Vindication of the Jews

Zalkind Hourwitz

1789

The means of making the Jews happy and useful? Here it is: stop making them unhappy and unuseful. Accord them, or rather return to them the right of citizens, which you have denied them, against all divine and human laws and against your own interests, like a man who thoughtlessly cripples himself. . . .

To be sure, during times of barbarism, there…

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Creator Bio

Zalkind Hourwitz

1751–1812

Born near Lublin, Poland, Zalkind Hourwitz left his village for Berlin, ultimately settling in Paris in 1774. He initially knew no French and barely avoided starvation, yet he studied Ovid, Molière, Voltaire, and Rousseau in his free time. He won praise and renown for his essay “Apologie des juifs” (1789), which helped frame the debate about Jewish emancipation in France. Hourwitz served as interpreter of oriental languages at the Bibliothèque royale, and enthusiastically supported the French Revolution. As a political activist, journalist, and author, he fought tirelessly for the rights of French Jews.

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Vindication of the Jews

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