Kibutzim in Israel Face New Problems JERUSALEM — When Israel be- came independent in 1948, settlers in kibutzim comprised about 7.5 per cent of its population. Since then the total population increased about fourfold, while the number of Kibutz members only doubled. As a result, kibutz settlers now represent only about 3.7 per cent of the total population. These simple statistics both rep- resent one of the central problems of the kibutz movement, facing all kibutzim, irrespective whether they belong to the leftist, center or religious settlement organizations. The issue has been troubling the kibutzim for many years now. It became a subject for broader dis- cussion in recent weeks when the GREETINGS ROYAL SHOE SERVICE Passover Best Wishes Pollak's Custom Dress Making 864-7766 Holiday Greetings O'Brien Drug Store = Prescription Pharmacy We Deliver 20655 West 7 Mile at Smile Call KE 2-2410 • The relative decrease of member- ship since independence worries the kibutzim for several reasons, some of them practical and some ideological, some of them genuine and some of them not so genuine. In general, a new kibutz comes into being in one of two ways; either a number of young people in Israel or abroad organize them- selves into a "garin" (kernel) and establish their settlement, or young people of the second generation in an established kibutz decide to stake out on their own. In both cases, the land for the new settle- ment is provided by the Keren Kayemet (Jewish National Fund), while their parent-movements and the Jewish Agency provide the initial capital needed. To enable growth "from the inside," kibutz movements naturally want to be able to ab- sorb new members in the older, established settlements. Also, a certain percentage of old mem- bers are always leaving the 13619 W. 7 Mile Rd. UN 4-7997 19490 Livernois kibutzim, jointly with the Jewish Agency and the Ministry of Labor, published ads in the papers urging city and town dwellers hit by the present economic recession to join a kibutz as a solution to their personal difficulties. kibutzim for the cities, and there is the problem of natural aging of the original settlers. All this makes the influx of new, younger members highly desirable. On the other hand, few kibutzim will admit yet to a development in the opposite direction: as farming becomes more and more mechanized (and kibutzim usu- ally are pace-setters in this field) fewer and fewer hands are required to cultivate the land. Those who have become thus superfluous in agriculture are transfered to manufacture, and this is one of the main rea- sons why more and more kib- utzim add factories to their 3............................. ■■■•■■■••■ ........es • • • • • • • Happy Holiday to All MITCHELL SYRUP & PRESERVE CO. e • • • Detroit 1951 E. Ferry WA 1-0800 to one of the national organiza- tions of kibutzim, divided along political-ideological lines. These or- ganizations are directly affiliated with the various political parties. Therefore the desire to grow and multiply is also an aspect of com- petition both inside the political parties and among the parties. And above this "internal" motiva- tion for growth there is the broader, more abstract concern of the kibutz movement as a whole over the decrease of relative im- portance and impact in the social and ideological fabric of Israel. Before the establishment of the state, and during the first years of its existence, kibutzim were the epitome of the ideals of chalutziut (pioneering) that built the Jewish national homeland. It is no coinci_ dence that most of Israel's present leaders are—or at least were in their younger years—members of a kibutz. Things have changed since, and the ideas and aspira- tions of most Israelis are rather middle-class. The challenges, of course, have also changed. And naturally, as immigration became less and less selective, the pro- portion of those with strong pio- neering ideological motivation has also decreased. Yet the kibutz movement feels, and not entirely without reason, that simple numerical factors also play here an important role: it is certainly a big difference whether 7.5 per cent or 3.7 per cent of the population lives in kibutzim. Life in the kibutzim has also changed fundamentally and this is stressed in the present cam- paign to attract new members from among the city dwellers af- fected by the economic reces- sion. Leaders of the kibutz move- ment feel that many Israelis still retain the old picture of the kibutz as a life of hard manual work with no ameni- ties or luxuries, and of ideologi- cal and political discussions as the main staple of after-work relaxation. Today, in fact, living conditions e• : in many, if not most, established emoomemmemememommemomemeeee ---- 441=.3.4mm. ■ .0.041M...OIMPO Happy Passover to All NORTHLAND BUILDING MAINTENANCE, INC. GENERAL. CLEANING CONTRACTORS — Day and Night Janitorial Service We Carry Compensation and Public Liability Insurance 864-4811 7600 Fenkell Passover Greetings PEERLESS DISTRIBUTNG CO. kibutzim compare favorably with those of average middle-class liv- ing conditions in cities. Apart- ments are nicely furnished, the women-folk are fashionably dressed after work, the community hall resembles a club house with es- presso bars and soda-fountains, many kibutzim now even have beauty parlors. And, in the,Plead of physical recreation an the quality of schools, not many city dwellers can enjoy the same high standards as most kibutz mem- bers can. Thus the kibutz movement feels that its own attractions, together with the new pressures "outside," may well mark 1967 as a year of major growth in their membership. TE 4-6400 8720 Livernois Si .................................................... ..amzsmar ,..m.v.wasmammomaz.,,:, Holiday Greetings zi Q-9-9.9-2 999 Q-9 Q..Q.9 ¢9 a a a a DIE; ll ALLEN'S SALON ll_ ° E Dr: : : 22106 Coolidge lh Oak Park, Mich. DIE DR THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS LI 2-1398 LAND 0' LAKES CREAMERIES, INC. TE 4-1400 9140 Roselawn Happy Holiday LARDNER ELEVATOR CO. WO 5-4870 300 Riopelle St. 0 0 0 0 0 0515 0-15- 0- 1113-615615 00000000000000000 000 Best Wishes for a Happy Passover to Our Friends and Patrons Mr. and Mrs. Kalman Lustig of MAYERS BAKERY & PASTRY SHOP TO 9-9826 12028 Dexter Happy Passover MICHIGAN INDUSTRIAL LAUNDRY, INC. Louis Dalitz WE 3-1850 9350 Roselavvn A Happy Passover To All Our Friends and Customers SAMUEL BROS. CAFETERIA Eastern Market Season's Greetings SQUARE DEAL HEATING & COOLING, INC. Heating, Cooling and Wiring Contractors WA 1-2345 10163 Gratiot Happy Holiday SOBERMAN & MILGROM Manufacturer of Mercury Paints UN 4-7530 7741 Lyndon Ave. Happy Passover To All OurFriends and Customers SUSSMAN PRINT SHOP TO 8-2909 STUDIO GALLERY OF ART C.; Passover Best Wishes HELEN ZINBERG R.E. 8221 Curtis, cor. 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