Thursday, September 22, 1949 True Zionist Is Granados By SAMUEL PASNER THE FIRST TIME I saw the dis- tinguished Guatemalan, Jorge Garcia-Grandos, he was address- ing a large group of people at the Brooklyn Jewish Center of Brooklyn, N. Y. Although not a Jew, he was wearing a skull-cap in accord- ance with the custom followed in Synagogues. Israel H. Lev- inthal described him to the aud- ience as a great friend of Jews whose name would be indel- ibly impressed in the hearts o f Jews every- where. Prior to his ap- peararice, the an- Granados nouncement relating to his lec- ture spoke about him in similar terms as "a statesman whose name will go down in Jewish history as a great benefactor of the Jewish people." Since that day, in an effort to learn more about him, I spent many hours with this man who once served as ambassador from Guatemala to the U. S. and who left a memorable record as a member of the Special Commis- sion on Palestine. I also read with keen interest his fascinating hook issued last year under the title, "The Birth of Israel," and the well-chosen sub-title, "The Drama As I Saw It." My conversations with Gran- ados and my perusal of his out- standing literary work and the numerous articles written about him helped me to realize why this man, born and bred in an environment remote from a Jew- ish atmosphere, became an ar- dent Christian Zionist, a cham- pion of the Jewish cause in Pal- estine. • • • OFTEN IMPRISONED JORGE WAS BORN in Guate- mala City on April 21, 1900. His education was obtained partly in France and mostly in Guatemala The schooling he received en- abled him to become a lawyer. Later, he turned to journalism. He also entered the political world, at first, in the Guatemala delegation at El Salvador; later, as secretary on the legation staff in London and also as represen- tAtive of Guatemala to the gov- erning board of the Pan-Amer- ican Union in Washington. His activity in politics, how- ever, brought him into conflict with the recognized authority in control in Guatemala. His battles on that account led him to im- prisonment twice in 1920, again in 1922, and on still another occa- sion in 1934. His release in that year did not leave the door open to complete freedom. It resulted, instead, in DETROIT JEWISH CHRONICLE exile to Mexico. There he suc- ceeded in helping some Jews who sought escape from Hitler's op- pression. Finally, after 10 years of exile, he learned of the fall of the head of the Guatemalan government. He hastened to return to his na- tive land where he was welcomed by opponents of the people pre- viously in power. Elected to congress and to the constituent assembly, he helped, to establish a new constitution for Guatemala. He became the ambassador of Guatemala to the U. S. Later, he resigned as am- bassador to join the Guatemalan delegation in the UN. • • • IMPRESSED BY JEWS GRANADOS, IN PASSING through Palestine, was visibly im- pressed not only by the presence of Jews in large numbers but also by the progress shown in their accomplishments. He entered the Negev desert. where he at first felt that it would be fantastic to conceive the no- tion that human beings might live and survive in a sandy sec- tion that made breathing almost impossible. Nevertheless. h e learned of 17 Jewish settlements in this once completely deserted land. He was able to walk there in the midst of plum orchards and olive trees. His amazement grew in the face of another apparent miracle. He descended from Jerusalem, over 2.000 feet above sea level, to the Dead Sea, 1,300 feet below sea level. He regarded this Dead Sea as the valley of death itself, where no life, either animal or plant, could possibly exist. Yet, even in that vicinity, he noted with surprise how Jews were able to transform soil near- ly 20 percent salt, despite the fact that they had to toil in a desert climate where the temperature reached 115 degrees in the shade, into land productive of bananas in summer and vegetables in winter. • • • FROM SAND—A CITY AS A REPRESENTATIVE of UNESCO, he passed through cheering crowds into Tel Aviv. He was astounded to learn that this large city, inhabited at that time by about '00,000 persons, was constructed on sand obtained from the shores of a river and from the beach of the Mediter- ranean. should be made a part of the Jewish land. For this purpose, he points out that only Jews may be expected to cultivate this wasteland and transform it even- Thirty years before Granados came there, Tel Aviv was nothing tually into a Garden of Eden. In noting the victory on the but wasteland covered by wind. What he saw included a modern field of battle by Israel against city with beautiful avenues and I seemingly insuperable odds, he many apartment houses in a great refers to a victory against the commercial and industrial center. strong by those struggling to sur- vive and to a battle of dreamers • • who became doers. GENIUS WILL OUT Moreover, he foresees in the GRANADOS BECAME an ard- future in the little republic of ent Christian Zionist largely be- Israel a greatly respected and cause he learned to admire the recognized member of the UN. accomplishments of the Jews in Palestine. YOUNG ADULTS DANCE Stewart Cowen's orchestra Today he feels that Jewish gen- plays for young adult dancing ius and enterprise will do more every Thursday from 8-11 p.m., than enable the Jews to build in the outdoor ,court of the Cen a model land for themselves. ter. 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