Noted U.S. Writers Appeal to Moscow to Restore Jewish Culture in Russia
NEW YORK (JTA) — Twenty-
two prominent American literary
figures—including six winners of
the Pulitzer Prize — Sunday ap.
pealed to writers in the USSR to
help restore cultural institutions
denied the Jewish community of
Soviet Russia.
The appeal — signed by Ralph
Ellison, Archibald MacLeish, Ar-
thur Miller and 19 other leading
American poets, novelists and cri-
tics—was contained in a 750-word
letter to the fourth All-Union Con-
gress of Soviet Writers, which
Opened in Moscow Moncay.
The letter was drafted by Robert
Penn Warren, two-time winner of
the Pulitzer Prize, who is a spon-
sor of the Conference on the Sta-
tus of Soviet Jews, a nonsectarian
group. ,
In their message to the Soviet
literary congress, the American
writers declared: "Historically in
your country, probably more than
in any other country's literary
tradition, the role of the writer
has always transceaded art. The
writer has been, uniquely, social
critic, intellectual goad, moral
guide, tribune of the people's con-
science."
It was in this spirit and as
"bearers of a moral burden," the
letter continued, "that we turn to
you now and ask you to consider
the painful situation of Jewish
literature and culture in the Soviet
Union today."
The issue was "not just a cul-
tural question, grave as that is,
but a moral and, historical one—
directly affecting the Jewish fate
and destiny and the conscience of
Soviet society now and for the
future," the American writers de-
clared.
The statement conceded that
many Soviet Jews might wish "to
assimilate voluntarily and fully into
the Russian culture and abandon
Jewish culture.
"We would uphold their right
to do so and would seek to impose
no obstacle to that choice," the
letter said, adding: "This indeed
is precisely what we would urge—
the possibility of choice, the avail-
ability of options. And there is
not the slightest 'doubt that vast
numbers of Soviet Jews wish to
perpetuate their tradition and its
cultural and moral values in viable
forms compatible with Soviet life."
Asserting that Soviet Jews have
no remaining communal institu-
tions, the American writers de-
clared: "In this fundamental de-
privation, they stand alone among
the more than 100 Soviet nationali-
ties. Thus, uniquely, they face the
threat of enforced assimilation."
The letter appealed to the
Soviet writers as "guardians of
your country's moral heritage,
to bring to bear your incalcul-
Only Yiddish Paper
able prestige and influence on
behalf of the restoration of a
wide range of cultural institu-
tions for Soviet Jews."
Other signers of the letter were
Saul Bellow, Eric Bentley, John
Ciardi, Babette Deutsch, James
Dickey, John Hersey, Irving Howe,
Alfred Kazin, Stanley Kunitz, Rob-
ert Lowell, Norman Mailer, How-
ard Nemerov, Norman Podhoretz,
Maurice Samuel, Meyer Schapiro,
Lionel Trilling, John Updike and
Elie Wiesel.
Earlier, the Yiddish PEN Club
of New York had appealed to the
Union of Soviet Writers to inter-
vene on behalf of greater religious
and cultural freedoms for Soviet
Jewry.
In its cable, the PEN Club noted
that it is an official affiliate of
the International PEN society.
The message requested that the
appeal on behalf of Soviet Jewry
be placed on the agenda of the
congress.
In the United Nations, the
situation of Russian Jewry erupt-
ed suddenly last week in the
Economic and Social Council
when, out of context of other
items on the agenda, the Soviet
representative demanded that a
clause in the draft declaration
on elimination of all religious in-
tolerance be deleted so as to
make no mention of condemning
anti-Semitism,
The religious freedoms draft is
on the agenda of the current
ECOSOC session but had not been
reached as yet when the proposal
to delete mention of anti-Semitism
was made by Evgeny Nasinovsky,
the Russian delegate. He insisted
that the religious freedoms draft
should mention no "isms."
At that point, the Libyan repre-
sentative received a formulation
proposed in the General Assem'-ly
three years ago, calling for con-
demnation of "anti-Semitism, Naz-
ism and Zionism."
Dr. Joel Barromi, Israel's repre-
sentative, requested the USSR to
let the religious freedoms draft
stand as drafted, condemning anti-
Semitism. Dr. Barromi reminded
Nasinovsky that Premier Kosygin
Ernest Cliffor Peixotto, an Amer-
ican Jewish painter who lived in
New York in the early part of this
century, executed murals in many
of the city's major buildings.
CLEVELAND (JTA)—An inten-
himself had condemned anti-Semi- sified solicitation effort in its final
tism in a speech at Riga a year stages carried the 1967 Jewish Wel-
ago.
fare Fund campaign to a goal-top-
• • •
ping record high $6,479,681 as the
drive closed here at a dinner meet-
Soviet Poet Recites Work ing
at the Statler-Hilton Hotel. The
in NY on Nazi Massacre campaign goal was $6,476,000. The
NEW YORK (JTA) — Andrei previous high was set last year
Voznesensky, the Soviet poet, in- with the appeal reaching $6,268,652.
cluded in a poetry recital here one
of his works memorializing the THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
wartime Nazi massacre of Jews
Friday, May 26, 1967-5
near Stanislav in the western
Ukraine.
"The Call of the Lake" deals
with the murder of Jews in the
bottom of a ravine which was later
converted into a lake for vaca-
tioners, the water covering the
bodies.
In one stanza of the poem, the
poet recited: "It would be dese-
crating life/To wash myself in this
place/Like smearing Mary or
Moishe over my face." The poet's
presentation was his final recital
of his American tour. He left last
MURRY KOBUN Advertising
weekend for Moscow with an invi-
tation to return to the United
18039 WYOMING • UN. 1-5600
States next month.
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Ambassador Eshel
Philip Slomovitz
His Excellency
ARIEH ESHEL
Deputy Director-General of Israel's Foreign Ministry
Will Present The
ISRAEL ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
in Montreal Closes
MONTREAL (JTA)—The Cana-
dian Jewish Eagle, the only Yid-
dish newspaper in Montreal, has
ceased publication after nearly 60
years of service to the Jewish com-
munity here. The paper appeared
daily until four years ago when it
began appearing twice weekly.
Financial difficulties were blamed
for the closing of the paper.
In an announcement on the
front page of this week's final edi
tion of the paper, Max Wolofsky,
publisher of the Eagle, said that a
number of factors had led to the
Conclusion "that the time had re-
grettably come to take the step
which would bring to a close the
long and glorious existence of the
Eagle on the threshold of its 60th
anniversary."
In the same issue of the paper,
the Montreal Committee for Yid-
dish published an announcement
citing the need for a Yiddish pub-
lication in Montreal and . calling on
Jewish organizations and indivi-
duals to facilitate the reopening
of the paper.
$6,479,681 in Cleveland
To Editor and Publisher
PHILIP SLOMOVITZ
Marking the 25th Anniversary of
THE JEWISH NEWS
At The State of Israel Bond Dinner
MONDAY, JUNE 12 - 6:30 P.M.
Grand Ballroom, Sheraton-Cadillac Hotel
Dinner Chairman:
PHILLIP STOLLMAN
For Reservations
Convert: $7.50 per person
Call DI 1-5707
Dietary Laws Observed
Reserved Seating for 1967 Israel Bond Purchasers