Putting Two and Two Together
By RINNA GROSSMAN
An American Jewish Press Feature
10—DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
Friday, February 12, 1954
What is the truth. Remember
it well These restrictions apply
to all areas where security con-
siderations have dictated a spe-
cial need for caution—and they
are as binding on Jews within
these areas as upon their Arab
compatriots. Where Arabs must
observe curfew, so must his
Jewish neighbor.
And because Israel is a de-
mocracy, and because democrats
seek areas of criticism and con-
stantly test the ground, there is
many an Israeli who believes
that despite all these most un-
usual statistics, Arab welfare is
neglected and that the situation
of the large minority groups is
not sufficiently or adequately
dealt with. This criticism is free,
loud and open and no govern-
ment of the State of Israel
would dare, at any time or any
Judge THEODORE LEVIN
place, to take restrictive action (left), presents the Fred M. But-
of any sort against Israel's Arab zel Award for distinguishing
citizens.
communal service to ABRAHAM
Srere Gets Award
Every now and then the great
balloon barrage of Arab propa-
ganda that hangs above the
world is pierced for a moment
by a solitary item of news — and
for that one moment, the truth
filters out from the Arab states
to cast fresh light on current
events. Then, as though with a
magic cement, the rip is sealed
and the ballons hover ahead.
There was such a moment last
week. Probably most of you
caught the little news story in
your papers. A brief mention of
a Druze uprising in Syria, suc-
cessfully quelled by the speedy
intervention of that country's
armed forces. Not a sensational
Story, at any time. But one of
considerable interest in the light
of the endless reiteration of lies
that stream from the Arab
states regarding mistreatments
of minorities in Israel.
But across the border, things SRERE at the annual meeting
Let us try to put two and two are very different. Syria has no of the Jewish Welfare Federa-
together. Whatever happened
last week in Syria was unpleas-
ant. Those who know the pat-
tern of Moslem massacre — of
the extermination of the Arme-
nians or the slaughter of the
Assyrians — can quickly realize
that quelling such an uprising
involves more than a small per-
centage of atrocity and brutali-
ty. It must have been pretty bad
because the Druze of Israel went
to President Ben-Zvi and asked
that he intervene on behalf of
their brethren in Syria. Presi-
dent Ben Zvi couldn't do much
by way of active help, needless
to say — but it may be of use at
this point to take a long, hard
look at the situation of minori-
ties in the Jewish State.
Here is an assortment of facts
and figures which may provide
food for thought: First of all, let
us bear in mind that Israel is
surrounded on three sides by
openly, everlastingly hostile
Arab states; that these states
have not, for one day, desisted
from their offensive against Is-
rael; that, in various devious
way, this anti-Israel propagan-
da is channelled also to Israel's
Arab population. It would not
then be wholly unnatural for
Israel to treat with harshness
and disaffection the Arabs that
live within her boundaries.
The reverse is true. The prob-
lem is handed with spanking
white official pure-kid gloves.
And the truth of the matter
bears repetition. There are some
two hundred thousand Arabs in
Israel. Some thirty-five thous-
and of these are Christians, the
rest are Moslems. All of them
are full-fledged, unfettered, un-
molested citizens. They share
full and equal rights with all
other Israelis in all respects —
with one exception to which we
shall return later. They do not
serve in Israel's army.
Now the propaganda experts
of the Arab League may, and do,
attempt to make much of this.
But, soberly and quite objective-
ly, can Israel be expected now—
in days of an almost-active war
and in the absence of any guar-
antees of peace with the Arab
states, to recruit into her army
a minority group of which a
sizeable percentage have only
recently returned to live in Is-
rael? I think not.
Besides this one discrimina-
tion . . there are others. Arab
men and women vote. Arab boys
and girls are compelled by law
to go to schools. Arab workers
belong to the Histadrut, Israel's
Federation of Labor. There is
total and complete autonomy on
all religious matters. There is an
equal pay scale. Arab students
attend the Hebrew University.
Arab nurses are trained by Ha-
dassah. The list is long and
ought to be familiar to the alert
reader.
,
But the strident gentlemen
from the Arab states still raise
their voices to cry aloud that
there is no equality. They say,
from coast to coast, on the air
and via TV, that there is mili-
tary occupation and that Israel's
Arabs live within ghettos —
sometimes they call them stock-
ades—and cannot enter or leave
at will. They Shriek of ignomin-
ous curfews and of police pa-
trols.
democracy — and criticism is
muted and suppressed. Free ex-
pression is a dangerous phrase
and a minority is a threat. So
the Druzes have been shaken up
a bit in Dictator Shishakly's
playing grounds.
tion held recently.
The presentation marked the
fourth successive year in which
the award has been presented.
Previous recipients are Julian H.
Krolik, 1951; Henry Wineman,
1952; and William Friedman,
What of the Druze in .Israel? 1953.
There are some sixteen thous-
and members of this fierce and
secret religious sect that forms
a separate ethnic group. It was
their representatives that asked
President Ben Zvi to see what
he could do across the border.
It is this group that forms one
exception to the barring of
Arabs from Israel's army — for
the Druzes from the start fought
shoulder to shoulder with the
Jewish troops, promised loyalty
and proved themselves.
However, General Shishakly's
little showdown will be forgot-
ten. The balloon barrage of Arab
propaganda will he repaired
with alacrity — and the telling
little. news item will be erased
from the public mind.
New Israel Consul
To Address Detroit
Youth on Feb. 28
The New Consul for the State
of Israel, Simcha Pratt, will be
the guest speaker at the Youth
Assembly for Israel, to be held
at the Davison Jewish Center,
Sunday, Feb. 28, according to
Morris Lachover, chairman of
the committee on youth of the
Jewish National Fund Council
of Detroit under whose auspices
the Assembly is being convened.
The program is planned to be-
gin with a brunch at 11 a.m., to
continue with several institutes
on "American Jewish youth—.
what should be its appproach to
Israel," and end with a session
at which a program will be pre-
sented by participating organi-
zations. The Jewish youth of
Detroit and the surrounding
area, as well as the adult pub-
lic, are invited.
The assembly will mark the
first public appearance of the
new Consul in Michigan. Mt.
Pratt, who had settled in Pal-
estine in 1926 and arrived from
Israel January to take up his
duties as Consul for Israel, is a
lawyer from Tel Aviv and vice-
president of Bnai B.rith Lodge
Shaare Zion of that city.
The Youth Assembly, Mr.
Lachover explained, "is being
called in response to the inter-
est expressed by several groups
other than those directly affili-
ated with the Zionist movement,
in Israel. This large segment of
the organized, as well as the un-
organized Jewish youth has a
positive approach to Jewish life
and to Israel, but has no medi-
um through which it may ex-
press that approach into speci-
fic terms unless through one
or another of the existing Zion-
ist parties.
The leaders of several of
these groups have felt that
the Jewish National Fund, which
is non-partisan and above party
in its work for Israel, may serve
as the platform upon which all
youth may meet and express
their interests in the State of
Israel."
City of Peace
By N. E. ARONSTAM, M.D.
(Written on the occasion of its
3,000th Anniversary)
"If I forget thee, 0 Jerusalem,
Let my right hand forget her
cunning."—Ps. 137:5.
Jerusalem, thou Citadel of
Peace,
Alas, how wrongly wert thou
named!
There never reigned an age of
sweet surcease—
In shameless blood lust wert
thou claimed
By East and West, by North and
South, all strove
To conquer thee and lay thee
waste;
By land and sea and from the
air above
They scaled thy heights, thy
very stones they razed.
Yet futile was their aim, thou
..stoodest fast,
And like the Phoenix didst thou
rise at last.
Assyria and Babylon conspired
To make of thee a vassal state;
Thy wrath rose high, and thus
by courage fired
Thou didst repel the foe by dint
of Faith.
And Parthia • and Hellas, too,
compelled
To make of thee a battle ground,
In vain! Then Rome stepped
forth and held
Thee captive there, in shackles
bound;
They perished in their lust, a
naught their score—
For like the Phoenix didst thou
rise once more.
Histadrut Nears '100,000 Mark ;
Landsmanshaften Plan Brunch
With the 1954 Histadrut Cam-
paign entering its fourth week
and rapidly approaching the
$100,000 mark, the chief activity
scheduled will be the annual
bruncheon rally of the Lands-
manshaften Division.
Laib Spizman, noted Yiddish
journalist and lecturer, will
come here to
address the
event, 1,vhich is
slated for Sun-
day, in the La-
bor Zionist In-
stit ute, 13722
Linwood.
Peter Gold-
stein, vice-
chairman of the
Histadrut and a
leader in the
Detroit Israel
Bond campaign,-
will be chair-
Spizman
man of the event.
In the course of his visit here
from New York, Spizman also
will address a special joint
meeting of Farband branches
79, 114 and 137 on Saturday eve-
ning, in the LZOA Institute.
The program will include the
showing of the film, "In Our
Lifetime," a cross-view of life
in Israel as seen through the
eyes of an American tourist.
At the end of two weeks of
campaigning, canvassers and
delegates met last Sunday at the
second Histad-
rut rally and
learned that
$50,000 toward
the local quota
of $250,000 had
already been
sent to the New
York office.
The impres-
sive figure,
stated Morris
Goldstein
Lieberman,
campaign chairman, was made
possible through 100 per cent
cooperation of all participating
groups. He added that indivi-
duals setting the pace include:
Morris Kane and Gertrude Levine,
Poale Zion; Charles Solovich, Aaron
Berg, Jack Malamud, Leon Rives and
Walter Rabinowitz, furniture; John Isaacs
and Ben Harold, Farband; Phyllis Coop-
er, Florence Primack and Isabelle
Brown, Pioneer Women; Hyman Lip-
sitz, Hebrew Benevolent; Morris Glass,
141inkowitzer; Morris Ross, Nathan Rose,
Bereznitzer; Joseph Brody, Lachowitcher;
Grace Pomerantz, Hebrew Ladies Aid
and the Progressive Ladies Aid Society.
Future events planned by the
Histadrut to help it reach its
goal include a bruncheon on
Feb. 21 sponsored by all divi-
sions, except the Landsman-
shaften, for which plans are
presently being prepared.
Highlighting the month'S ac-
tivity will be the Detroit visit of
Yosef Baratz, pioneer and foun-
der of the Israel settlement of
Dagania, on Feb. 28, at LZOA
Institute.
While here, Baratz will be the
special guest of Mr. and Mrs.
Morris Schaver.
w 0
says
YOU HAVE NO
TIME TO BAKE?
It takes only minutes to
prepare this kosher cake!
London Banker Saemy Japhet
Dies at 95; Was Zionist Friend
"er
LONDON, (JTA) — Saemy Ja-
phet; prominent London banker
and philanthropist, died here at
the age of 95. Japhet contributed
to a number of Jewish causes
and took a deep interest in the
Palestine development, although
he was never identified with the
Zionist organization.
Japhet was born in Frankfort
and received his training in the
banking business as an appren-
tice in a German bank for which
he began working when he was
15. After a number of years in
London, he established S. Japhet
and Company, which is now one
of London's greatest banking
houses.
HIGH, LIGHT
and LUSCIOUS
Dropsie Fellowships
The Institute for Israel and
the Middle East of the Dropsie
College, . Philadelphia, has an-
nounced for the academic year
1954-55, Fellowships of $1,000
each, available to qualified stu-
dents who wish to specialize in
So rise again, my Citadel of Middle Eastern studies leading
Peace
In spite of tempest, toil and to the Ph.D. degree.
sorrow,
And gird thyself with strength
again, surcease
Shall come to thee upon the
morrow!
There's Life and Peace and Joy
for thee in store,
And like the Phoenix thou wilt
rise once more!
Reach for lb
Dromedary
package with
the kosher
21M11771
1924.1954
ATTENTION
CANVASSERS DELEGATES
HISTADRUT
"For out of Zion shall go forth
the Law,
And the words of the Lord from
Jerusalem."
Grand River Chevrolet
Brand Name Contest Finals
Saul H. Rose, president of
Grand River Chevrolet this week
announced that his company is
one of 25 throughout the nation
to be selected as a finalist in the
sixth annual brand name re-
tailer-of-the-year contest, spon-
sored by the Brand Names
Foundation.
Reaching the finals was based
on the company's indoor • test
track and a money-back guar-
antee promotion on used cars.
LANDSMANSCHAFT DIVISION
30
ISRAEL
H ISTADRUT
CAMPAIGN
ANNUAL DIVISION "BRUNCHEON"
Will Take Mace
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 14, at 11:00 a.m.
LABOR ZIONIST INSTITUTE
13722 LINWOOD AVENUE
GUEST SPEAKER
—
L. SPIZMAN
WELL KNOWN. YIDDISH JOURNALIST,
LITERARY EDITOR AND TRANSLATOR