CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
Massimo
November 1938
Massimo hurried up the stairway in the synagogue. Another set of Race Laws had been issued this morning, and the Board was in an uproar. He reached the Sala del Consiglio, or the conference room, which was lined with bookshelves and dominated by a long polished conference table and chairs. Men sat in groups, holding copies of the new law. Rabbi Zolli was on the phone in his office, trying to compose the Community’s response.
Massimo spotted his friends Luciano and Armando at the conference table. They were businessmen; Luciano in commercial real estate and Armando in banking. Luciano was tall and thin, but Armando short and round. Their faces were equally grave.
“Ciao, Massimo, sit down.” Luciano pulled out a wooden chair. “Thanks for coming so quickly. This is a catastrophe.”
“I know, it’s very disconcerting.” Massimo sat down, opening his briefcase.
“Disconcerting? It’s terrifying.” Luciano shook his head, pained. “When I left the house, my wife was in tears.”
Armando frowned. “When I left the office, my partners were in tears. Anyway, what do you think?”
“I have a plan.” Massimo took out his copy of the new laws, “Measures for the Defense of the Italian Race.” “First, let’s go through it quickly, for the end is what matters. The objective of the law is in Item 1, Measures Regarding Marriages, and Articles 1 through 7, relating to intermarriage between Jews and Gentiles. From now on, ‘The marriage of an Italian citizen of the Aryan race with a person belonging to another race is prohibited.’”
“In other words, no intermarriage.”
“Exactly.” It was not lost on Massimo that under the new Race Law, Sandro would no longer be permitted to marry Elisabetta. “Item 2, Article 8 defines what is a Jew, and Article 9 states that membership in the Jewish race must be reported and entered into official registers. This was codified before, if you recall.”
Luciano scowled. “It’s discriminatory treatment. Gentiles don’t have to do any such thing.”
Armando nodded.
“I agree.” Massimo returned to the law. “These are laws that codify injustice. Nevertheless we move on. Article 10 provides that Jews may not serve in the military, act as guardians, or be owners or managers of companies related to national defense or companies of any kind that employ a hundred or more people.” He looked up. “This is a terrible provision. Most of my clients own businesses that qualify. This will ruin my practice.”
Luciano groaned. “Me, too.”
Armando’s face fell. “I’ll go bankrupt.”
Massimo remained on course. His friends needed his guidance, not his emotions. “Section D provides that Jews cannot own land valued over five thousand lire, which I believe we all do. Section E provides Jews can’t own any urban buildings with a taxable value of over twenty thousand lire, which includes me.”
Luciano pursed his lips. “We live in the suburbs, but my wife’s family owns the house.”
Armando plopped his chin into his hand. “I own my house, too. Or I used to, until today.”
Massimo nodded. “One could form a corporate entity and transfer the property to it, transfer the property to non-Jewish members of the family or to trusted friends, or even transfer it to a charitable institution.”
Luciano nodded. “But wouldn’t that be considered a fraudulent transfer?”
“In theory, but not as a practical matter. From my research, there’s only a handful of people set up to administer this law. They’re going to be deluged with applications for exemptions. I doubt they’ll get to questioning transfers of property, valid on their face.”
Armando added, “True, no one has ever extolled the efficiency of the Roman bureaucracy.”
Massimo moved on. “Article 12 provides Jews may not employ Gentile servants. We lose our housekeeper, Cornelia, who needs the job.”
Luciano nodded. “We hired a nurse for my youngest, since my wife got so sick.”
Massimo pushed his glasses up. “Article 13 excludes Jews from employment in any public capacity, including the Fascist Party. Many people in our Community are going to lose their jobs.” He straightened. “But now we come to the most important part. The discriminazioni—the exemptions, or those to whom the laws do not apply. There are categories of exemptions. First, for various types of veterans, and under Number 4, those who were Fascists in the years 1919, 1920, 1921, and 1922, and the second half of 1924.”