Page Four
THE JEWISH NEWS
As the Editor
Views the News ...
Painful Injury
Friday, April 9, 1948
_
Even U.S. Forces Infected
With Nazi Anti-Semitism
"gp
April: Freedom Month
Both in Jewish and American history, the
month of April has become synonymous with
Freedom.
In April, we observe the Passover Festi-
val of Freedom.
The first shot in the American Revolution—
in the Battle of Concord— was fired on April
19.
In April, the first session of the American
Congress was convened.
This month we can reaffirm that the prin-
ciples of Freedom shall predominate during
the special Freedom Month set aside to aid
the objectives of the United Jewish Appeal
which are supported in our community by the
Allied Jewish Campaign.
Mr. Isidore Sobeloff, the very able director
of our campaign, put it well when, at the
rally which launched the Detroit drive for
$6,200,000, he asserted that this is a battle
for "first class citizenship." Either we stand
by the fighters for freedom and thereby
share with them the privileges of first class
men and women, or we are passive and there-
by give encouragement to our enemies.
We believe that the answer of Detroit
Jewry will be a proper one and that we shall
come through the present drive well—as a
people that is determined not to permit in-
timidation to stand in the way of acquisition
of liberty for the survivors from Nazism.
•
-L7!
r-.77-4r
Humanity Turns the Clock Back
At the request of the United States Government, the
United Nations Security Council turned the clock back an
entire year on Black Thursday—April 1. It was a cruel April
Fools Day joke on the Jewish people. It was a shabby trick
played on decency. The nations of the world, instead of fol-
lowing through an historic decision, yielded to tyranny and
intimidation.
Black Friday—March 19—paled into insignificance as a
tragic date on which U. S. Delegate to the UN, Warren Austin,
first presented the American proposal for a Palestine trustee-
ship, compared with the shocking decision of April 1, when
In order that our efforts should be com- the Security Council decided to reconvene the General As-
mensurate with the courage of the Jewish sembly to "reconsider" the Nov. 29, 1947, decision.
fighters for freedom in Palestine, it is neces-
Only two days preceding the shocking reversal of a
sary to make a simple analogy of existing sacred decision by the Security Council, former Under Sec-
conditions.
retary of State Sumner Welles wrote in the N. Y. Herald
While it has become trite to repeat that Tribune :
all we, in free America, are asked to give is
The effect upon the confidence of the smaller nations in
American leadership can best be illustrated by the published
money, it is imperative that the latest events
statement of a representative of one of the Latin-American re-
be understood and that we guide ourselves
publics: "First they convinced us that partition was the only
in the light of latest occurrences on the
answer. Now they are trying to convince us that partition is
battlefront.
insane. It is true that I represent a small nation which cannot
stand alone. I am willing to accept United States leadership.
Last week, 142 Haganah fighters held off
But this is treachery. By this latest reversal the United States
an attacking mob of 3,000 Arabs for 31 hours.
has forfeited whatever moral justification it once had for lead-
ing the small nations."
They were without food, cut off from rein-
At this crucial moment when we seek to rally the countries
forcements, but they fought heroically to de-
of Eastern Europe to our leadership in the fear of Russian ex-
fend their position.
pansion, are we 'prepared to agree that our moral prestige and
the confidence of other peoples in the good faith of this country
Now, we are forced into a new battle at the
are no longer "vital elements of our national security?"
UN—because of the betrayals which, unfor-
This reversal by the United States will increase, and not
tunately, involve a lack of courage and honor
diminish, the danger of a major war in the Near East. It deals
what may well be a death blow to the United Nations, and to
among leaders in our own Government.
our hope for collective security. It shakes confidence in the
* - *
United States throughout the world.
As the workers proceed with their tasks
One thing became quite clear a number of weeks ago:
to solicit their prospects for the drive and as the enemy of justice for the Jewish people was in the White
the potential givers are planning the size of House and in the State Department. While from both quart-
their increases over last year's pledges, they ers came- a constant flow of promises that Palestine should
must think in terms of the fighters for free- be the Jewish state, that displaced persons ought to be admit-
dom. If we are in any sense to measure up to ted to this country, it all turned out to be lip service.
the glory which is being inscribed in Jewish
Now, the enemy has triumphed. The oil interests are
history today by those who refuse to yield to dominating international decisions. Jews are pawns in a game
tyranny, then we must redouble and treble of world politics. The conflict between the democracies and
our efforts. Else, first class citizenship will the Communists again uses Jews as the football in diplomacy.
be limited to the fighting Haganah—to the
The conspiracy to keep the British forces in Palestine,
"mechanized Maccabees," as Reuven Dafni against which The Jewish News warned more than two weeks
described them at the Detroit meeting.
ago, is being hatched in the capitals of the democracies. In
We are asked for a lot of money. The Jews the name of democracy, British troops will be kept in Eretz
of Palestine, on the other hand, are asked for Israel to oppress a peaceful population, to encourage strife
a lot of blood; and the Jews in DP camps are between Jews and Arabs.
A horrible tragedy has been imposed upon Palestine and
asked for patience with their tormentors,
with the growing spirit of defiance from the its population. Arabs as well as Jews are the sufferers. With
the British emerging as victors in a situation which keeps
revived Nazi spirit in Germany.
them
in Palestine even though they have reaffirmed' on
' The hour is too late for debate. There is
room only for action and for redemption of numerous occasions that they desire to leave the country, the
our honor. We have it in OUR power to following cable from Jerusalem by the eminent correspondent,
emerge as a strong and honorable generation Richard Mowrer, should throw considerable light on the
of Jews who refuse to leave their brethren shabby tricks of international politicians:
The writer just got hold of a deputy commander of the
in the hands of tormentors and murderers.
Haganah forces defending the Yemin Moshe. He had come out
Let our action be prompt, so that there should
for reinforcements and was going in with them immediately,
but he first wanted to tell a foreign correspondent something
be no unnecessary intervals for additional
of what is going on, so that the outside world would under-
bloodshed and heartache.
stand the kind of fighting that the Yemin Moshe battle is. This
THE. JEWISH NEWS
Member Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Independent Jewish
Press Service, Seven Arts Feature Syndicate, Palcor
Agency, King Features, Central Press Association.
Published every Friday by The Jewish News Publish-
ing Co., 2114 Penobscot Bldg., Detroit 26, Mich., WO. 5-1155.
Subscription, $3 a year; foreign, $4. Club subscription,
every fourth Friday of the month, to all subscribers to
Allied Jewish Campaign of Jewish Welfare Federation of
Detroit, 40 cents per year.
Entered as second-class matter Aug. 6, 1942, at Post Of-
Lee, Detroit, Mich., under Act of. March 3, 1879.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Maurice Aronsson
Philip Slomovitz
Fred M. Butzel
Isidore Sobeloff
Judge Theodore Levin
Abraham Srere
Maurice H. Schwartz
Henry Wineman
Danger Ahead In Germany
is what he said to me: "Tuesday night the Arabs opened their
attack by coasting a truck of explosives downhill against our
northeast perimeter. The explosions made a big gap in our forti-
fications there, but that is the least of our worries. Our concern
is the British Army behind us. They have warned us not to
return the Arab fire. If we do say the British threaten to open
up on us. After the explosion Tuesday night and the Arab firing
on us. we held our fire. The attackers grew bolder and, at one
moment, we were compelled to shoot to keep them back. This
brought a heavy fire on us from the British at our backs. I have
just communicated with the British. I have invited them to
attach an observer to our forces to see that we fire only in self-
defense. They have refused this request, and warned us again
not to return Arab fire."
It is not yet too late to correct a grave injustice. Some -
thinq certainly can and should be achieved at the now in-
b
evitable
special session of the General Assembly to protect
the rights of the Jewish people and to effect an amicable
PHILIP SLOMOVITZ, Editor
solution that should lead to freedom of immigration of Jews
VOL. XIII—No. 4
APRIL 9, 1948
to Palestine and their eventual self-government in Judaea.
This can be effected by our friends in Washington, by the
Sabbath Scriptural Selections
This Sabbath, first clay of Nisan, 5708, the fol- honorable men and women who represent the peoples of the
lowing Scriptural selections will be read in our world in the United Nations.
synagogues: 1
We pray that the conscience of mankind may be saved
Pentateuchal portions — Lev. 9:1-11:47; Ex.
on April 16, for the sake of the peace of the world and the
12:1-20.
Prophetical portion—Ezek. 45:16-46:18.
honor of humanity.
Joachim Joesten, in his revealing book, "Ger-
many—What Now?", published by Ziff-Davis (350
Fifth Ave., New York 1), points out that although
only 20,000 of the original 600,000 Jews who re-
sided in Germany before the extermination era
now live in the land: of Hitler, the resurgent
nationalist movement is marked by a revival of
anti-Semitism.
Mr. Joesten not only warns that Germany
still is anti-Jewish but he quotes high officials to
prove that their anti-Semitic speeches are deliver-
ed in the open, -brazenly, in defiance of the "vic-
tors" who were supposed to have defeated the
Nazi idealogists in the last war.
Predicting that it will take decades of vigi-
lance and untiring work to put an end to the
destructive Nazi ideas, Mr. Joesten warns that,
instead of ending Nazism, the U. S. occupation
forces may themselves be infected with the race
hating ideas that run in the bloodstream of Ger-
mans.
The tragedy is that the 250,000 displaced per-
sons in Germany are the main targets of the
increasing waves of anti-Semitism. We learn from
"Germany—What Now?" that Bavaria's Minister
of Economic Affairs had the audacity to state . in
the presence of American military officials that
the DP's "can be compared with the most vicious
of the insects that infest the German body.
Another shocking statement quoted in this
book reveals that another Bavarian Minister,
apologizing for being late at a club gathering,
said: "To my great regret, I had to attend a meet-
ing of Jews; the only pleasant thing during their
meeting was the unanimous resolution to leave
Germany."
And the DPs are at, times blamed (sometimes
by Council for Judaism Jews) for desiring to get
out of ,Germany and to settle at once in Palestine!
Another distressing warning by Mr. Joesten
is that Germany remains an important force in
Europe. His book is so frightening in its predic-
tions that the average reader will at least pose
the question whether it is possible to awaken
latent liberal sentiment in this country on time to
strive against the revival of Nazism and to work
for •the speedy rescue of Jews who must be taken
out -of Germany if the impending massacre is t9,
be averted.
Mr. Joesten, a young Berlin journalist, escaped
from Hitler Germany in 1933. He did not have to
leave, his family being Catholic, his father an
army physician and his mother a Baroness. But
his conscience offered no other choice. He became
a foreign correspondent in Denmark. Fluent in
sx languages, having attended six universities in
France, Spain and Germany, he adhered to the
belief that men were born to be free.
A year before Hitler's fangs lashed out at
Denmark, ,Joesten wrote a book, published in
London as "Denmark's Day of Doom" and later
in the U. S. as "Rats in the Larder." It blueprinted
in advance the Nazi sweep of Denmark, the aid
of the Fifth Column and what the official Danish
attitude would he. It was clairvoyantly accurate.
But when the blow fell, Denmark was no place
for Joesten. He and his young wife fled by fishing-
boat to Sweden, where he was arrested, and re-
leased from a concentration camp only on his
promise to leave the country. By circuitous route,
he arrived in Panama, then got to the U. S.
He lived in New York for the past few years,
recently moved to Great Barrington, Mass., and
published two books here: "Stalwart Sweden"
and "What Russia Wants." He was in the foreign
department of Newsweek, has written extensively
for This Week, Virginia Quarterly Review, For-
eign Affairs, International Digest and other mag-
azines.
Facts
You Should Know
Answers to Readers
Questions .. .
- What is a "meshumed?" What is the origin
of the term?
-
The name "meshumed" is given to one who has
converted to another faith. There is discussion
among scholars as to the exact origin of this term.
Some feel that it comes from the Hebrew word
"shemad" which means "to destroy." The term is
probably associated with the notion that whoever
is converted destroys his former belief.. It may
also have the implication that the early Gentile
nations who sought to convert Jews did so under
threat of destruction, or that they actually de-
stroyed in the process of conversion. The term is
used for designating destruction in the Bible (Lev.
26:30, Num. 33:52). Others feel that it comes from
the term "shamat" which means to "push aside"
or to "forsake." Some claim the term originates
from an Arabic word meaning "to astonish" or
"to be desolate," indicating that one who converts
his co-religionists to "be astonished" or that he
himself felt "desolate" beforehand. The most in-
teresting explanation brings up an historical point.
Many (even including the famous Hebrew scholar
"Ray Hai Gaon") are said to have used the term
merely to designate the followers of John the
Baptist. The term is said to have come from a
Syrian root "amad" which means "to be baptized."
Hebraists will note that this term is' similar to the
Hebrew term meaning "to stand up." This is quite
in order because the person who was baptized at
that time "stood" in water. It is quite easy to see,
then, why such a term was applied to the fol-
lowers of John the Baptist.—(S.J.F.)
*
*
How old is the city of Tel Aviv?
Tel Aviv, Palestine, is 39 years old. It was
founded in 1909. "Tel Aviv" is translated as
"hill of spring," a term said to come froin. Nahum
Sokolow's Hebrew rendition of Theodore Herzl's
book "Alt-Neuland." The Book of Ezekiel (111,15
mentions a place called 'Tel Aviv in Mesopotamia
on the river Chaboras. That "Tel Aviv" meant
"the hall of corn," indicating that-a corn center ex-
isted there. It seems certain, however, that our
modern city of Tel Aviv in Palestine bears no con-
nection whatsoever to this ancient Biblical city.