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Friday, April 4, 1947
DETROIT JEWISH CHRONICLE and The Legal Chronicle
age Four
Detroit Jewish Chronicle
And the LEGAL CHRONICLE
Letters to the Editor
Published Weekly by Jewish Chronicle Publishing Co., Inc., 525 Woodward Ave., Detroit 26, Mich., CA 1040
SUBSCRIPTION: 53.00 Per Year, Single Copies, 10c; Foreign, $5.00 Per Year
'Leered as Second-class matter March 3, 1916. at the Post office at Detroit, Mich., under the Act of March I, 1879
..."Y AARON, Publisher
CHARLES TAUB, Business Manager
Vol. 49, No. 14
GEORGE WEISWASSER, Editor-in-Chief
NATHAN J. KAUFMAN, Managing Editor
FRIDAY, APRIL 4, 1947 (Nisan 14, 5707)
The Message of Passover
In "The New Ilagadah," we found Pas-
sover's true message given most signifi-
cantly. The following is a quotation:
We have dedicated this festival tonight
to the dream and the hope of freedom, the
dream and the hope that have filled the
hearts of men from the time our Israelite
ancestors went forth out of Egypt.
Peoples have suffered, nations have strug-
gled to make this dream come true. Now
wo dedicate ourselves to the struggle for
freedom. Though the sacrifice be great and
the hardships many, we shall not rest until
the chainS that enslave all men be broken.
But the freedom we strive for means
more than broken chains. It means liber-
ation from all those enslavements that warp
the spirit and blight the mind, that destroy
the soul even though they leave the flesh
alive. For, men can be enslaved in more
ways than one.
Men can be enslaved to themselves. When
they let emotion sway them to their hurt,
when they permit harmful habits to tyran-
nize over them — they are slaves.
When laziness or cowardice keeps them
from doing what they know to be the right,
when ignorance blinds them so that, like
Samson, they can only turn round and
round in meaningless drudgeryL--they are
slaves to themselves and shackled by the
chains of their own forging.
Men can be enslaved by poverty and in-
equality. When the fear of need drives
them to dishonesty and violence, to de-
fending the guilty and accusing the in-
nocent—they are slaves.
When the work men do enriches others,
but leaves them in want of strong houses
for shelter, nourishing food for themselves
and for their children, and warm clothes to
keep out the cold—they are slaves.
Men can be enslaved by intolerance. When
Jews are forced to give up their Jewish
way of life, to abandon their Torah, to
neglect their sacred festivals, to leave off
rebuilding their ancient homeland—they are
slaves.
When they must deny that they are Jews
in order to get work—they are slaves.
When they must live in constant fear of
unwarranted hate and prejudice—they are
slaves.
How deeply these enslavements have
scarred the world! The wars, the destruc-
tions, the suffering, the waste! Pesach calls
us to be free, free from the tyranny of our
selves, free from the enslavement of pover-
ty and unequality, free from the corroding
hate that eats away the ties which unite
mankind.
"Pesach calls upon us to put an end to
all slavery! Pesach cries out in the name
of God, 'let my people go'. Pesach summons
us to freedom."
A Job for Butzel
It was inevitable that, confronted with
the most gigantic task in its history, the
Allied Jewish Campaign should turn to
Fred M. Butzel and ask him to act as chair-
man for 1947.
This is a challenging year for the cam-
paign. Never has it sought to raise a quota
that even remotely approached the $5,335,-
000 figure set here for 19•7.
It follows that this is a challenging
year for the Jews of Detroit. If this
city is to keep its high place in the es-
teem of American Jewry, it must sub-
scribe its quota during the drive from
May 6 to 16 and reach it with decision
and dispatch.
If Detroit is to remain faithful to the
trust placed in her by our brethren at home
and abroad, there must be self-sacrifice,
generosity and warmth of heart from every
one of us.
Detroit 26, Mich.
A Real `Chometz' Cleaning
t,*
Self-sacrifice and warmth of heart have
been synonomous with the name Fred
Butzel ever since he first entered the com-
munal arena as a callow attorney. Ap-
proaching his 70th birthday, he expected,
as a matter of course, that a younger and
more robust leader would take over the
chairmanship of Detroit's most arduous
campaign.
But when convinced that none but Fred
Butzel could assure the drive's success, he
forgot 70th birthday, recent illnesses and
all and accepted.
Can any one of us, young or old, shirk
when we have Fred Butzel's example of
self-sacrifice before us?
Can Detroit Jews fail their No. 1 citizen?
Let us answer by going over the top in
May and helping to crown Fred Butzel's
biggest job with success!
The Visiting Editor
In Hope of Redemption
In the shattered Jewish communities of
Europe, Passover approaches like a shining
glow of light in a darkened sky. It is at once
a hope and a prayer of deliverance. It is
the springtime of hope for these first vic-
tims of Nazism still wallowing in the mire
of devastated wastelands.
Passover. The word casts some magic
spell over Europe's 1,500,000 Jewish sur-
vivors. They, in many ways, are like the
Jews under the tyrannical Egyptian bond-
age. And so for the pitiful Jewish remnant
of Europe there is symbolism and meaning
in Passover, the celebration of Israel's
deliverance from Egyptian bondage.
More than 3,000 years ago, Israel gained
its redemption. Today, two years after the
defeat of the Nazi enemy, the Jews of Eu-
rope are still waiting for their redemption
and liberation.
Their main hope of liberation rests on the
$170,000,000 United Jewish Appeal and
your support of this largest campaign in
the history of private American philan-
thropy. The United Jewish Appeal supports
the relief, rehabilitation and resettlement
work of the Joint Distribution Committee,
the United Palestine Appeal and the United
Service for New Americans .. .
SEVEN ARTS FEATURE
IIISTADRUT REPLIES
Dear Editor:
We have read with deep inter-
est the thoughtful letter from Mr.
Goldberg which appeared in your
last week's issue relative to the
recently held Histadrut event.
We appreciate Mr. Goldberg's
genuine sympathy with the pur-
poses for which the Histadrut
campaigns are conducted and his
concern that every available dol-
lar be remitted to the Histadrut
in Palestine.
The Detroit Histadrut Commit-
tee has always prided itself on
the small ratio of expenses in-
curred in conducting its cam-
paigns and has avoided the use of
costly dinner meetings which are
usually used for fund raising pur-
poses.
Careful thought was given to
the program of the closing event
and the expenses that would be
involved. It was only because a
number of the participants freely
donated their services and time
to the campaign that we were able
to carry through such a stirring
and meaningful evening.
Clarification should be made on
one point raised by Mr. Goldberg.
We do not believe that the ques-
tion of "rewarding" the workers
for their efforts was the really im-
portant reason for holding the
Histadrut evening which has truly
become an educational and cul-
tural event for the entire Jewish
community.
Certainly none of the hundreds
of workers and delegates who
have given so much of their time
and energy need any "reward"
other than knowing that they are
participating in - the rebuilding of
the Jewish Homeland in Pales-
tine. They would rightly feel in-
sulted if they thought their ef-
forts were measured in any other
way . . .
The large number of Detroit
Jews who attended the event
(and the many who were unable
to get in) indicate conclusively
the need of Detroit Jews for a
real Palestinian educational and
cultural evening. The stirring
ghetto songs as sung by Mrs.
Schaver and the penetrating, pro-
vocative analysis of our role in
Palestine as presented by Maurice
Samuels and Yosef Baratz will
certainly stay with Detroit Jews
for many weeks to come.
We hope that during the com-
ing months, other competent per-
sons, from Palestine and the
United States, will bo made avail-
able to the Jewish Community by
the Histadrut committee.
The work of our Palestine Ha-
lutzim continues the entire year.
The task of building a Jewish
Homeland does not begin or stop
with the formal opening or clos-
ing of fund raising activities.
The thoughtful suggestion of
Mr. Goldberg that admission be
charged to future Palestine His-
tadrut evenings certainly deserves
the serious consideration of the
campaign executive board.
MORRIS LIEBERMAN,
Chairman of the Exec. Board
Detroit Histadrut Campaign
DEFENDS ALFP
Dear Editor:
The unfounded accusations that
"Congress Weekly" has made
against the American League for
a Free Palestine are actually a
smokescreen behind which the
older organizations are cowering
because the forthright fight that
the ALFP has made against the
British overshadows their puny
resistance.
Actually three of four ships
which the ALFP has outfitted
have reached Palestine. The "Ben
Hecht" was intercepted only be-
cause the publicity with which
other organizations marked her
forced the British to exert every
effort to take the ship.
In the past year the ALFP has
collected approximately $750,000
and virtually all of this has been
expended for the cause of re-
patriation of Jews to Palestine.
Certainly illegal immigration Is
commendable but it is not final
answer to Palestine's woes which
is to get rid of the British. The
ALFP needs friends to back them
in this course and needs them
I shall be happy to forward any
inquiries to the Detroit Chapter.
DR. WILLIAM WINOICUR,
4120 Fenkell avenue
Morality Is Weighed on a Bus Ride
on Passover Eve by Wise Passenger
(Continued from Page 3)
direction. And science without
moral sanctions is like the mad-
ness of a madhouse turned loose.
God must be called back to the
councils of men. Do you believe
in God, sir, or do you call him
something else, like Truth or The
Force or All Good? It's all right
with mc. I think I have seen Him
in all the times.".
The man said in all the times
he had seen transgressors of
moral law overtaken by retribu-
tion, as was promised' by the
divine authority . . . "I've seen
it! I've seen it. I've seen the
proudest works of men fall be-
cause they did not stand estab-
lished on moral righteousness.
"That's what I've been trying to
tell people for ages and ages.
I've been getting around, you see.
Kindness and chaeity, justice and
compassion and above all honor
between men—these are the foun-
dation stones. I've been telling
people that a long time."
I was on the point of inter-
rupting him to ask what his busi-
ness was and how old he was
and where he had been, but his
words were pouring out and I let
him go on: "Today God is national
power and morality is the wise-
crack of cynical statesmen. The
old directions are lost and the
world stumbles drunkenly toward
hell."
Finally I got it out: "May I
ask who you are, sir?"
"Why I thought you knew me.
You've had me. at your table. I
am the guest for whom you have
the cup of wine at Seder. I am
Elijah."
At this point the busman called
my destination . . . "AvOndale
avenue!" . . . I blinked. Sure,
going to a Jewish meeting does
wear you out and put you to sleep
finally. The man was gone.
As I got off I saluted the empty
space where the magnificent pas-
senger had sat . . "I'll be see-
ing you at Seder," I said Inwardly.
Looking Back Through the Years
Events as compiled from the files of the Detroit Jewish Chronicle
25 Years Ago
Julius Rosenwald, Felix Warburg and Col. Herbert Lehman will
speak at a meeting here of leaders of the Jewish Relief Committee.
The Prasidium of the Jewish National Council conveys resolution
of confidence to Sir Herbert Samuel, high commissioner of Palestine.
20 Years Ago
Luigi Luzatti, Jewish statesman and former prime minister of
Italy, died at the age of 80.
Cantor Aaron Edgar of Detroit has been appointed Cantor of
the Bnai Israel Synagogue, Jacksonville, Fla.
10 Years Ago
Declaring that the inclusion of his biography in "Who's Who In
American Jewry" would cause "irreparable injury to my private life
and profession," Dr. Karl Landsteiner, winner of the Nobel Prize for
Medicine in 1930, has sought an injunction to prevent that publica-
tion from using his biography.
Jewish organizations of Detroit are preparing for the testimonial
dinner in honor of Kurt Peiser, who is retiring as head of the Jewish
Welfare Federation.
5 Years Ago
Milton Mayer, Jewish newspaper man whose article "The Case
Against the Jews" in the Saturday Evening Post created a storm of
protest, denied the story was anti-Semitic.
William Dudley Pelley, anti-Semitic chief of the Silver Shirts
who was arrested on charges of sedition, says Jews in U. S. should
be confined to ghettos.