i 1 I Incorporating The THE t JEWISH NEWS Detroit Jewish Chronicle commencing with issue of July 20, 1951 Member American Association of English—Jewish Newspapers. Michigan Press Association, National Editorial association. Published every Friday by The Jewish News Publishing Co.. 17100 West Seven Mile Road, Detroit, Mich. 48235. VE 8.9364. Subscription $7 a year. FoTelgn Second Class Postage Paid at Detroit, Michigan PHILIP SLOMOVITZ Editor and Publisher CARMI M. SLOMOVITZ Business Manager SIDNEY SHMARAK Advertising Manager CHARLOTTE DUBIN City Editor Sabbath Hol Hamoed Passover Scriptural Selections Pentateuchal portions, Exod. 33:12-34:26, Num. 28:19-25. Prophetical portion, Ezekiel 37:1-15. Hol Hanwed Passover Tora Readings Sunday, Exod. 13:1-16, Nism. 28:19.25; Monday, Exod. 22:24-23:19, Num. 28:19- 25; Tuesday, Num. 9:1-14, Num. 0:19-25. Scriptural Selections for Final Days of Passover Pentateucha/ portions: Wednesday, Exod. 13:17-15:26, Num. 28:19-25: Thursday Deut. 15:19-16:17, Num. 28:19-25. Prophetical portions: We d nesday, II Samuel 22:1-51: Thursday, Isaiah 10:32-12:6. Candle lighting, Friday, April 4, 6:44 p.m. VOL. LV. No. 3 Page Four April 4, I96 Avoiding Divi iveness in Our Society Black and white Americans should, can and undoubtedly will get together ion com- mon ground as fellow-citizens. There has been a division in thinking and in approaches that had created what may well be viewed as a national tragedy. But it will be overcome. Similarly, there must be a return to the realism of Jewish-Negro cooperation and friendship which has marked the deep-rooted Jewish interest in the civil rights movement and in every aspect of meting out justice to all people, regardless of race, re igion or nationality background. But the issue has grown to such limmense proportions, primarily as a result of the teachers' strike in New York and T emerg- ing anti-Semitism that clouded the entire issue, that the prejudices have become more apparent than the urgent need for coopera- tion and common understanding that should mark the best in citizenship. i The issue involving Jews became much more tragic as a result of the injtion into the controversy that threatened to ruse c use rifts —the charges of "Jewish racism" and the counter-charges of "Negro anti-Sginitism." Adding fuel to the fire was the role played by arti-Israel elements who utilized the rifts to ers with accuse Jews generally as being pa Israelis in hatred for dark-skinned people— an atrocious charge based on th bronzed colorations of the Arabs. Instead of cementing good rel tions and mericans, of assuring good will among all new groups have emerged whose aim appears to divide our citizens into racially conflicting elements. For example, in a letter piled with bias, published in the Catholic libeal weekly t from, Commonweal, a new group is he'rd appearing under the name of " ederated Americans Against Israeli Racism, ' and the point made in that letter is: "Te 1 Jewish religio-ethnic community must le rn to ac- cept free dialogue about Jewish socio-eco- nomic-political functions." Why should any- one assume that Jews had refused to enter into such dialogue, in view of our represent- atives having been the leaders in s lch move- ments? And since when is there j stification for a campaign against "Israeli racirm" while Israel and Israelis are striving to create wholesome relations between Ariabs, Afro- Asians and peoples of imderdevelqped coun- tries as well as those in democratic icountires? It is the injection of such rejudicial T views that causes a split in the ranks of Americans, and only by striving to, eliminate misunderstanding can we possibly possibli hope to remove from our spheres the for hatreds and suspicions. Injection of the New Left's opaganda against Israel, resort to the anti-Zignist bogey as one of the means of proving, so unrealistic- ally and untruthfully that it is the zionist and not the Jew who is responsible fo the ills in ab propa- our society, and the yielding to ganda, certainly have aggravated the issue. There was an interesting rev w of the New York situation in the New public by Joseph Featherstone, in an atticl "Inflating blacks are becoming more aware of the ethnic lines of battle in all city conflicts. "The situation is the same in many cities: the black push is anti-Irish in Boston, where the Irish have dug in, anti-Italian in Newark, where the Italians rule, anti-Jewish in New York. Like their Irish and Italian counterparts in other cities, lower- and lower-middle class Jews feel that they are being asked to take the rap for the failures of the whole urban social order. Their resentment is understandable. So is the perma- nent wariness of people whose relatives were among the Six Million dead. So Is the bewilder- ment of Jews who helped create and nurture the civil rights movement only to see its gains scorned by black power militants. "New York's Jewish teachers, welfare work- ers, and small shop owners are on the firing line in one more episode in urban America's history of grinding ethnic factionalism. The situation is bitter and dangerous enough without bringing in Hitler." True: there is bewilderment over the rifts within the civil rights. movement, and ex- tremists have injected bitterness that inter- feres with creative labors in support of civil rights. The tragic notes that are sounded must not be permitted to give rise to a view that "racism" among Jews is a rule: it must. not because it destroys every vestige of honor and tradition in Jewish teachings and in the basics of our very existence. The practicality of a program of "commu- nity cooperation" was manifested in the en- dorsement by New York units of nine major national Jewish organizations of the concept of school decentralization which had created so many rifts in New York City: "To the extent that anti-Semitic and anti- Negro sentiment have been injected into the issue of decentralization, we condemn it as a disservice to the racial and religious harmony indispensable to the viability of our multi-ethnic city .. . "We extend an invitation to all responsive and responsible organizations, Jewish and non-Jew- ish, White and Black, to join with us in the crea- tion of a community relations effort to obviate further crises and to assist in effecting a smooth transition." Rejecting both the anti-Semitic and the racist trends, this statement calls for peace- ful relations. It sets a pattern for action on a national basis and should not be ignored. * * * When one examines the developments on the university campus, the injection of anti- Semitism in the local college newspaper, the fusing of Negro grievances with the preju- dices against Jews, there develops cause for deep concern. We have no doubt that the issues will be resolved, that there will be a return to sanity both here and on the national scale. When rational analysts begin to exam- ine the existing situations, with a view of reviewing the charges and counter charges, we are confident that prejudices will vanish. What is necessary is that what we call - dialogue should be on the basis of prag- Youths' Glorious Masada Story Reconstructs Yadin's 'Big Dig' Masada's story, the complete account of the excavations, the historic background referring to Josephus, written by Yigael Yadin, the man who conducted the archaeological task of restoring the an- cient fortress, was published less than two years ago by Random House. Now Random House makes available this Yadin story for young readers, in a volume, popularly priced, as magnificent in appearance, as splendid in content, as the larger and original work. "The Story of Masada" for young readers is retold in the new Random House book by Gerald Gottlieb, author of a number of chil- dren's books. Photographs, diagrams and a map are among the specific fea- tures of the book, and by adhering strictly to the original historical analysis by Gen. Yadin. The long - buried secrets come to light again in a text so well pre- pared for the young that the Masada story now becomes accessible to people of all ages—in the original Yadin work and in the present Gottlieb story. Appropriately, Gottlieb's foreword is a tribute to the archaeo- logical skill and the scholarly attainments of Gen. Yadin, now profes- sor of archaeology at the Hebrew University. The author of this volume states: "Many people have read 'Masada F..; (the original Yadin book). Many have fol- lowed the career of General, then Profes- sor, Yadin. And many have seen the Ma- sada exhibition, which was first shown in London in 1967 and then began its tour of museums in the United States. All these people have come to respect and admire — as I do — the achievements of Yigael Yadin." There is nothing missing from the orig- inal story in the Gottlieb book. It explains the beginnings of "the dig" at Masada and relates the story of Rome and Judea—the war between the great Roman Empire and Gen. Yadin little Judea in 72-73 CE that culminated in the heroism at Masada and the mass suicides by those on the moun- tainous fortress who preferred death to falling into the hands of the enemy. Gottlieb describes the enthusiasm of the volunteers who assisted in "the dig." Yadin did not make it easy for them. He alerted them to the difficulties involved in excavations under the hot sun. He had written to them: "We do not work on Saturdays and those of you who will have enough energy left, after a week's exertion, to go for walks in the beautiful surroundings of the desert will be able to do so in organized tours. . . . Our evenings are going to be long and we cannot unfor- tunately provide you with entertainment except for a weekly lecture; therefore, equip yourself with reading material, musical instruments and, above all, patience and good humor . , ." In spite of the difficulties, they came from everywhere, Jews and non-Jews, to work with Yadin, and the result is the reconstructed, un- earthed Masada which has become anew a symbol of the indestructi- bility of the Jewish spirit. In this book for the young readers Gottlieb not only retells the story of the Zealots (Prof. Solomon Zeitlin has challenged this claim, stating that the Sicarii were the Masada occupants who committed mass suicide in what Dr. Zeitlin calls was an un-Jewish act), but able the drawing of lots as to the committing of the suicide act, and the aftermath in which is related: "Roman soldiers guatded Masada for nearly half a century after their capture of the fortress. But finally the soldiers left, and Herod* matism and truth, in a search for realities that must not be overlooked. Just as the racial issues affecting all Americans must be resolved and the ill feelings healed, so, also, the Threat of Black Anti-Semitism,' in which must there be a speedy realization in Jewish and Negro ranks that divisiveness does not citadel was empty once more. It stood abandoned for centuries. The he reached these conclusions: mighty. Roman empire, meanwhile, weakened and at last collapsed,. "The most reliable evidence indicates that help either group and harms America. there's less anti-Semitism among ► lacks than In the main, the elements who make hp The desert winds, sweeping Masada, blew also over the many Roman among whites. (Someone has said that if all black both communities are honorable and are in ruins left in Palestine after the Roman armies departed and the Power Americans were anti-Semitic, they wCould still be search of amity and of friendship. There is of the empire faded away." Before Yadin, there were excavations, and Christian monks canto outnumbered by anti-Semitic whitest) The anti- no cause for splits in American ranks and Semitism of some black intellectuajs, and the there is no justification either for Negro anti- to Masada is the 5th Century. The big "dig" was, of course, Yadin eft. anti-Zionism of black Marxist, Thir4 World and Semitism or Jewish and white racism. Let It is natural for the Gottlieb story based on Yadin's to conclude widt an account of the issuance of the Masada medal in Israel, one side Moslem groups does not find much a response there be an end to this type of bias and bearing the words of Eleazar, the leader of the Zealots, "We Shall among black people generally. It woVd be ironic if the confrontation in New York le Harlem to hatred that serves only one purpose: to harm Remain Free Men," and the other the assertion: "Masada Shall ROI book emerge8 adopt the anti-Semitism of the Utuoto League or America and to undermine our basic prhi- Fall Again." It is with such a message that the Gottlieb written for our ybutb.I. that a: ~ lP q' a' ea'n 'Rik Ili it Se A/41 414w* emigre , dAYlfifh, jiigtory well i , 1 ■ L I. a t PrryklYNITaille.t t *VPat isay tlg Of..11