Mobilization of Federated Zionist
Movement Coupled With Powerful
Senatorial Act Defending Israel
. By Jewish News
Special Correspondent
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — Unifica-
tion of Zionist forces in support
and in defense of Israel marked
the historic conference held here
May 28-31, and the sessions culmi-
nated in the most impressive as-
surance of help for Israel's pro-
tection from the leading forces in
America's legislative body.
In an unprecedented alignment
of Jewish forces in support of the
Zionist idea, the new American
Zionist Federation came into being
and the federated movement began
to receive assurance of enrollment
of many unaffiliated groups with
the new body whose aim is the
fulfillment of the Jerusalem Pro-
gram that was adopted at the 27th
World Zionist Congress in Jerusa-
lem in 1968.
Simultaneous with the conven-
ing of Zionist and community
leaders from all parts of the
United States, the representa-
tives of scores of communities
were first recipients of encour-
aging news that the overwhelm-
ing majority of U.S. senators,
vith a possibility of unanimous
action in behalf of Israel, was
organizing to ask for immediate
American assistance to Israel in
the form of increased sales of
Phantoms, and that a resolution
was being introduced by Senators
Hugh Scott of Pennsylvania and
Walter F. Mondale of Montana
calling upon President Nixon
that he should contact the Soviet
Union with a request that Russian
pilots be withdrawn from Egypt,
thereby averting the great dan-
ger that now lurks in the Middle
East.
Sen. Scott, appearing at the
final session of the American Zion-
ist Federation at the Sheraton
Hotel here, Sunday afternoon, de-
fined the request for the with-
drawal of Russian personnel from
the United Arab Republic as a
"major step toward the encourage-
ment of peace in the Middle East,"
and emphasized that the action he
was taking, to ask "all senators
to join us in this resolution" was
strictly nonpartisan, and he added:
"Previous resolutions on Israel
and the situation in the Middle
East have been co-sponsored by as
many as 77 senators, and I con-
sider the situation there to be
crucial at this point of time." He
gave assurance to the convention
delegates that President Nixon is
sympathetic to Israel, in line with
his own stated opinion that the
defense and survival of Israel are
vital to the defense of the United
States.
The convention elected Dr.
Israel Miller, assistant to the
president of Yeshiva University
and past chairman of the Amer-
ican Jewish Conference on Soviet
Jewry, as president of the fed-
erated Zionist movement.
Jacques Torczyner, president of
the Zionist Organization of Amer-
ica, was named chairman of
the national board. Mrs. Max N.
Matzkin, chairman of the Hadas-
sah Zionist affairs department,
was elected chairman of the
executive committee, and Rabbi
Herschel Schacter, past presi-
dent of Religious Zionists of
America, was elected associate
chairman of the national board.
the status of Soviet Jewry, asked
for immediate American aid to
assure Israel's security and dealt
with major needs for the advance-
ment of the Zionist movement in
America.
Sen. Scott spoke of the new
shadow over the Middle East cast
by the manning of surface-to-air-
missile sites by the Russian tech-
nicians in the UAR and declared
that passage of the resolution he
co-sponsored with Sen. M o n -
dale "hopefully will help in a
matter designed to encourage
peace rather than arms escalation
or all-out war." He read the text
of his resolution, which follows:
"Resolved that it is the sense
of the Senate that the introduc-
tion of Russian pilots and the
manning of missile sites by Rus-
sian technicians in the United
Arab Republic is contributing to
the increased tension in the
Middle East, and the President
is strongly urged to call upon
the Soviet Union to withdraw all
Russian personnel as a major
step toward the encouragement
of peace in the Middle East."
Although Scott once again de-
cried official American policy of
delaying a decision on the sale of
jets to Israel, he expressed confi-
dence that the decision would be
favorable to the cause of Israel:
"I cannot discuss much of the
information which has been given
to me, but I have reason to believe
that our prayers and our petitions
to the President and the secretary
of state will be answered fairly
soon," Scott said.
"Unfortunately, the presence of
the Soviets on Arab soil and in
Arab airplanes—given the Egyp-
tians by the Russians—will be one
of the factors in that decision, be-
cause the balance of power in the
Middle East is being upset.
"In addition to the resolution—
which I encourage every United
States senator, regardless of polit-
ical party, to join—I reiterate that
I and others sympathetic to the
cause of the state of Israel will
persist in our efforts to see that
the only democracy in the Middle
East is permitted to buy the air.
craft it so sorely needs for its
defense and its survival."
Stating that President Nixon is
sympathetic to Israel, Senator
Scott said:
"The President knows this and
I take every opportunity I can to
remind him that he knows it and
that he should, translate his thoughts
to action," Scott declared. "I shall
continue to do so until the decision
—a favorable decision—is made by
the White House."
In the meantime, he added, he
will press for rapid passage by an
overwhelming majority of the Sen-
ate the resolution he and Senator
Mondale will offer on Monday.
—
with the Soviet Union. Rabin said
that the free world should not in-
dulge in "wishful thinking" about
the goals and ambitions of the
Russians in the Middle East. He
warned that peace between Israel
and her neighbors is impossible
as long as the Soviet Union is
involved.
Rabbi Miller was scheduled
to address the opening ses-
sion but was not present due to
the death of his father, Tobias
Miller. His address was read by
Mrs. Charlotte Jacobson, past
president of Hadassah and mem-
ber of the Jewish Agency Execu-
tive. In his prepared address,
Rabbi Miller stated that the
"American Zionist Federation is
a preparation for 21st Century
Zionism. It is our way of proclaim-
ing that humanity is not doomed
and that Israel will live. The Jew-
ish people will live, and Zionism
will live."
Rabbi Miller observed that the
federation would "motivate Amer-
ican Jews to accept the Zionist
principles that the Jews all over
the world are one people, united
by a common history, heritage, and
destiny, with Israel as the center
of Jewish life everywhere."
President Zalman Shazar and
Prime Minister Golda Meir of
Israel cabled good wishes.
Avraham Schenker, head of the
organization and information de-
partment of the World Zionist
Organization, said that the call of
the American Zionist Federation
to American Jews to join its ranks
is a clear answer in terms of soli-
darity with Israel by 700,000 orga-
nized American Zionists. He de-
clared: "The state of Israel is a
Zionist creation and it is motivated
by this Zionist approach. It is sig-
nificant that the establishment of
the kibutz and the moshav—both
socialist forms of society in con-
ception and purpose — were the
creations of the Zionist movement,
as a whole . . . Zionism . . . has
never sought to exploit the Arabs,
but onl yto provide an example of
social change, self-development
and brotherhood."
Torczyner told the founding
convention that "Israel is now
fighting for its survival. Our own
government is involved in ex-
ternal and internal problems and
has not taken a clear position
in the Middle East and is
strengthening thereby further
Russian expansion in that part
of the world."
He added that "As in 1946 and
1948 when the united Zionist move-
ment under the leadership of Dr.
Abba Hillel Silver undertook the
battle that made the creation of
the s t a t e possible, the Zionist
movement now has to go out among
the American people and get sup-
port from both political parties.
The survival of Israel is indispensi-
ble for the United States if we want
to keep our role as a super-power."
Rabbi Emanuel Rackman, mem-
ber of the Jewish Agency execu-
tive, stated that "the Zionism of
the Jerusalem Program is authen-
tic Judaism. It is not a political
creed but a religious creed. To ask
Jews to accept less is to ask them
to compromise their historic faith
and how different is that from
asking them to change their
faith?"
Congressman Robert N. C.
Nix of Philadelphia called on
"every friend of Israel" to enlist
Pres-
ident Nixon with the "overwhelm-
ing weight of opinion" demand-
ing that he, as president, supply
Israel with jet fighter planes and
economic aid.
In a major address before the
the aid of all to "confront"
convention, Dr. Emanuel Neu-
mann, chairman of the Jewish
Agency, American Section, citing
Soviet advances in the Middle
East, said:
"The successive steps taken by
the Soviet Union in the Middle
East," he said, "appear to be sus-
ceptible of only one interpretation.
Their purpose can not be simply
the defense of Egypt against Is-
raeli attacks. That purpose can be
served more readily by inducing
Egypt to observe the cease-fire.
The program is far more ambi-
tious: to achieve military control
of the whole Middle East."
"Israel is not Czechoslovakia,"
he said, adding, "which twice,
our lifetime, submitted to
superior power without firing a
within
shot. But the question which
troubles us now, as American
citizens, is the attitude of our
own government. Up to what
point can it go in its acquiescence
of the Soviet advance in the
Middle East?"
Dr. Judah Shapiro, noted com-
munity consultant to Jewish orga-
nizations, declared at the conven-
tion that Zionism "must break out
of this irrelevant pattern of con-
formity and must undertake to he
the most meddling and interfering
association within Jewish commu-
nities and in relation to the na-
tional Jewish organizations. It is
not for Zionists to stay within the
perimeter of Zionist organizational
activities, but on the contrary. to
move out from the Zionist reserva-
tions into the whole of the Jewish
community to exercise influence
and exert their will on every phase
of Jewish communal enterprise."
"This is a nonpolitical thing,
and we are determined to keep
it nonpolitical," Scott said. "It
is a matter of humanity for the
people who live in Israel, for
the children killed by Arab shells
as they ride school buses.
"It is a matter of the highest
priority for the state of Israel, for
the United States and the free
world.
"I have said before and I say
to you again: the Middle East is
the greatest potential for World
War III in the world—more so
Numerous decisions expressed in than Southeast Asia—and I want
resolutions adopted by the con- to see the United States protect
ference expressed concern over its last remaining fellow democracy
56 Friday, June 5, 1970
in that part of the world."
In addition to Rabbis Miller and
Schacter, Torczyner and Mrs.
Matzkin, the convention elected the
following: Hy Faille, past president
of the Labor Zionists, associate
chairman of the executive commit-
tee; Nathaniel S. Rothenberg, past
president of Bnai Zion, treasurer;
Mrs. Blanche Fine, Pioneer Wom-
en, and Mrs. Aaron Leifer, Miz-
rachi Women, secretaries.
The Detroit delegation named
Isidore Shrodeck and Philip Slom-
ovitz to be members of the national
board.
The convention was marked
by interesting participation of
scores of youth representatives.
Among those elected were 15
v ice presidents representing
youth, students, aliya movement
and other sectors of the Zionist
movement as well as five major
geographical areas.
Dr. Seymour P. Lachman, a
member of the New York City
Board of Education, focusing on
"the alienation and estrangement
of many of our brightest and most
articulate young men and women,"
said "Israel must come to sym-
bolize in the minds and hearts
of our youth what she is in reality
—a nation striving and yearning
for peace, social justice, learning
and brotherhood."
Dr. Arnulf Pins, chairman of the
American Zionist Youth Founda-
tion, asserted that "We should be
encouraged and pleased that Jew-
ish youth is confronting and criti-
cizing the Jewish community and
Zionist activity." That attitude
shows, he said, "that they care
and want to become involved" and
want to make Judaism and Zion-
ism "more relevant" to the times.
The incoming executive commit-
tee was directed to co-opt three
additional young people with full
voting rights on the executive
committee.
Louis A. Pincus, chairman of the
Jewish Agency Executive in Jeru-
salem, declared here that "Zionism
is the only philosophy that has an
answer to the burning problems of
embattled Israel, of the Jews in
countries of discrimination and
need like the Soviet Union, and of
Jews in the free world."
Pincus said that the AZF has to
include the maximum number of
Jews who will contribute in vari-
ous ways in giving practical help
to sustain Israel's economic growth
and assure her survival.
Itzhak Rabin, Israel's ambassa-
dor to the United States, warned
that the greatest threat to Israel's
future is not the continuing hos-
tility of the Arab states but the
possibility of a "direct face-off"
Detroit delegates at the founding convention of American Zionist Federation (and their
Zionist designations), in Philadelphia, last weekend, are (from left) Joseph Katz, Farband;
Dr. Arthur Feuer, Americans for Progressive Israel; Dr. Sidney Leib, ZOA; Morris Lifshay,
Labor Zionists; Mrs. Sidney Leib, ZOA; Mrs. Norman Hudosh, ZOA; Louis Panush, ZOA;
Philip Slomovitz, ZOA; Leonard Radner, ZOA; Mrs. Philip Slomovitz, ZOA; Morris Lieber-
man, Labor Zionists; and Mrs. Louis Panush, ZOA. Two other Detroit delegates who are not
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS in the photo were Rabbi Leo Goldman, Mizrachi, and Steven Goldin, Zionist Revisionists.