The Greenbelt, NM, Nightmare
32-DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
Background of Chasanow Cast
Makes It After 100 Years
By MILTON FRIEDMAN
(Copyright, 1954, JTA, Inc.)
Friday, April 30, 1954
community undertaking. In-
stead, they sat in the Greenbelt
American Legion Post, drinking
beer. These patriots then de-
cided to "raid" the "Communist"
party honoring Salzman. They
staggered into cars although
other Legionnaires sought in
vain to dissuade them. At the
"Communist" party they were
greeted by one of those who
had come to honor Salzman and
Chasanow—the Greenbelt chief
of police. His presence prevented
violence. But the Legionnaires
nevertheless shouted that they
were out to get all "dirty Jew
Communists."
Chasanow is a member of
Herschel Bregman, born in
Bnai Brith. President Eisen- Minsk, Russia, 100 years ago, be-
hower recently said in an ad-
dress before the Bnai Brith ing handed his certificate of
Anti-Defamation League that citizenship by Federal Judge
every American has a right to LEO F. RAYFIELD (left) after
confront his accuser. Chasa- being sworn in as a citizen, as
now is an American. Yet the EDWARD SHAUGHNESSY, Di-
government has refused Chas-
anow permission to confront rector of Immigration and Nat-
accusers and has even denied uralization for the New York
him the right to know their District, looks on. Bregman came
identity.
to the United States in 1930 un-
The danger seen by Greenbelt der the sponsorship of HIAS, and
Jewry is not that a few cranks
in their community are active when he at last decided to cli-
anti-Semites., What concerns max his life by becoming a citi-
them more deeply is that the zen, he attended the HIAS citi-
government is apparently will-1 zenship classes to prepare for
ing to accept and act on even the event.
the flimsiest allegation regard-
less of its source. The govern-1
ment does not say that Chasa- LaMed Named Associate
now is a Communist or even a Chairman of Federation
pro-Communist—just that he is i
Division on Education
a "risk."
See Editorial on Page 4
Louis LaMed has been named
Affidavits supporting Chasa-
now's loyalty have been submit- associate chairman of the edu-
ted by Greenbelt's mayor, city cation division of the Jewish
manager, city clerk, Catholic Welfare Federation, Samuel H.
and Protestant leaders, a former Rubiner, Federation president,
American Legion commander,
and director of public safety announced.
LaMed, who is a member of
who is a graduate of the F.B.I.
school. Affidavits have also
the boards of
come from 24 present or former
the Jewish Corn-
Navy associates as high as rear
munity Center,
admiral. In World War II, Chas-
United H e brew
anow's recommendations on how
Schools and
to keep Navy charts out of ene-
Jewish Com-
my hands were accepted by
munity Council,
the Chief of Naval Operations,
will serve with
Chasanow, during World War II,
the division
took steps to keep classified ma-
chairman, Mor-
terial from the eyes of visiting
ris Garvett.
Russian officers and in 1950
The education
prevented nautical charts- from
LaMed
division is o n e
getting into the hands of ship- of Federation's four budget and
masters from Communist coun-
planning divisions which submit
tries.
Chasanow said: "What is to the executive committee re-
happening to me is something commendations on allocations to
that can't happen in this local and national agencies in
country ... I could understand
their respective areas and plan
if I had ever said or done any-
thing but I haven't . . . It is for the improvement and co-
a nightmare." His neighbors ordination of the local services.
take the view that if this can Other divisions are capital
happen to Abe Chasanow it needs, health and welfare, and
could happen to any of them. community relations.
GREENBELT, MD. — Several
years ago a druggist in this com-
munity found on his store win-
dow a sign which crudely alleg-
ed that Jews are all Communists.
He quietly removed the sign. It
was dismissed as a childish
prank by those who bothered to
mention the incident at all.
The Jews of Greenbelt, like
their neighbors, are govern-
ment workers in nearby Wash-
ington. In 1952 they decided to
erect a place of worship which
would serve as a Jewish com-
munity center. Because of their
modest financial resources,
they did the construction work
themselves. Greenbelt's Jews
could be seen evenings and on
week-ends in work clothes,
mixing mortar and laying
bricks. A sign was erected:
"Jewish Community Center."
But someone altered it to read:
"Jewish Communist Center."
Like the one at the drugstore,
this smear was quickly remov-
ed. Subsequent smears, how-
ever, have proved more diffi-
cult to erase—like the ones
lodged by unnamed • accusers
against Abraham Chasanow
and other Greenbelt Jews who
have been removed from their
government jobs as "security
risks."
Greenbelt was built by the
Government as a model com-
munity. The Chasanow family
moved here in 1939. Chasanow
became a director and counsel of
the Greenbelt Veterans Housing
Corporation which bought
Greenbelt from the government
in 1952 to enable residents to
purchase the homes in which
they lived. Meanwhile, Chasanow
was considered by some as "too
reactionary" because he led the
fight for adoption of a manda-
tory loyalty oath by home own-
ers. In the Maryland election' of
1950, Chasanow supported Mc-
Carthy-backed John M. Butler
for the Senate seat of Millard
Tydings.
The former president of the
Greenbelt Veterans Housing
Corporation is Michael Salz-
man. Chasanow and Salzman
belonged to one faction in a
housing controversy, a faction
which might be said to advo-
cate a more "right-wing" ap-
proach than its opponents.
Both men were employed in
the Navy Hydrographic Office.
Suddenly they were both fired
as "security risks." Under the
new security program of the
Administration,
Eisenhower
anyone accused must be sus-
pended immediately. Chasa-
now was dumbfounded. Salz-
man broke into tears.
Greenbelt leaders, Jews and
Christians alike, rallied to sup-
port the men they knew so well.
A party was held at the housing
corporation for Salzman, its
president, as a gesture of confi-
Determined to cover every
dence. But certain elements did
not join in the spirit of this possible prospect, workers and
leaders in the Allied Jewish
Campaign are exerting plus ef-
forts during this intensive drive
Jewish DPs With Visas
period.
Are Barred From Brazil
Getting together twice a week
BUENOS AIRES, (JTA) — A to report on campaign pro-
vessel with 13 displaced Jews gress, workers will meet for the
who had been refused permis- second such gathering on Tues-
sion to land in Brazil, despite day, 12:15 p.m., at a luncheon
the fact that they held entrance in the Fred M. Butzel Memorial
visas for that country, docked Building.
The schedule of report rallies,
here last week,.
Representatives of the local all of which are luncheons to be
Jewish immigrant aid organiza- held at 12:15 p.m. in the Butzel
tion boarded the vessel to as- Building, follows:
Tuesday, May 4, Friday, May
sure the DPs that the Joint Dis-
tribution Committee, HIAS and 7, Tuesday, May 11, and Fri-
the local group were intervening day, May 14.
Speaking for the seven trade
with the Brazilian government
to obtain permission for the im- and professional divisions in the
migrants to land in Brazil when campaign, D. Kell and Milton K.
the vessel touches there on its Mahler said:
"We are all working as a team,
return trip to Europe.
The refusal of Brazilian au- pitching in, ready and able to
thorities to permit the entrance do a good campaign job in 1954.
of the 13 was because they fail- The mood is one of bold deter-
ed to comply with a month-old mination to help meet the needs
regulation which provides that of over 50 causes here at home,
immigrants who do not have a overseas and nationally."
At today's luncheon rally in
regular passport must first ob-
tain a special permit from the the Butzel Building workers and
Brazilian Ministry of the interi- leaders will have the opportun-
or. The 13 include nationals of ity to report progress and com-
Yugoslavia, Hungary,' Poland pare notes in their all-out ef-
fort for the drive.
and Romania.
--
Judge Rifkind Outlines Stand
On Use of fifth Amendment
BOSTON, (JTA)—The Ameri-
can people should either make
up their minds "that the Fifth
Amendment means what it says,
that it is a shield and it may
be freely used without legal
consequences, or it is not, in
which case it has lost all sig-
nificance," Simon H. Rifkind of
New York, former U. S. District
Court judge, declared here.
However, he cautioned that
"though the use of the Fifth
Amendment does not warrant
an inference of guilt, it may,
nevertheless, warrant further
inquiry."
Speaking to the annual din-
ner meeting of the Boston chap-
ter of the American Jewish
Committee, Judge Rifkind, who
is chairman of AJC's national
administrative c o m mitt e e,
pointed out that "to say, as
some do, that the assertion of
this high privilege is in itself an
admission of guilt, is a startling
Judge Rifkind deplored both
the "ostrich approach" to Com-
munism, which insists there is
no danger, and the "hysterical
approach," which makes people
"incapable of estimating the
actual danger or knowing what
to do about it." He urged in-
. stead "the manly approach
that soberly faces up to the fact
that there is a danger." As part
of this approach he stated that
we should recognize that a per-
,: son who pleads the Fifth
Amendment "may owe it to
those with whom he is in a con-
. fidential relationship, to explain
why he is using the shield."
He noted that where there is
a relationship between a person
and an institution — a social
service agency, college, univer-
sity, or hospital, which asks for
financial support—"and if the
public has reached the point
where it will regard with grave
suspicion any person who pleads
the Fifth Amendment, then the
one who pleads it must be aware
of the fact that he is subjecting
his institution to very grave in-
j ury."
"He may well be under the
obligation to sever his relations
with that institution," Judge
Rifkind added. "Therefore, while
he may want to enjoy his Con-
stitutional rights and privileges,
he has not the freedom to im-
pose the burden upon the insti-
tution Which engages him."
Prof. Minkoff to Lecture on Yiddish
Culture at Wayne University Monday
Prof. Nachum Boruch Minkoff,
New School for Social Research,
New York, will be at Wayne Uni-
versity, Monday, to deliver a lec-
ture on Yiddish culture, litera-
ture and folklore.
Arrangements for the lecture
were made through the Jewish
Community Council as part of
the Wayne series on Mid-Eu-
rope and its contributions to
Western culture. This is the first
time that a midwest university
has scheduled an academic lec-
ture on this subject.
Prof. Minkoff will make a tape
recording of his talk for broad-
cast over the university station
WDET-FM and will speak at a
community reception in his hon-
or at the Kresge Science Library,
Monday, at 8:15 p.m.
The visiting lecturer also
teaches at the Jewish Teachers'
Seminary and Colegio Israelita
in Mexico. He is managing edi-
tor of the Zukunft, Yiddish lit-
erary monthly, and contribut-
ing editor of the General Yid-
dish Encyclopedia and Universi-
ty Jewish Encyclopedia.
The Yiddish language spoken
widely in most of the Mid-Euro-
pean countries serves as a co-
hesive force for cultural com-
munication. The lecture series
at Wayne is aided by a grant
from the Mid-European Studies
' Center while the lecture on Yid-
dish culture was made possible
through a grant from the Mor-
ris L. Schaver Foundation.
tomp/enng arrangements for
a special lecture on Yiddish cul-
ture at Wayne University are
DR. VICTOR A. RAPPORT, dean,
college of liberal arts at Wayne;
PROF. HARRY JOSSELSON,
chairman, department of Slavic
languages and literature, Wayne;
and MORRIS L. SCHAVER, head
of the Schaver Foundation
which made possible the appear-
ance of the guest lecturer, Prof.
Nachum B. Minkoff.
Reports on Allied Jewish Campaign to be Heard at Luncheon Rallies
The Women's Division in the
campaign is finalizing last min-
ute details for its all-important
"G-Day" on Sunday when ap-
proximately 15,000 homes will be
visited for solicitation. The
Metropolitan and Junior Divi-
sions are also maintaining a "no
let-up" attitude in their drive
efforts.
Irving W. Blumberg and Har-
vey H. Goldman, chairmen of
the drive, reminded workers and
contributors that during this-
last Passover, more than 5,000
immigrants 60 years and older,
without families, observed the
ancient holiday of exodus in the
tin. shacks of Israel's transition
camps.
"Our gifts can move thousands
of these aged immigrants out of
shack towns into bright, clean
and decent places, they said,
"The problems of the aged over-
seas or here at home are per-
sonal ones for us—just as are
all the other causes for which
we provide help through our
Allied Jewish Campaign. A gift
to the campaign helps build life,
hope and freedom for our fellow
Jews around the corner and
around the world."