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HIAS (which used to stand for Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society) is an American charitable organization originally founded in response to the late 19th- and early 20th-century exodus of Jewish emigrants from Imperial Russia. The organization assists Jews and other groups of people whose lives and freedom are believed to be at risk to relocate. Since its inception HIAS has helped resettle nearly 4.5 million people. HIAS offices throughout the world (United States, Israel, the Russian Federation, Ukraine, Austria, Argentina, Ecuador, Venezuela, Kenya, Panama and Chad) provide an array of legal and support services. According to HIAS itself, the acronym ''HIAS'' was first used as a cable address and eventually became the universally used name of the organization. A 1909 merger with the Hebrew Sheltering Aid Society resulted in the official name Hebrew Sheltering and Immigrant Aid Society, but the organization continued to be generally known as "H.I.A.S." or more usually as "HIAS",〔(The Early Years ), hias.org, accessed 2013-12-18.〕〔 which eventually became the official name. ==Early years== HIAS is distinct from the Hebrew Emigrant Aid Society (HEAS) founded in New York City November 27, 1881, and which operated only until 1884.〔"Aid for Hebrew Emigrants", ''The New York Times'', Nov. 28, 1881, p. 8. Mentions founding date of HEAS.〕〔Lawrence J. Epstein, ''At the Edge of a Dream: The Story of Jewish Immigrants on New York's Lower East Side, 1880-1920'' (2001), John Wiley & Sons, ISBN 0787986224. p. 40. Quote: "HEAS Agents were notorious in their mistreatment of immigrants at Castle Garden. The group—not to be confused with HIAS, the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society—ceased functioning in 1884. The work of HEAS was taken over by United Hebrew Charities…"〕 HIAS's own web site is vague on the date of the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society's founding;〔(The Early Years ), hias.org, accessed 2013-12-18, gives no founding date but implies that the organization already existed in 1891: "In 1891, Jewish residents of Moscow, St. Petersburg and Kiev were expelled and many came to America. Ellis Island was the place of entry for these new arrivals. The Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society was there to facilitate legal entry, reception and immediate care for them."〕 However, through a merger, it can trace its ancestry back to the Hebrew Sheltering House Association, founded in New York that same year.〔(Q&A: Jewish agency in US marks 130 years of protecting the persecuted ), UNHCR, 2011-02-03. Accessed online 3013-12-19.〕 Lawrence J. Epstein writes that the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society was founded in 1904;〔 several other sources give a date of 1902.〔a. "The Jewish Migration Problem: How It Has Been Met, by Albert Rosenblatt, Vice President, Hebrew Sheltering and Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS), 1924," reproduced in Jacob Rader Marcus, ''The Jew in the American World: A Source Book'' (1996), Wayne State University Press, ISBN 0814325483. p. 371. b. Dan Cohn-Sherbok (editor), ''The Blackwell Dictionary of Judaica'' (1992), ISBN 9780631187288. (Extract ) accessed online 2013-12-19. c. (HIAS Offers Aid to New Arrivals ), ''The Golden Land, 1654-1930s'', PBS. Accessed online 2013-12-19. d. Sara E. Karesh and Mitchell M. Hurvitz, "Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society," ''Encyclopedia of Judaism'' (2005), Infobase Publishing (part of Facts on File library of religion and mythology), ISBN 0816069824. p. 201.〕 In any event, in 1904 HIAS established a formal bureau on Ellis Island, the primary arrival point of European immigrants to the United States at that time.〔〔〔See "Family Split By Law", ''New York Times'', July 30, 1905, p. 12 for a contemporary reference to the group.〕 In March 1909, the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society merged with the Hebrew Sheltering House Association to form the Hebrew Sheltering and Immigrant Aid Society,〔"Samuel Mason, 71, Ex-Aide of H.I.A.S." (obituary), ''New York Times'', January 25, 1950, p. 25.〕〔"Schiff Would Check Jewish Immigrants", ''New York Times'', January 24, 1910, p. 16.〕 which continued to be widely known as HIAS. By 1914, HIAS had branches in Baltimore, Philadelphia, Boston, and an office in Washington, D.C. In 1891, Jewish residents of Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Kiev were expelled and many came to America;〔 beginning in 1892, Ellis Island was the point of entry for most of these new arrivals. In the half-century following the establishment of a formal Ellis Island bureau in 1904, HIAS helped more than 100,000 Jewish immigrants who might otherwise have been turned away. They provided translation services, guided immigrants through medical screening and other procedures, argued before the Boards of Special Enquiry to prevent deportations, lent needy Jews the $25 landing fee, and obtained bonds for others guaranteeing their employable status. The Society was active on the island facilitating legal entry, reception, and immediate care for the newly arrived. HIAS also searched for relatives of detained immigrants in order to secure the necessary affidavits of support to guarantee that the new arrivals would not become public charges. Lack of such affidavits and/or material means impacted a large number of immigrants: of the 900 immigrants detained during one month in 1917, 600 were held because they had neither money nor friends to claim them. Through advertising and other methods, the Society was able to locate relatives for the vast majority of detainees, who in a short time were released from Ellis Island. Many of the Jews traveling in steerage on the steamship lines across the Atlantic refused the non-kosher food served on their journeys and arrived at Ellis Island malnourished and vulnerable to deportation on medical grounds. In 1911, the Society installed a kosher kitchen on the Island.〔〔Lawrence J. Epstein, ''At the Edge of a Dream: The Story of Jewish Immigrants on New York's Lower East Side, 1880-1920'' (2007), John Wiley & Sons, ISBN 0787986224. p. 42.〕 Between 1925 and 1952, HIAS' kosher kitchen provided more than a half million meals to immigrants; in the peak year, 1940, 85,794 meals were served. The Society also provided religious services and musical concerts at Ellis Island.〔 It ran an employment bureau and sold railroad tickets at reduced rates to immigrants headed for other cities.〔 In the summer of 1911, HIAS set up an Oriental Department to meet the growing needs of immigrants from the Balkans and Near East, who began arriving in the U.S. in considerable numbers. Between 1908 and 1913, approximately 10,000 Jewish emigrants left the Middle East for the U.S. During this period, resettlement of Jewish immigrants included assistance in obtaining U.S. citizenship. For this a rudimentary knowledge of English and familiarity with American institutions were mandatory. In addition to classes given at its own building, HIAS arranged educational courses for the immigrants through a network of local Jewish organizations. From 1909 to 1913, HIAS helped more than 35,000 new immigrants become naturalized citizens. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「HIAS」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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