Joseph Ross Reports on Latin American Contacts Made
During AJ Committee's Four-Nation Goodwill Tour;
Describes Links Attained -to Assure Positive Survivalism
concerned only with creating dis-
unity and eventual chaos."
He added that the delegation
had been met with good ,feelings
by officials' of the Catholic church,
who indicated total support of the
decree eliminating the collective
deicide c h a r,g e from the Jews,
which is expected to be on the
agenda of the Ecumenical dbuncil
in September.
"We were pleased," he said, "to
note that spokesmen of the Cath-
olic church, ranging from the high-
est levels to parish priests, are in
the vanguard of efforts to improve
the lot 'of the common man. and
to help their countries advance on
the road to a decent life for all."
By MARCY MILLER
"Judaism is facing a paradoxical
problem in South America," ac-
cording to Joseph Ross, president
of Federal's Department Stores
and vice president of the Amer-
ican \Jet'ish Committee. "It is a
-problem of survival under condi-
tion§ of violent anti-Semitism,
in Argentina. but also of survival
where no discrimination exists at
all,. as in Brazil. Chile and Peru."
Ros: who has just returned from
a three-,week. 15.000-mile goodt011
and study tour of the four coun-
tries, along with other AJC lead- i
ers, attributed the root of the
paradox. to the lack of institutional
structure in South American Jew-
ish communities, along with in-
creasingly inadequate teaching and
religious facilities. ,
"They need more Jewish con-
JOSEPH ROSS
as teachers and rabbis,' are will-
ing to make the sacrifice." ,
tent in their lives," he explained,
they are to retain any Jew-
ish identity at all." The dearth
of teachers and synagogues , pre-
vents any but the most "pitifully
small" attempts at educating
the Younger generations, who
cannot b e n.e f i t from the Old
Country languages and practices
of their parents.
Ross added, "Zionism in South
America means soinething com-
pletely different than it does here.
Any person with a generally pro=
Jewish attitude is considered a
Zionist. Still, Israel .appears to be
far more important than in the
U. S:'
Zionist movements, particular-
There are, he noted, clubs ly the youth groups. are quite
throughout the continent called active in all South American coun-
Ilebraikas, which serve mostly as tries, and aliyah—emigration to
sports and recreational centers for Israel--is one way of survival for
thg youngsters. but there only Jewish youth. "Of course," Ross
one Jewish school, a secular in- pointed out, "many young people
stitution in Lima, Peru, "and even are not ready to go to Israel,
there, most of the teachers are and the problem is to help them
develop a sense of-Jewish identity
not Jewish."
'Whenever they went, Ross said, - in the land in which they want to
•
'
the AJC delegation found a tre
Along with teachers. rabbis and
mendous need for teachers. rabbis;
and particularly cultural .and' reli- ambassadors, olt h e r emissaries
gions Jewish books written in from Israel have greatly contri-
Spanish with which to teach the buted to the easing of anti-Jewish
young people. "One book that has feeling in South America.
been translated," he added. "is
"Peru and Bolivia are arid
Rabbi Morris Adler's 'The World
lands," Ross said. "Israel - sent
of the Talmud,' which we found
technicians there who were
in demand everywhere we visited.
skilled in agricultural problems
Dr. Adler would be amazed to
in the Negev, and they have
know how well-known he is in
been working with the govern-
South America!"
ments and training army units
Ross pointed out that there were
in agricultural development
less than a dozen rabbis in the
work. The president of Bolivia
, four countries they visited, servic-
has personally expressed his ap-
-ing a Jewish community of over
preciation for Israel's technical
600,000. Of the few, only one, is
assistance."
an American. Marshal Meyer, a
Still, he noted. Israel is itself
graduate of the Jewish Theologi- a small and still•-developing coun-
cal- Seminary, has set up a small try and cannot continue alone
seminary in Buenos Aires spon- indefinitely. The AJC is hoping
sored by his alma mater and the to imbue some missionary spirit
AJC. The rabbis who will graduate in the United States, "not in the
in seven or eighteears "will bare- sense of conversion. but to aid our
ly scratch the surface of what
, co-religionists to survive."
mains to be done, but at least a
Concerning the general situation
start will be made."
in the four countries, the delega-
He commented, "MOst 'people
tion found that, with the exception
from the United States do not
of Peru, where the economy seems
want to come bedause the sal-
to be fairly stable at present, it
aries are too low and there is
found . widespread inflation, rising
no opportunity for advancement.
prices: unemployment and evi-
Israelis, who have been coming
dence of increasing unrest among
pooreg elements of the population
in sortie places.
Ross stated, "If economic con-
ditio..s continue to deteriorate as
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tina, Brazil and Chile, reactionary
elements from within and outside
EVERY
the South American continent
would find it relatively easy to
FESTIVE
use the Jews as scapegdats.", _
Witness Recalls 'Devil" at Auschwitz Nazi Trial
FRANKFURT—A key defendant through the kitchen." She said
in the Auschwitz war crimes trial after about an hour she collapsed,
and -the stone caused serious in-
was the self-appointed "devil" to juries.
prisoners there, a witness recalled.
Capesius is accused of having
Mrs. Martha -Szabo, a Rornaniaii, selected victims for gassing.
said Victor Capesius, a pharmacist
who ran the camp's chief dispens- THE DETROIT JEWISH . NEWS
ary, introduced himself to the in- 6 Friday, August- 28, 1964
mates with - "I am Mr. Capesius
from Siebenburgen --- that's the
devil for you!"
Like
Mrs. Szabo recalled an incident
when Capesius investigated a Theft
„Piccadilly Cocktail's got it!
of margarine in the kitchen. "Un-
Z2 PROOF 51 • 49 CODE NO
able to find the culprit," she said,
a 5 (WAFT
66E8
"he loaded each of us with a heavy
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stone and chased us in circles
BRANDY
Ross concluded that the mis-
sion had , accomplished its three
basic objectives:: talking to gov-
ernment officials, church lead-
ers, and fellow Jews of the four
countries, to give the AJC a
clearer picture of the problems
being faced in the South Amer-
ican Jewish community.
"The AJC is now working ac-
tively on a public relations pro-
p-am," he said, "hoping to com-
bat the image being spread by
the Arab propaganda, the lack of
teachers, and the inadequacy of
the educational materials avail-
able. We hope to help in any, way
that we can."
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He added that this is especial-
ly true in Argentina, where the
Arab League is spending un-
limited sums of money to pro-
. mote hatred against the Jewish
- community in Argentina and '
other South American nations.
"Our overwhelming impression,"
Ross reported, "was that civic
leaders are struggling to satisfy
the pressing present needs of their
people and to meet the pressures
of the expectations for a better
future which are evident every-
-where in South America, in an
orderly and democratic fashion.
They ,are in a race against time,
and some are facing determined
and vicious attacks from extrem-
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