•

Free Food, Schooling, Health Care, Housing— 'Organizations Set Celebrations
`Plight' of ' Arab Refugee Seen by Rabbi Donin Dining, Dancing Purim Fare

more or less permanent arrange-
ment.
"I spoke to the director lf this
camp—an Arab who s•.-te Eng-
lish. And this is the information
he gave me.
"Every family in the camp g'bts
a free house. Free education
through high school for the chil-
dren. (In Israel itself, for Is-
raelis—free education is provided
only through the 8th grade.) The
better students get UN scholar-
ships to attend universities in the
Arab countries and around the
world. Everyone gets free medical
and health care as well as free
food rations. Those who are medic-
"This camp was like a big vil-
ally undernourished receive extra
lage, consisting of hundreds of
food rations to overcome whatever
small concrete houses. By com-
deficiencies exist. Free water (a
parison to suburban American
precious commodity in the Middle
housing standards, these houses
East )is also granted to all camp
were miserable and substandard.
residents
But they were no different than
"Many of the men are employed
what you see in most other Arab
as laborers on different govern-
villages. The housing was no
ment projeCts—now by Israel as
worse than what most of them
well as before by Jordan. This puts
had been used to before they be-
extra cash—all of it income tax ,
came refugees!
free (all other residents of Israel
"The only Arab refugee camps pay income taxi—into their pock-
where they might still live in tents ets as savings, or with which to buy
are the new ones set up in JOrdan extra clothing and other personal
after the '67 war. The UN was items. TV antennas could be seen
about to build concrete houses from many a rooftop.
"If a child grows up and gets
there too, but were prevented from
doing so by the Arabs themselves married, UNRWA builds an extra
who felt that this would symbolize room • for the couple onto the
an acceptance of the camp as a! house of the parents.

The Arab refugee camp—symbol
as much as reality in the Middle
East conflict—is drawn in an inter-
esting light by a- local rabbi who
visited one near Bethlehem last
year.
Rabbi Hayim Donin, in "The
Rabbi's Letter" sent to members
of Cong. Bnai David, describes the
camp, until 1967 located in Jordan-
controlled territory.
"Like all the other camps,"
writes Rabbi. Donin. "this one too
was under UNRWA administra-
tion. Although Arabs are the ad-
ministrators, they act as employes
of the United Nations.

•

a

Children in Iran, /hi' Land of °meet/ Esther,
leer Haman, Cheer Mordehai in Purim Phi ),

KING AHASUERUS CROWNS QUEEN ESTHER

•

One of the . highlights of the
parvareshgas (kindergartens) in
Iran is the celebration of Purim,
more so than in any other country
since Persia, as Iran was called
formerly, is the land where the
Purim story originated.
Purim this year falls on Nlarch
22.
This photo was taken at a pre-
Purim celebration in mid-February
in the parvareshga in Tehran.
The Tehran parvareshga with an -
enrollment of 300 pre-school age
children, is one of three in Iran
supported by the Joint Distribution
Committee with United Jewish Ap-
peal funds. The photo shows King
Ahasuerus crowning Esther his
queen.
The five-year olds begin their
preparations several weeks in ad ,
Vance. First their teacher reads
the story to them. Then they make
their %own inegillot, drawing the
pictures .with crayon. They decor
ate the walls _with pictures of
Queen Esther, King Ahasuerus.•
Mordehai and Haman. They also
construct an effigy of Haman
which they hang from the ceiling.
Finally, a number of children are

selected to act out the traditional
story for their classmates and for
their parents.

While the young actors are busy
rehearsing, the other children •are
hard at work on costumes and
props. Since these children arc
normally poorly clothed, the cos-
tumes take on special meaning.
On the day of the performance
even the children in the audience
wear paper crowns. The curtains
part and the play begins. The
children love to perform and are
not- the least bit nervous. When
Haman is exposed by- Queen
ESther and is sentenced to be
hanged on the gallows he had
erected for Mordecai. everybody
shouts This is the part
of the play that the children wait
for and enjoy most.

After the performance _the actors
and the. audience form circles and
sing the familiar songs and per-
form Iranian dances. In the drab
and generally deprived existence
of these poor Jewish children, any
performance is special but Purim
is most special of all because it
truly - belongs - to them.

"I then asked the Arab admini-
strator four straight questions:
"What is the difference be-
tween a refugee camp and an or-
dinary Arab village? His an-
swer; 'In an Arab village the
people must own their own
house, and support themselves I
entirely.'
"Why shouldn't a poor Arab
who has lived all his life at nearby
villages and who can't afford the
things that the refugee gets free.
why shouldn't he choose to call
himself a refugee and move into
the refugee camp? His simple
honest answer was only: 'He
can't. because he's not a refugee!'
"What changes took place for
these refugees since 1967? His an-
swer: 'Only that the workers get
better pay today.' (Israel's wage
scale is higher than Jordan's)
"I asked him where he originally
came from. His answer: 'A few
miles from here:' and named an
Arab village that had remained on
the Israel side of the border after
the 1948 war. 'I live here,' he con-
tinued. 'because I'm a refugee
too.'
"Now here was a Palestinian
Arab with a good responsible job,
living among his own brethren in
what he called Palestine, a few
miles from where he was born, in
an area ruled by fellow Arabs
(Jordan), and for 20 years calls
himself a refugee.
"By those criteria, anyone who .
has ever been forced to relocate
from one city to another, even
from one neighborhood to an- I
other—not to say from one coun-
try to another—would be entitled
to call himself a refugee.
"And while these people were
living in a refugee camr right
across the road from the camp
was a private villa, a large lavish
ostentatious looking home belong-
ing to another Palestinian Arab,
the mayor of Bethlehem.
"The camp director also said
something else that was interest-
ing. 'There are no Christian Arabs
in this camp, and I don't think
there are any .Christian Arabs liv-
ing in any camp. 'Why not?' I
asked. 'Weren't Christian Arabs
also displaced?' His answer:
'There were Christian refugees,
but they all live in town. They did
not want to live in camps.'
"The visit to this camp and
others was an eye-opener to me!
"Originally back in 1948 there
were about half-million such Arab'
refugees. But Israel, in turn, has
given sanctuary to more than half
a million Jews from Arab League
countries—where they left every-
thing behind to escape from perse-
cution and threats or danger. These
were absorbed into Israel, (and
. without UN assistance.) If you
count children born later, as the
Arab refugees count, they too to-
day number more than 11i mil
lion souls . . ."
"Only the Arab refugee has
become institutionalized: their
status as refugees re-inforced.
It became a way of life for them.
For less than the amount al-
ready spent on them by UN (70
per cent U.S. money) they could
just as easily have been absorb-
ed and rehabilitated — not to be
dependent upon international
handouts—in cities and villages
5, 10, 50, 100, 200 miles away
from where they may have been
displaced. But those same Arab
leaders who cry they are ready
to sacrifice a million Arabs to
restore these PalestiniaA to
their original dwelling ces,
wouldn't 'raise a finger to, elp
them become absorbed and self-
sufficient among their
ON•II
brethren, among their own co-
religionists . . .
"Sympathy for the condition of
the refugees on the part of Wes-
terners is genuine. But should the
Arab nations sit down and make
peace- nd give up their notions of
destro ng Israel — that refugee
nroble could be solved almost
overnight, with wholehearted Is-
raeli co-operation."

Saturday evening ushers in the 1 the piano, will present a special
musical program at the 13th an-
gala holiday of Purim with the
nual Purim dinner of Shomrey
reading of Megilat Esther — the
Emunah Sisterhood 6 p.m. March
Scroll of Esther. But some celebra-
29. The program will stress the
tions will precede it, and others
significance of 13 years of effort
will follow a week later. All re-
by the sisterhood to Shomrey
joice, however, in the downfall of
Emunah.
Israel's enemy Haman.
Max Sosin will serve as toast-
The reading of the Megila will
master, and will
take place in most synagogues 7:30
p.m. Saturday and between 8 and
participate in the
9 a.m. Sunday. (Young Israel of
musical program.
Oak-Woods will hold two Sunday
Proceeds from
morning, one at 7:30, the other at
the fund - raising
9). In some Reform temples, the
effort, in addi-
reading is scheduled for this eve-
tion to promot-
ning (see synagogue list).
ing the welfare
of the synagogue,
Organizations a n d synagogue
are used for
groups which have indicated spe-
charitable causes
cial celebrations are as follows:
"both here and 'In
Criterion Club for single adults
Israel. For res-
will celebrate Purim and the ad-
ervations, c a 11
vent of spring at a Queen Esther
Adler
Mrs. Fannie Lau-
Ball 8:30 p.m. Saturday at the
Oak Park Community Center. The fer. 398-7146, or Mrs. Brachah
public is invited. George Grossett Zachariash. 341-1595.
and his orchestra will provide the
music for dancing, with social mix-
ers., prizes, a grand prize and cere-
mony coronation. Refreshments
will include homantashen. For in-
formation call Betty Weinberg, pro-
gram chairman, 532-8855.
T h e Zionists - Revisionists o f
n74 Rim - 171'17 -TV"
Greater Detroit are sponsoring a
Purim Ball 9 p.m. Saturday at
Young Israel Center of Oak Woods.
Music will be provided by Eric
Rosenow and his Continentals. En-
tertainment will include a Yiddish
floor show. Refreshments will be
served. Proceeds will go to the
National Israeli Sick Fund. For
.17i-4
reservations,
Horo-
witz, 544-883, or Hyman Ciek, TR
3-5757.

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•

The Farband City Committee
invites the public to its Purim
celebration 8:30 p.m. Saturday
at the Sholem Aleichem Insti-
tute. Louis Levine will be toast-
master. There will be entertain- -
ment, Purim refreshments,
prizes and "Shalakh Manot."
Nominal donation.

Beth Abraham Synagogue will
hold a Purim dance 8:30 p.m. Sat-
urday featuring the orchestra of
Frank Paul. For information and
tickets, contact the synagogue of-
fice, UN 1-6696.
Radomer Aid Society will hold
its annual party 8:30 p.m. Tues-
day at the Workmen's Circle Cen-.
ter. Refreshments and entertain-
ment will highlight the evening.
Rosenwald,Post and Ladies Aux-
iliary, American Legion, will hold
its annual joint. Purim party 8 p.m.
Wednesday at the Workmen's Cir-
cle Center. Refreshments
and
games are planned.
Cantor Hyman Adler accom-
panied by Mrs. Bela Goldberg at

Hebrew Column

Adloyada

Adloyada is the name of the gay
Purim holiday i si tsara ide which takes place
each
ach year on the
e udm holiday
ay • in the
streets of Tel-. dr. It is a masquerade
party, a kind of large carnival.
First, the Fireman's Band I r inarchid
along tplaying lively
e,e
a
marching so g n i
he ban
band,
boys
carrying
flags of the Twelve
Tribes of
Then followed a nice parade of
"Kihu I 7.
Galuyot" (Gathering of the
la
Exiles)
in which Jews who had come
to
this country . from severity lands
participated in their beautiful cos-
cos-
tumes.
hzo N a v t al i k
ee id or danced, and

Then heroes of the Bible appeared_
Noah in the large ark and Moses In
the small ark, King Solomon and the
Queen of Sheba, David and Goliath,
and, of course, all the heroes of the
story of Esther. The moment wicked
Haman appeared, the children began to
spin their Purim rattlers and to shoot
frevolvers.
t 0,se
of Then followed
d a fairyland world, a
kind of Disneyland. We saw various
storybook figures — Pinnochio, Peter
Pan, Red Ruling Hood, Cinderella and
others.
After them came the section of "In
the End of. Days"—a beautiful and
happy world: A wolf playing with a
lamb. Ben-Gurion dancing with General .
Nasser. Uncle Sam hugging the Rus-
sian Bear.
The Purim holiday is merry in Israel.
It's a pity is comes only once a year.
(Published by the Brit Ivrit Olamit
wall the assistance of the Memorial
Fund for Jewish Culture.)

52—Friday,

March 20,

1970

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