Purely Commentary
A 'Manifesto,' the Nation's Dignity, a Race
Issue Confounded and Religion Dumbfounded
We the black people assembled in Detroit, Michigan for
the National Black Economic Development Conference are
fully aware that we have been forced to come together be-
cause racist white Ainrica has exploited our resources, our
minds, our bodies, our labor. For centuries ice have been
forced to live as colonized people inside the United States.
'victimized by the most vicious, racist system in the World.
We have helped to build the most industrial country in the
world.
We are therefore demanding of the white Christian
churches and Jewish synagogues which are part and parcel
of the system of capitalism. that they begin to pay repara-
tions to black people in this country. We are demanding
$500,000,000 from the Christian white churches and the
Jewish synagogues. This total comes to 15 dollars per nigger.
This is a low estimate for we maintain there are probably
more than 30.000.000 black people in this country. $15 a
nigger is not a large .cone of money and we know that the
churches and synagoguges have a tremendous wealth and
its membership. white America. has profited and still exploits
black people. We are also not unaware that the exploitation
of colored peoples around the world is aided and abetted
by the white'DChristian Churches and synagogues. This de-
mand for 5500.000.000 is not an idle resolution or empty
words. Fifteen dollars for every black brother and sister
in the United States is only a beginning of the reparations
due us as people who have been exploited and degraded.
brutalized. killed and persecuted. Underneath all of this
exploitation. the racism of this country has produced a
psychological effect upon us that were beginning to shake
off. We are no longer afraid to demand our rights as a
people in this decadent society.
From Leftist Ranks: Jewish
Self-Hatred. . . A Manifesto
and Its Tragic Implications
Week of Terror:
Many Casualties,
Lebanese Crisis
By Philip
SiOMOVitZ
mands, and submit to an effort to take the issue out of the govern.
ment's responsibility, we will be aiding in the revolt; and that can
TEL AVIV (JTA) — Six Israeli
soldiers have been killed and 14
wounded in action last week, a
military spokesman said. Three Is-
The demand for "reparations from churches and synagogues for
raelis
were killed in a battle with
200 years of Negro slavery" met with rebukes from the Jewish Labor
Arab saboteurs in the craggy, sun-
Committee and many movements that are committed to the cause of
baked Samarian hills north of
civil rights but can see eye to eye with what appears to be a blackmail Jerusalem. But Israeli forces suc-
tactic.
ceeded in wiping out all eight
Affirming the need for "massive government action in the areas
members of the Arab gang, a
of employment, housing, education, health and welfare," the Jewish
not be condoned.
The Synagogue Council of American and other national Jewish
groups have taken issue with Farmer's "Manifesto."
on spokesman said. He disclosed that
as
Labor Committee views the Black Manifesto"'objectionable
two other Israeli soldiers were kill-
both moral and practical grounds."
ed and seven wounded by an Egyp-
But a sense of guilt that motivates the thinking and therefore
tian mortar shell fired across the
also the actions of the younger clergy gives a platform to the extrem-
Suez Canal.
ism that marks the new demands for "reparations." Forman's demands
Four Israeli soldiers were wound-
have gained support more impressively than they have aroused
ed in fresh fighting near Kantara
opposition.
There is danger that the already declining religious forces will in the Canal zone. An officer, Capt.
lose more drastically by fears that could creep into the hearts of David Klein of Jerusalem, was
those attending services that may become part of a confrontation— killed and two others were injured
or that they may have to part with a share in the $15-per-head-for- when a patrol was attacked by
bazookas in the Besian area near
every-Negro-in-the-land.
Irrationality rules the day. The impractical approaches to the Ashdot Yaacov.
basic needs to eliminate poverty—as a humanitarian effort in behalf
The clash in the Samarian hills
of all the impoverished—and to provide the educational needs and
good housing, in addition to proper employment for the needy—are took place during the hottest part
not helpful. They arc confusing at best. We need some real courage of the day on terrain that is cut
as well as wisdom to solve our tragic problems.
by deep canyons and has many
•
•
•
caves and rocks. The Arab sabo-
Hate
A Footnote on the SDS, New Left, Self -
teurs occupied a peak which gave
An evaluative article in Sunday's New York Times on the meta- them a topographical advantage
morphosis in the New Left ranks and their thinking and attitude,
—From "The Manifesto" by James For- Thomas R. Brooks quoted one angry man as shouting: "How dare you over the advancing Israeli forces,
man, proclaiming "Total control as the only tell me that Jews in Germany are the same as blacks in America! a spokesman said. The Israeli unit
solution to the problem of Black People. The —Jews in Germany had money."
came within grenade range.
There is so much consternation over this Manifesto in religious
ranks, and the public is either so confused or so terribly panicked, that
the issue needs immediate handling so that a confrontation should be
in the spirit of America. on the basis of genuine humanitarian con-
siderations.
Let it be stated at the outset that the new approach, on the basis
of "$15 a nigger," horrifies us no end. Those of us who have always
labored for and supported the cause of justice, of civil rights for all.
and who were appalled whenever the term "nigger" was used, feel a
resentment that it should be linked with the white man's guilt by the
spokesmen for a small group of blacks. If it was an insulting term in
the past it remains h that form for us always. We view it as sort of
insolence by those who prefer the black description to resort to it.
Perhaps that's not our business, yet we smart at the very use of
the term. If James Forman desires to adhere to it as a weapon, let
him: we can't go along with that tactic.
It's the Manifesto we are primarily concerned with, and we are I
confronted with the fright the presentation of that document has
caused. What does it really demand?
Forman's proposal demands S500,000.000: that the sum of $200.000
be set aside to establish cooperative farms; that a Wadi: university, in
the South, be created for a sum of $130,000,000; thea'fte - ,000,000 be
used for four black publishing houses and four black.,television net-
works; and that the balance of the half billion dollar` giiiirlie- used for
research centers, communications training, a black labor strike defense
fund. and the establishment of an International Black Appeal to be
funded "with no less than $20.000,000."
There is no doubt that the major objectives are rational and the
demands for them justified. But if the government and the people of
the United States are to be denied the right to supervise the expend.
itures indicated, who is to have charge of the large fund: James For-
man? On what basis? Who delegated him: do the tens of millions or out
Negro fellow-citizens have a say in the matter?
Granted that all the demands are justified, then it is the govern-
ment of the United States that must act in the matter, and it may
well be that as a matter of policy of ending poverty, of raising the
standard of living of the blacks, we may need much more than the
half billion indicated.
And if there is to be retribution for wrongs committed by having
permitted enslavement, and impoverishment, there are many millions
of whites who similarly must be helped.
Therefore: the anti-poverty program and the cause of humane
and just treatment of all our citizens becomes a matter of concern
for the entire American people, in behalf of all the afflicted in our
midst. And the responsibility is not of churches and synagogues.
but of THE PEOPLE. Therefore there must be rejection of any-
thing and everything that could spell ANARCHY. And the rejection
of anarchy becomes the responsibility of the fearless in religious
ranks.
It should be noted that James Forman's Manifesto advocates revo-
lution. It is summarized by the following:
Our demands are negotiable, but they cannot be mini-
mized, they can only be increased and the Church is asked to
come up with larger sums of money than we are asking. Our
slogans are:
ALL ROADS MUST LEAD TO REVOLUTION
UNITE WITH WHOMEVER YOU CAN UNITE
NEUTRALIZE WHEREVER POSSIBLE
FIGHT OUR ENEMIES RELENTLESSLY
VICTORY TO THE PEOPLE
LIFE AND GOOD HEALTH TO MANKIND
RESISTANCE TO DOMINATION BY THE WHITE CHRIS-
TIAN CHURCHES AND THE JEWISH SYNAGOGUES
REVOLUTION BLACK POWER
WE SHALL WIN WITHOUT A DOUBT
Perhaps we already are in a state of revolt. The unrest on the cam-
puses has contributed immensely to the disquiet—due in the main to
the black-white conflict and the Vietnam war. Now the new demands
and the confrontation with the religious groups :ontributes towards the
aggravation of an unfortunate situation.
We started late, very late, to solve the tragic problems. But it is
never too late to be good fellow citizens, to work together as fellow
Americans, to correct the evils of the past and to assure a state of
decency for all citizens. If we yield to panic, and to unreasonable de-
2 — Friday, June 20, 1969
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
The old bogey ofter emerges as a state of mind in many ranks!
It's always the link of Jews with money.
The interesting portion in the Brooks article, appearing as a foot-
note to the above quotation is the following:
There is a growing anxiety within the Jewish community,
I am told, about the couldn't-care-less attitude among Jewish
youth active in the New Left toward anti-Semitism, Israel,
Jewish identity and other concerns of the Jewish community.
When a friend of mine expressed worry about the rise in
black anti-Semitism to a young Jewish SDS-erg tthe youth
sneered. "Oh, come on, tell me, liodistAhe holocaust."
Sociologist Nathan Glazer estimates that among the com-
mitted, identifiable radicals on the most active campuses
probably one-third to one-half are Jews. Assuming that rough-
ly the same proportion of Jews were present among the
800 to 1.000 youths of the SDS conference, I find it sur-
prising to discover that only seven people in all attended
an "international" workshop devoted in good part to a
discussion of SDS's anti-Israel, pro-Al Fatah (Arab terror-
ists) stand. Recent issues of New Left Notes have carried,
without apparent protest, a -series on the "Middle East
Liberation Struggle," and the youth corps of Al Fatah is
described as "the vanguard of the struggle of Palestine."
S.D.S.'s pro-Arab stance may not be widely known. It
certainly was not stressed at any of the meeting or rallies I
attended. If it were, I should think it would do SDS no
good among liberal and radical Jewish youth. In any event.
SDS has not really done too well in attracting Jewish
students as far as total numbers are concerned. Rabbi
Benjamin Kahn, the national director of Bnai Brith's Hillel
Foundation, cites studies by his organization indicating that
radical Jewish students, though highly visible in the leadership
and ranks of the New Left, generally make up "not much
more than 5 per cent" of the total Jewish student enrollment
of 350,000.
There is lots of dynamite in these facts, and much to consider.
Some have claimed that Jews predominate in SDS and similar ranks.
Our own view is that they do prevail in leadership but that the rank
and file of Jewish students is a normal adherent to rational acting
and thinking, devoid of violence, while adhering to the basics in
student demands.
Self-hatred mingled with ignorance plays a great role in the entire
situation. Primarily, it is the lack of knowledge about Jews, Judaism
and the time in which we live that causes much of the trouble, linking
murdedous El Fatah with New Left, with some Jews becoming ad-
herents to an anti-Semitic merger.
It's a sad situation — but one, like so many similar ones, that
we are sure to overcome.
Lt. Moshe Sharhabani of Petach
Tikva was mortally wounded after
he hurled a grenade that killed
four of the saboteurs. The remain-
ing four were slain in a fierce bat-
, tle that followed. The names of the
other Israeli casualties were not
announced.
An Israeli soldier was injured
when an Army car was attacked
near the West Bank town of Heb-
ron. Another vehicle was attacked
in the same area some time later.
I
The fire was returned and area
was searched, a military spokes-
man reported.
Sources here predicted renewed
fighting along the Israel-Lebanese
border as reports from Beirut in-
dicated that a verbal agreement
between Palestinian guerrillas and
Lebanese authorities to freeze
action on the border had broken
down. The agreement was report-
edly reached between Lebanese
authorities and Yassir Arafat,
commander of El Fatah, the prin-
cipal guerrilla band.
It was supposed to end com-
mando operations against Israel
from Lebanese soil pending the
establishment of a new Lebanese
government. Lebanon has been
without a government since the
cabinet of Premier Rashid Karami
resigned April 23 in the midst of
pro-guerrilla rioting and demon-
strations.
The agreement was said to have
broken down after June 6 when
Israel reportedly fought a four-hour
mortar and machine-gun duel
across the Lebanese border. Guer-
rilla sources accused Lebanese
authorities of arresting eight of
their number following the clash.
Israel Reshapes Ec onomic Future After Six-Day War
By VICTOR M. BIENSTOCK
Editor, Jewish Telegraphic Agency
(Direct JTA Teletype Wire
to The Jewish News)
NEW YORK — Finance Minister
Zeev Sharef of Israel stoutly main-
tains that the economic strains and
pressures on Israel resulting from
the Six-Day War and the subse-
quent absence of peace will never
be decisive factors in consideration
of Israel's political and defense
policies.
Winding up a visit to this country
for meetings with World Bank and
United States government officials,
industrial figures and Jewish lead-
ers, Sharef discussed the Israeli
economic situation describing the
impact of the war on his country's
economy, present and future.
"How long can Israel hold out
against such a war of attrition as
the Arab states are waging against
it today?" the slight, soft-spoken
Israeli was asked.
"As long as necessary!" was the
unhesitating reply.
What is the war costing Israel?
In dollars and cents, said the
finance minister, $275,000,000 every
ally — about 1973 —imports for de-
fense needs will be reduced, ex-
ports will go up and the outcome
may then be a more balanced
economy. 19
In his talks with members of the
single day. Over all, Israel's secur- United States Cabinet, including
ity consumes 20 per cent of the the secretaries of the treasury
country's Gross National Product—
a staggering total when compared
to the about 9 per cent of the
GNP in the United States applies
to its defense and military opera-
tions all around the world, includ-
ing the Vietnam war.
The finance minister noted
soberly that Israel is going through
a critical period which he said
could last three or four years. But,
he said, as exports grow and local
defense production expands, "we
have reason to hope that eventu-
and commerce, Sharef stressed
that Israel was not asking for hand-
outs but, in view of its very heavy
purchases in this country, including
defense material and the consider-
able adverse trade balance In
American-Israeli t r ad e, wanted
better credit terms. He said he en-
countered a sympathetic attitude
but expalined that "we did not get
down to brass tacks." One definite
agreement, however, was an exten-
sion of the use of counterpart funds
in Israel for research purposes.