Purely Commentary
By PHILIP SLOMOVITZ
Don Frohman's Notable Directorial Record
Don Frohman has earned the community's commendations for his
notable contributions to the field of music in our community.
When his choir marks its 40th anniversary at the concert on Sun-
day evening, it will be paying tribute in largest measure to its present
conductor—Mr. Frohman. The choir originated from the Halevy Sing-
ing Society. Under that name it had a number of noted guest conduc-
tors, some of them among the outstanding musicians in the land.
For 35 years, the choir has been conducted by Mr. Frohman and
it has adopted his name. That was a worthy tribute to an able musician
many years back. But since then the Frohman gifts to music have
multiplied to such an extent that it would be difficult to enumerate all
of his accomplishments.
As director of the Shaarey Zedek choir, as the composer of can-
tatas and of two widely acclaimed synagogue services, as a singer and
as a cellist, he has made his mark in many forms of musical creativity.
Now he is receiving honors from a choir he has directed for 35
years. The entire community joins in greeting him on this notable
occasion.
Hopeless Status of Proposed Immigration Revisions
In the confusion over a score of other national issues, it is
becoming apparent that the President's request for liberalization of
the existing immigration laws will be lost in the shuffle.
But it is quite possible that it would have been shelved anyway,
because of an inherited prejudice in matters involving immigrants.
Congressman Feighan of Ohio, the chairman of the House sub-
committee, has expressed such surprising sentiments about the bill
that there was no hope for action in the House of Representatives.
He was quoted, for example, as expressing the fear that if the present
laws are changed there will be an influx of Romanian Jews. What
a fantastic thought.
The situation in the Senate is equally hopeless. In an article in
the New Republic under the title "New Immigration Policy—Give
Me Your Vigorous, Your Skilled," Andrew Kopkind analyzed the
status of the immigration bill in both Houses of Congress and stated
inter alia:
For one reason or another, Feighan let the Celler bill lie
untended and unheard until either a sudden interest in reform
'OT a surprisingly tough primary fight convinced him to schedule
hearings last summer. Pressure was building from many sides;
President Johnson invited Feighan to fly with him to Cleveland,
and an board the plane Presidential aide Jack Valenti chatted
about immigration. Feighan's new interest in the legislation was
enormous. But the hearings dragged on in the House (there
were only a few desultory sessions in the Senate) through six
weeks of August and September. Witnesses for the American
Legion and the National Economic Council, Inc., vied with
emissaries from the Organization to Preserve Samoan Democ-
racy and the ACLU, and the only discernible result was a tedious
stand-off. Feighan meanwhile had introduced a bill of his own
which did nothing to change the national origins philosophy, and
at the end, he could not even muster a quorum to report out a bill.
But this year, President Johnson made immigration reform
a high priority item on his legislative list, and for the first time
. since 1952 it has a chance. The sainted "Manny" Celler allowed
the "addition" (some dare call it "packing") of four new seats
on the subcommittee, and there is now a reform-minded majority
.all around. Feighan himself may offer a new bill which is said
to abolish .the national origins criteria but perhaps cut the tiny
total of yearly immigration (it amounts to about two-tenths of one
percent of the U.S. population). He ferociously opposes an ad-
ministration plan to set up a mixed Executive and Congressional
immigration policy board.
In the Senate, things have started off bouncily. Senator
James 0. Eastland, whose judiciary subcommittee considers such
matters, absented himself from the first hearings and left a very
charming Senator Edward Kennedy to greet Attorney General
Katzenbach. Like Feighan, Eastland knows that there are enough
votes on his full committee to renort out a bill, and he may look
the other way while it is being done.
Both subcommittee chairmen may feel pressure from the
White HciuSe, but at bottom they know that the fight on national
origins is already over; it remains for Congress to confirm the
general agreement. They know; too, that the door will stay shut
to wholesale immigration. There have been some wild predic-
tions about the opening of floodgates and the influx of criminals
and Communists, but no one in the administration or Congress
has plans to loosen the restrictions significantly. No more
wretched refuse for these shores; the best America will do is
to take the rich, skillful or related few who qualify on some
standard less arbitrary than their race or place of birth. But
who are the qualified? At one point in the Senate hearings
during an abrasive exchange between Katzenbach and Senator
Sam Ervin, the attorney general demanded:
"Do you think, Senator. that a maid from Ireland really
will contribute more to the United States than a trained doctor
from an Asian country?"
Senator Ervin smiled shyly at Senator Kennedy, "Oh, I don't
know," he said.
It is clear that the heart is being taken out of the humane aspects
of the planned immigration legislation. The prejudices inherent in
the matter are deep-rooted. How is one to overcome it, and who is
thee to lead in correcting misconceptions? The situation is not
hopeful.
Secretary of State Rusk's appeal in support of the pending legis-
lation struck at the very heart of the issue. It indicated the injustice
of the existing legislation. The McCarran-Walter Act continues to
stain the good American record: But there is too much misunderstand-
ing about the immigration program. It is doubtful whether any progress
will he made now in behalf of the President's proposals. What is
needed is a new campaign of education to prove to the American
people the unwisdom of the national origins clauses and the need for
a return to the humanitarian era when this country offered a haven
of refuge for the oppressed.
The lack of understanding of the problem and the need to solve
it became evident last week when the Daughters of the American
Revolution, at their 74th annual convention in Washington, took a
stand in favor of the retention of the existing national origins clauses
in ne U.S. immigration laws and the perpetuation of a system that
spells bigotry. As long as such sentiments are propagated, the chances
of abolishing unwise legislation remain remote.
Minor Nazi Criminals' Exemption
Protested by Resistance Fighters
-
Pompidou, accompanied by
BONN (JTA)—West Germany's guard at the Sachsenhausen death
new legislation, prolonging the camp, and another former SS of- Pierre Messmer, minister of de-
statute of limitations for the pros- ficer identified as Kroeger. The fense, and Jean Sainteny, minis-
ecution of Nazi war criminals until Congress said that Kroeger was ter of war veterans, took part in
the end of 1969, was published director of the Walter Ulbricht the ceremony at the Monument
in the government's Official Ga- Law Academy in East Germany. to the Unknown Jewish Martyr.
zette April 21, and became law Other former Nazi leaders living
Thousands of persons stood at
undisturbed in East Germany were
April 22.
attention during the rites. Many
wore striped concentration camp
The legal committee of the listed. They included former Gen-
uniforms.
Bundestag, lower house of Parlia- eral Muller and former Admiral
Similar services were held in
ment, was discussing a proposal Neukircher.
Elsewhere, around the world, cities and towns throughout
by several members of the house
that would differentiate between special services were being held France. Special programs recall-
ing the Nazi terror were presented
"major" and "minor" war crim- in memory of Jewish martyrs.
In Paris, leaders of the French on the French national radio and
inals.
Some members of Parliament, government, including President television networks.
In London, thousands of per-
and many organizations in this Charles de Gaulle, took part in
country and abroad, have com- commemorative services marking sons crowded the Shaftesbury The-
plained that, under such a for- the 20th anniversary of the libera- ater Sunday for a Remembrance
mula, a virtual amnesty would be tion of many of the Nazi concen- Day meeting honoring the mar-
tyrs of the Warsaw Ghetto uprir' —\-----L-
given to the vast majority of Nazi tration camps.
Gen. de Gaulle attended spe- ing of 22 years ago and celebra\
war criminals.
cial services at Notre Dame ing also the 20th anniversary 01 —
Many protests have also been
Cathedral, while Prime Minis-
the liberation of some of the most
received against setting the new
ter Georges Pompidou and two notorious Nazi death camps like
statute of limitations date at the
other members of the Cabinet
thOse at Belsen and Dachau.
end of 1969, instead of letting it
participated in rites conducted Prominent non-Jews joined the
run longer or having no cut-off
at the Monument to the Un- rites, among them Sir Elwyn 0.
date whatever for the prosecution
known Jewish Martyr.
Jones, Britain's attorney general.
of Nazi criminals.
The Rt. Rev. Msgr. Riquet, dean
In New York a large rally
West German President Hein-
rich Luebke declared Sunday of Notre Dame, preached the ser- marking the 22nd anniversary of
that trials of Nazi war crim- mon at the centuries-old cathedral. the ghetto uprising was held Sun-
inals must continue and that The priest had himself been im- day under the auspices of the
"no repressions of the truth prisoned in a Nazi concentration Warsaw Ghetto Resistance Organi-
zation.
camp during the war.
of what happened under the
Nazi regime could help because
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the world realizes that Ger-
many seriously desires to re-
Boris Smolar's
pent and the world has confi-
dence today in the new Ger-
many."
President Luebke was the prin-
cipal speaker at a rally com-
memorating the 20th anniversary
of the liberation of the Bergen-
(Copyright, 1965, Jewish
Telegraphic Agency, Inc.)
Belsen concentration camp. Among
the participants in the meeting
JEWS AMONG SCIENTISTS: One does not necessarily have to be
were representatives of anti-Nazi
and Resistance Fighters associa- in the medical profession to become enthusiastic with what is being
tions from virtually every free done now in the United States in the field of medical research .. .
country in Europe. A separate It is sufficient to visit the convention of medical scientists which took
ceremony was held later at a mon- place in Atlantic City . . . More than 17,000 scientists active in
ument dedicated to the 30,000 various fields of medical research, including Nobel Prize winners,
Jews who lost their lives in Ber- attended this convention . . . And more than 3,400 papers were
presented there an experiments and achievemtnts since last year in
gen-Belsen camp.
"Self-purification in Germany," biological and medical experiments from which patients are already
said Dr. Luebke, "will be proven benefiting today . . . No few Jews were among those who presented
by deeds alone. What happened scientific papers as well as among the huge number of delegates .
under Hitler was not done with Those attending the five days of sessions in Atlantic City came from
the knowledge or under the in- medical colleges, hospitals and other medical institutions throughout
struction of the German people, the country . . . And quite a number of them came from foreign lands
but in our name. If Germany . . . The sessions were, of course, held in English, since everyone
should fail a second time, then present understood English . . . But, after the sessions, one could
nobody could use the excuse that hear delegates speaking their native languages among themselves:
he knew nothing about what went Italian, German, Spanish, Japanese and Chinese . . . And, of course,
also Hebrew . . . It was quite a pleasant surprise for me to srm
on."
In Munich the Congress of young people, with delegate badges on their lapels, walking out 1 ,
Anti-Nazi Resistance Fighters the sessions and sharing their views in Hebrew . . . And even
criticized tehe proposal under pleasant was the discovery that Israel was well represented 2111011g'
consideration by a Bundestag the 375 scientific exhibits on the main floor of the Convention Hall.
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committee to permit prosecu-
tors to exempt "minor" Nazi
ISRAEL AMONG SCIENTISTS: A sign over the section of the
war criminals from prosecution. medical scientific exhibits displayed by the New England Nuclear
The delegates voted approval Corporation, of Boston, attracted my special attention . . . It
of plans to convene next fall in announced the YEDA medical products developed in Israel, and
Paris an international law confer- emphasized in large letters that these products are based on the
ence with the task of creating an research of the Biophysics Department of the Weizmann Institute of
international agency to both pre- Rehovoth . . . Few of the delegates ever heard of the existence of
vent and fight aggression and such a place as Rehovoth, but many knew of the Weizmann Institute
genocide. Participants were West . . . They crowded the YEDA exhibition and collected all the literature
European organizations represent- distributed by the New England Nuclear Corporation on the products
ing 500,000 members.
of the Weizmann Institute . . . Incidentally, the listed products dealt
The Congress issued a "Mani- with polyamino acids and amino acid derivatives . . • It seems that
festo of Resistance," urging help the Weizmann Institute produces a variety of several hundred of them,
in the search for Hitler's deputy, priced from $10 to more than $100 . . . The demand for them seemed
Martin Borrnann, Gestapo Chief to be so big in the United States, that the supply is not always in
Heinrich Mueller and Dr. Josef stock . . . Vainly did I look for medical products from other countries_ j-'
Mengele, the "selection doctor" displayed at the Convention . . . Israel had apparently gained
at the Auschwitz death camp. All place there because of the exceptional value of its YEDA products
three have reportedly been seen Other exhibits—all American—were of a nature that the mind of an
in South American countries.
ordinary man can hardly grasp their methods of operation . . . Here
Delegates protested against was a typewriter—which looks and operates electronically like a
"non-understanding" by West regular typewriter, but without an operator—which, within seconds,
German and Austrian courts gives you a detailed analysis of the composition of your blood . . . All
which have made a distinction the information comes out from the typewriter neatly typed for your
in passing sentences on Nazi war physician, to save him the work of making his own analysis . . . Here
criminals 'between those who is a new invention to take your temperature, but not by a thermometer
took part in the tortures and and not through your mouth; it is like a small pencil which you put
killings and those who as "desk into your ear and it tells your temperature in seconds .. . Here are
murderers" issued orders for computers that work like those in banks or big business firms; however i
such crimes. The Congress also not for business purposes but for figuring out electronically the state
called on East German authori- of your health and the condition of your body . . Here is an auto-
ties to explain why Nazis in that mation system which can establish within seconds whether your heart
country had not been brought is in good shape, whether your nerves are functioning properly, why
to justice.
you suffer from sleeplessness, what is wrong with your eyes, etc. . S-0
The delegates charged that East Here is the "aero-medicine" section which shows graphically the
German officials had not brought effect on a human body of flying into outer space . . . And what in
to trial Ernst Grossman, a former the latest medical achievements is not shown in the exhibits here? . „
Is it, therefore, a wonder that some of the Jewish delegates at the
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
convention felt somewhat proud to see products of Israel displayed
at this place of high medical achievements?
2—Friday, April 30, 1965
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