THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
8—Friday, September 9, 1966
Church-State Violations, Inequities
in Fund Distribution Charged as NY
Readies Programs of School Aid
NEW YORK (JTA) — Programs
of federal and state aid to pupils
of Jewish and Christian religious
schools in New York State were
the targets of charges of violations
of the church-state s e -p a r ation
principle and of discrimination
against public school children.
The federal program provides
funds under Title 1 of both public
and non-public schools. The latter
include Jewish and Christian day
schools, which, in New York, are
mainly in New York City.
The state program provides
funds for "lending" textbooks to
religious school students. The
New York State Textbook Loan
Law has been declared uncon-
stitutional by a State Supreme
Court judge.
The American Jewish Congress
charged that the New York City
Board of Education had followed
a "pattern of discrimination"
against the city's public schools in
its proposals for distributing Title
I funds.
David Haber, a spokesman for
the New York metropolitan coun-
cil of the AJC, said the "discrim-
inatory pattern" stemmed from
the board's "avid efforts" to pro-
vide Title I funds and services to
religious and other non-public
school pupils in the city.
Dr. Haber, a Rutgers Universi-
ty law professor, charged that the
board f a v or e d non-public over
public schools in the allocation of
Title I funds, in provision for pub-
lic school services and selection
of schools for benefits.
Jewish education sources, have
estimated that about 17,000 pupils
in Jewish day schools in New
York City are technically eligi-
ble for Title I aid. However, the
board of education criteria for
eligibility of non-public school
pupils have been sharply criti-
cized by Orthodox Jewish and
Catholic education officials as
certain to exclude a significant
number of religious school pupils
from such aid.
The New York Board of Educa-
tion also appeared caught in a
dilemma stemming from the fact
that school districts in the state
have been told they could still
receive funds under the state
textbook loan law, despite the fact
that it has been declared uncon
stitutional.
Supreme Court Justice T. Paul
Kane ruled on Aug. 19 that the law
violated the principle of church-
state separation. However, Gov.
Nelson A. Rockefeller told State
Education Commissioner James E.
Allen, in a letter, that the court
ruling had been stayed by an ap-
peal filed earlier by State Attor-
ney Louis J. Lefkoiwitz.
The New York Board of Educa-
tion reflected the confusion felt
by some school districts in a com-
ment by a spokesman who de-
clined to say what the New York
board would do.
The board had planned, be-
fore the Kane ruling, to lend
some $2,250,000 worth of books
to Jewish and- Christian religious
school pupils. After Dr. Allen
received the governor's letter,
he notified all districts in New
York State that they could now
seek up to $15 a pupil for stu-
dents in grades 7 to 12 in both
public and non-public schools.
The appeal wil be heard this fall
by the appellate division of the
State Supreme Court. The case is
Joseph Meyerhoff Gives
$100,000 to Israel Library
JERUSALEM (JTA) —Joseph
Meyerhoff, of Baltimore, chairman
of the Israel Education Fund of the
United Jewish Appeal, has contrib-
uted $100,000 to the fund for the
construction of a public library in
Jerusalem.
The need for a library here has
grown with the increase in the
city's school enrollment and ,Pdpu=
lation.
considered certain to be taken to
the State Court of Appeals, New
York's highest court.
A spokesman for the governor's
office, responding to questions as
to whether school districts could
apply for aid under a law which
might again or finally be ruled un-
constitutional, said that any school
district which applied for aid
would be entitled to reimburse-
ment, no matter whot the courts
finally decided.
Dr. Haber urged the New York
City Board of Education to offer
federal b e n e f its for non-public
school pupils "only through pro-
grams conducted on public school
premises and only under public su-
pervision and control."
Jewish and Catholic religious
educators have contended that re-
striction of Title I benefits to pro-
grams restricted to public school
premises would deprive many re-
ligious school pupils of help to
which they would be entitled under
the federal law.
Israel Expresses
Regret at Thant's
Decision to Quit
UNITED NATIONS, N.Y. (JTA)
—Israel expressed "greatest re-
gret" here at the announcement
by Secretary-General U Thant that
he will not offer himself as the
candidate for a second term as
the UN's chief executive officer.
Thant's term of office expires
Nov. 3. In a long-awaited decision,
he announced, Sept. 1, through a
letter to the heads of the delega-
tions of all member-states of the
United Nations: "I have decided
not to offer myself for a second
term as secretary-General, and to
leave the Security Council unfet-
tered in its recommendations to
the General Assembly with regard
to the next secretary-general."
He then added a sentence which
was seen as stronger, referring to
his decision as one spelling his
"unwillingness" to serve a second
term.
Israel's statement was made on
behalf of his government by Am-
bassador Michael S. Comay, Is-
rael's permanent representative
here. Comay said:
"The Israel Mission has learned
with the greatest regret that U
Thant has decided not to offer
himself for a second term as
secretary-general. Israel was
among the member states that
originally urged him to become
Dag Hammarskjold's successor,
and recently Israel leaders have
expressed to him the fervent
hope that Ile would continue in
the lofty task he has filled with
such wisdom, devotion and self-
lessness.
"My own relations with U Thant,
both official and personal, have al-
ways been most cordial, and I have
had the privilege of free access
to him and his ready understand-
ing in all matters relating to Is-
rael's position in the Middle East
and as a United Nations member.
I shared the hope that his depart-
ure may be delayed for an approp-
riate period of time, pending the
choice of a suitable successor.
Whenever he leaves, it will be a
genuine loss to the United Nations
and to the cause of world peace."
During his ambassadorship here
as the representative of Burma,
Thant was known as very friendly
to Israel. Earlier, in 1955, he had
visited Israel as the press aide to
U Nu, then Burma's prime min-
ister. Both Nu and Thant spoke
very highly of Israel's achieve-
ments, both during their visit and
later. -
In his post as secretary-general,
Thant was deemed by ' observers
here to have been meticulously fair
in all Israeli-Arab disputes that
have come up in recent years be-
fore the United Nations " and its
various organs.
Arab Refugees Training for War on Israel
to Be Denied U.S. Aid by Foreign Aid Bill
WASHINGTON (JTA) — The
final version of the foreign aid
bill, approved by a Senate-House
conference, contained amendments
prohibiting assistance to Arab
"Liberation Organization" mem-
bers, and otherwise responding to
the Near Eastern situation.
The conferees accepted three
basic amendments proposed by
Rep. Leonard Farbstein, New York
Democrat, a member of the House
Foreign Affairs Committee.
One amendment prohibited any
assistance to Arab refugees re-
ceiving military training in the
so-called "Palestine Liberation Or-
ganization." This provision was de-
signed to "dampen down the ag-
gressive design of the refugees and
encourage them in the direction of
peaceful aspirations,' :said Rep.
Farbstein.
Another clause reduced by
$700,000 funds authorized for
Arab refugee relief. This was in
keeping with the Farbstein plan
to reduce American support of
the refugees by 5 per cent an-
nually, in hope of encouraging
Arab states to resolve the fester.
ing and neglected refugee prob-
lem.
A third amendment authorized
$1,000,000 in Israeli currency, gen-
erated by sale of U.S. surplus com-
modities, to be used for construc-
tion of a new wing to the Hadassah-
Hebrew University Medical Center
in Jerusalem.
Rep. Farbstein stated that he
was "highly' gratified that these
three amendments will become part
of this year's foreign aid law."
"I think," he added, "Congress
leaves no doubt in accepting these
amendments that its mandate to
the Administration is to seek by
every possible means the peaceful
resolution of discord in the Near
East.
At the same time, a high-
ranking Defense Department of-
ficial justified the training by
the United States of Syrian and
other Arab military officers, on
grounds that "among the alter-
natives to military training pro-
vided by the United States are
the United Arab Republic and
the Soviet Union."
Adam Yarmolinsky, deputy as-
sistant secretary of defense, wrote
Rep. Leonard Farbstein, New York
Democrat, that the United States
is training Arab officers in hopes
of instilling democratic concepts.
He referred to Egypt and the
USSR, stating that "were either
of these countries to gain increased
access to a military establishment
in one of the Arab states, our in-
fluence in the Near East would be
lessened, and the existence of po-
litical tensions exacerbated."
Rep. Farbstein elicited the state-
ment by informing Secretary of
Defense Robert McNamara of his
objection to the training of offi-
cers from Syria, Iraq, Lebanon,
Jordan and Suadi Arabia. He ques-
tioned the wisdom of training such
officers when the Syrians recently
executed aggressive military
Lions against Israel.
Speaking for McNamara,
molinsky said: "A primary objec-
tive of the United States in the
Near East is to preserve the peace
and prevent the outbreak of hos-
Cropped Mapam Atheist tilities between Israel and the
Arab states. We currently conduct
Grows Beard of Hasid
trait-ling programs for military of-
SHA'AR HAGOLAN (ZINS) — ficers from a number of Arab
The director of the cultural divi- countries."
sion of the Mapam kibbutz Sha'ar
Hagolan has joined the Gerer
Hassidim in Jerusalem. The erst-
House Parent Wanted
while atheist has grown a beard
and payot (earlocks) and is doing
Part time relief house parent, one
or 2 days a week for Agency's
"t'shuva" (penance). This is not
children's homes. Call David
the first instance of disenchant-
Goldberg.
ment with Mapam.
A similar case is that of the son
Jewish Family &
of Mapam leader Ya'ari who two
Children's
Service
years ago abandoned the kibbutz
and disappeared as a result of
DI 1-5959
disillusionment with the party line.
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