The First Zionist Lobbyists in the U.S: Louis Brandeis' and Stephen Waise's Roles in the Balfour Declaration

In the summer of 1917 the efforts of the Zionist Movement, led by Chaim Weizmann, to secure recognition of Palestine as a home for the Jewish Nation, reached their peak. For Weizmann to fulfill his goal of an official Declaration on the matter he turned to an American friend, Justice Louis Brandeis. Dozens of articles and books have been written on the Balfour Declaration, as it became known, however, the dramatic actions taking place in the United States have remained in the shadows. This paper examines the role played by prominent American Jewish figures in the process, as well as the reasons which led President Wilson to change the American position about Jewish settlement in the Land of Israel. Together, they played an instrumental role in the adoption and publication of the Balfour Declaration.