when better wages are discussed during his period in manufacturing history. What I had not read before was the private portion of the company that would inspect the homes and personal habits of workers to qualify them for this added pay. A worker was subject to any invasion of privacy to ensure he lived, as Ford deemed appropriate. Henry Ford never did anything that was not in his interest, and was not tangled in strings for those who would accept his "largesse".

The author was catalyzed to pursue this subject when The Ford Motor Company underwrote all the funds that would have been generated by selling commercials when, "Schindler's List", was first aired on television. This is the new Ford Company that came about almost immediately upon the founder's death. The present company in no way should be blamed for the sins of its founder, however after half a century has passed, the need to make amends is clearly still felt.

The book tells a tragic story of events that took place not so long ago. Events that will always be relevant, should always be available, and never forgotten.

Rating:
Summary: Ask yourself these questions
Review: I think I was the last person in the United States to become aware of Henry Ford's anti-semitism.

I make it a practice to study one person a month and I decided as a business builder, Henry Ford was worthy of my attention and study.

I found this particular biography and thought, "OK, this has a completely different approach, let's try it on."

I found Baldwin's passion and zealousness for his topic and his particular slant to be very powerful. As is frequent in such writing, it also became a barrier because every action Ford took became, through Baldwin's eyes, a matter of Ford being the Personification of Evil.

I am not condoning Ford's thoughts, beliefs or behaviors. I am believing that not every action he took was a result of some undercurrent of Anti Semitism.

That said, this book is worth a read due to the level of research Baldwin has done both in this biography and the biography of one of Ford's friends and role models (and less rabidly Anti-Semitic although there was some there) in Thomas Alva Edison.

I just had this thought: I wonder how many business leaders remain staunchly racist... yet it has gone deeply underground in this age.

I wonder how many business (and political leaders) continue to harbor less than transformed thought?

Something to think about... and continue to stand against.

Rating:
Summary: Ask yourself these questions
Review: Is Baldwin a Jew?

How it then possible for this text to impartially represent the truth?

When listening or reading it is vitally important to understand the motives of the source before forming your own opinion.

Rating:
Summary: Well worth a read
Review: Neil Baldwin's "Henry Ford and the Jews" is a compelling look at how a genius at one thing --- the mass production of a good automobile --- could become such a dangerous buffoon when it came to another thing --- the mass production of an idea. At some point, our title character ceased to be just "Henry Ford, automaker" and instead became Henry Ford, wealthy and powerful symbol of international antisemitism. Baldwin's portrait of Ford in all his horrible glory is fascinating.

Rating:
Summary: A Comprehensive Examination of a Man and a Problem
Review: Neil Baldwin's look at Henry Ford and his anti-semitic views is an important one. Most people know something about Ford's anti-semitism. However, with this book one gets a full picture of the nature of his prejudice, the way it was expressed, and it's root causes. In addition, Mr. Baldwin has added to the value of this story by covering, in some detail, the responses of various members of the Jewish community to this very big problem. Mr. Ford was an extremely influential American, and as such, it was very important for Jewish leaders to respond to the outrageous and harmful ideas that were expressed in publications (such as The Dearborn Independent) that he was associated with. However, leaders differed with regard to how to best deal with this problem, and indeed it was something that had to be handled carefully.

In some ways, this is a very sad story, for it shows us some of the worst aspects of a man who was and still is revered by many. It also reminds us of how prevalent anti-semitism was in America during the first few decades of the twentieth century. Nevertheless, this is an important story, and Neil Baldwin has told it in a book that combines good writing with outstanding scholarship. I don't think that it will disappoint the serious reader.

Rating:
Summary: A True History of Henry Ford!
Review: This book by Baldwin gave a searing history of automobile icon
Henry Ford.Baldwin very capably shows one of the pioneers of
American industry to be devoutly anti-semite.Ford himself was the
financier behind a anti-Jewish newspaper that was published in
Michigan.Ford was a fan of Adolph Hitler. Hitler had a portrait of Ford on thew wall in his office.Henry Ford received an award
from Hitler and showed up in person to receive it bringing with him many guests.Charles Linberg and Thomas Watson of IBM declined
the same award.Ford was also able to sell Ford products to the
Nazis receiving a monopoly on the Nazi vehicle market in the military.This book is packed with documented of Henry Ford's
anti-semite activities.Read this you will become better informed.
This is a good book. Buy it.

Rating:
Summary: Sequence of Reading would do much help
Review: This book reveals a legacy of hatred and tyranny that lives on through the Ford Foundation even today. Henry Ford planted the seeds of hate long ago. The book is both telling and horrifying at the same time!

This book is both a great read and a scary commentary.

Rating:
Summary: A searing Indictment of an American Icon
Review: While Henry Ford's anti-Semitism was not unknown before Neil Baldwin's terrific new book, it was always considered a small aberration of personality, nothing to stop Ford from keeping his valued place in American history. No longer.

In Baldwin's devastating account of the "Flivver King's" biases and how they grew, the reader is invited not merely to understand Henry Ford but the culture around him that fostered and nurtured his prejudices.

The cast of characters in this astounding book, from the hateful men in Ford's inner sanctuum to the leaders of American Jewry, are a fascinating lot. Baldwin also includes depictions of others who attempted to sway Ford from his chosen path, including the European feminist-pacifist Rosika Schwimmer and the labor leader Aaron Sapiro, whose lawsuit finally caused Ford to issue an apology for his misdeeds.

Among the most compelling facts that Baldwin has amassed are those tying Ford to the Nazi movement. I won't give away the particulars of that sordid story. Suffice it to say that America was linked more closely than we ever knew to Hitler and his henchmen, thanks to Ford's reckless behavior.

This book is much more than an embellishment of a footnote in the life of a great American: It forces a total re-evaluation of Henry Ford. Whatever his business triumphs, they have been neutralized for all time.

This is an important and timely book, gracefully written.

Rating:
Summary: A half-fictional work disguised as a historiography
Review: YES - The essential facts put forward by Baldwin are correct: Ford was a major anti-semite and he gave money to the German Nazis, helping them into power.

Yet, Baldwin's research is pathetic... a great deal of it was his imagination. He fails to present facts put forward by Kurt Ludecke's I KNEW HITLER; or Bennett's WE NEVER CALLED HIM HENRY; with any accuracy - he simply makes up what he wants.

For example, Baldwin states that the day after Nazi fund raiser Kurt Ludecke visited Ford, and Ludecke was turned away, a telegram to Lukecke arrived the NEXT DAY stating that Ford wouldn't give money through Ludecke to Hitler. Yet - READ Ludecke's I KNEW HITLER - the only primary source available on Ludecke/Ford. In this ONLY first hand account, Ludecke writes that several WEEKS (not ONE day) passed between his meeting with Ford and arrival of the telegram in question.

Baldwin has failed here as he does throughout the book to provide an accurate account of events. He makes no mention of the difference in Ludecke's primary source account and his own secondary account. Baldwin has shown himself as incompetent.

I have researched this subject for over 2 years. Baldwin makes a
serious error on virtually every page. His errors show an incredible degree of sloppy research. He seems to have only half-read his sources. His book is a joke as a serious work on Ford, anti-semitism, German inter-war history, and Hitler A far, far, better book is Albert Lee's Henry Ford and the Jews (1980). Interestingly, in the forward of Baldwin's book he writes that he put Lee's book (the one with the SAME title which inspired him) on the "shelf" while writing his book. YET, he quotes Albert Lee's: Henry Ford And The Jews, often throughout his book. How on the shelf could that book have been, since he was citing it so often?

Baldwin is a professor of poetry, not a historian, and his lack of understanding of the sort of research that goes into such a work is evident to anyone who has bothered to read the sources he cites. Baldwin constantly takes liberties; invents events that didn't happen; embellishes, and novelizes. He fails to demonstrate that his work is anything but the work of someone who should stay with what he has done very well in the past: writing books on poetry.

This is, bottom line, an appallingly ill-researched book - one of the worst I've ever seen that claims to be a serious work.

The only thing good that can be said about this book is that it helped to bring Henry Ford's support of anti-semitism, Nazis and so forth to the public's attention - but that is all.

If the material were not so important to discuss, I would give this book 1 star. As it is, I give it 2 because he did make an attempt (albeit pathetic, as it is) to take on a very hot subject.

Again... the broad facts in Baldwin's book are very correct, but the specifics are nearly all wrong. Baldwin wrote a historical fiction novel masquarading as a historiograhy.

Bottom line: get Albert Lee's Henry Ford and the Jews (1980) instead of this ill-researched "novel."