Soviet Yiddish Poet Kerler Defends
Rights of Jews to Join Kin in Israel
By MOSHE RON
TEL AVIV — The Communist
Rakach—the party in Israel that
blindly follows the Moscow line-
maintainsl that the letters from
Soviet Jews, in which they express
their desire to come to Israel, are
overdramatized and forged.
This week, the chief editor of the
Communist (moderate) Maki news-
paper, Dr. Moshe Sneh, received a
letter from the famous Yiddish
poet in the Soviet Union, Josef
Kerler, who published his poem
in the Soviet Yiddish journal
"Sovietish Heimland." Kerler's let-
ter was published in the weekly
Free Israel as an open letter to the
Rakach functionary Ruth Luvitz,
who had stated in the Rakacb
weekly that the letters of Russian
Jews were dramatized and forged.
Writes Kerler: "I do not wish to
take sides in the dispute, whether
the Israeli government adopts an
anti-Soviet line or whether Rakach
adopts an anti-Soviet line. I only
wish to make clear, how the 'cam-
paign' of the 'dramatized' letters
of Russian Jews is organized. I
want to show, how simple people,
who only wish to join their families
in Israel are used, as if they had
some intentions to damage the in-
terests of the Soviet Union with
their slogan 'Let my people go.' "
The poet Kerler says that Soviet
Jews who wish to emigrate to
Israel are accused of being traitors
to the Soviet Motherland, just as
they were characterized by Stalin
as cosmopolitans. "Why do Jews
write such tragic letters? These
simple people have for years
quietly nourished their hope to
join their relatives in Israel. De-
spite great difficulties, they have
submitted to the authorities their
applications for passports and exit
licenses. Only people with a firm
decision, patience and healthy
nerves dare go through this pro-
cedure. Year after year they put
in new applications. Year after
,
year, their pleas are refused with-
out any motivations.
"When these people become
frustrated, they send dramatic
letters," Eerier explains. "Each
letter is a letter cf despair, suf-
fering, courage and determina-
tion. One cannot find in any of
these letters an attack on the
Soviet Union or the Soviet re-
gime, These letters especially
criticized the bureaucrats who
defy the Soviet law which ap-
proved, In accordance with the
declaraticn of human rights, the
reunion of family members in
any country."
Rakach is the only party in Israel
which has contacts with the Soviet
Union, Kerler writes. Rakach
should and could do much to put
things right. It should do it in the
interest of thousands of Russian
Jews who will never forfeit their
human right to join their families
in Israel, and it should do it in
the interest of Rakach and the
effective fight against reactionary
anti-Sovietism.
• • •
The Syrian Communist leader
Kholed Bokolash, who was expelled
by Syrian authorities, spent a few
weeks in a recreation home for
Communist leaders In Hungary.
At the same time, leaders of the
Israeli Rakach Party, including
General Secretary Meir Wilner,
were there.
In the organ of the Hungarian
Communist Party, Bokolosh praise&
the line of the Rakach Party in
Israel. Bokolosh said that the strug-
gle of Rakach in Israel against the
Zionists and imperialists was in
accordance with the interests and
aims of the Arab national libera-
tion government, which fights
against American imperialism and
Israel's oppression.
Bokolosh especially praised the
policy of Wilner, who does every-
thing together with the Arab Ra-
kach leaders Tufik Tubi, Emil
Habibi and the poet Molmoud Der-
wish to unmask and criticize- the
Israeli oppressors. Bokolosh ac-
cuses Israel of torpedoing the
Jarring talks aimed at finding a
political solution to the conflict in
the Near East.
A few days ago, the Maki leader
Dr. Moseh Sneh published an arti-
cle in which he revealed with docu-
ments and facts how the Rakach
leaders serve the aims of the El
Fatah terrorists.
NY Federation Launches
$30 Million Campaign
NEW YORK (ITA)—"Help Can't
Wait" With that theme the Federa-
tion of Jewish Philanthropies of
New York launched Tuesday night
its 53rd annual Jewish Community
Campaign for a record goal of
$30,000,000.
George H. Heyman Jr., presi-
dent, and. Frederick P. Rose, cam-
paign chairman, said that the vat
—believed to be the highest ever
sought by one group of philan-
thropically supported agencies in
any American city—was $5,500,000
more than was raised last year.
THE DETROIT 111/1211
Friday, October. 2:1970-11
Oritiodo
- x Leaders Urge Jews
to Shun Resorts on Holy Days
NEW YORK -(JTA)—Two Ortho-
dox Jewish leaders have urged
Jews to attend High Holy Day
services in synagogues in their
home areas rather than attending
services in what they termed as
makeshift and "instant synagogues"
in holiday resorts.
Rabbi Joseph Karasick, presi-
dent of the Union of Orthodox Jew-
ish Congregations, and Rabbi Ber-
nard Berzon, president of the Rab-
binical Council of America, de-
plored the "flimsy attractiveness"
of holiday resorts and "their sub-
stitute services."
They expressed concern over
the departure of Jews from their
home areas to resort areas with
their "makeshift" synagogues and
emphasized that "synagogue deser-
tion" during the holidays "inflicts
serious damage upon these (home
area) institutions."
A joint staament by the two
rabbis noted that the yearly exo-
dus to resorts creates a financial
burden on the synagogues that
are deserted because they de-
pend to a large degree on the
support of worshipers during the
Holy Days to provide a censid-
erable portion of their budgets.
According to the statement, "In-
stant synagogues" are not only
"religiously questionable but im-
pair the solvency" of all-year round
synagogues.
'The rabbis also expressed con-
cern about resort advertising of
special facilities to attract holiday
guests. "Resorts which advertise
with their High Holy Day services,
Broadway shows and other enter-
tainment of questionable value are
simply not acceptable as places of
worship to the faithful Jew."
The statement added that by ex-
changing the synagogue for the
resort "we rob our young genera-
tion of the strong and soul-nourish-
ing impact of the 'Days of Awe.' "
State University of N.Y. Concedes
.to Students; Closes on High Holy Days
ALBANY (JTA) — The Jewish
students of the State University of
New York at Albany have achieved
a major victory in their fight to
be recognized as a potent force on
campus.
President Louis T. Benezet re-
scinded an earlier decision and di-
rected the university to suspend
classes on Rosh Hashana and Yom
Kippur.
Classes were suspended noon
Wednesday to give Jewish students
time to get home before sundown.
Similarly, classes will be sus-
pended at noon on Oct. 9.
It is believed to be the first time
that a university calendar has been
changed to recognize Jewish holi-
days.
Student leaders of the Hiliei
A Different Women's Lib
LONDON (JTA) — The belief
held by some that all Israeli
women work Is not true—actually,
only 30 per cent of them are em-
ployed, compared with 60 per cent
in the United States.
Those statistics' were reported
to the women's group of the
Friends of the Hebrew University
by Mrs. Zena Harman, Laborite
member of the Knesset and former
chairman of the United Nations
Children's Fund (UNICEF).
Mrs. Harman, who was born
here, is the wife of Hebrew Uni-
versity President Avraham Har-
man.
"The role of women in Israel
is perhaps greater and more pro-
nounced than in other countries
because in Israel women serve in
the army and also play a special
role in the national effort to bridge
the gap between the various com-
munities and to mold them all into
one nation," Mrs. Harman said.
Society and Am Yisroel had met
with Benezet on Sept. 14 to relay
to him the Jewish students' dis-
pleasure at classes being sched-
uled for the High Holy Days.
He was told that even though the
state law says that a student can-
not be penalized for missing a class
for religious observance, the stu-
dent is, in effect, being penalized
by missing whatever was done in
class that day.
Student leaders also pointed out
that the university was working on
a double standard. The high Chris-
tian holidays are always included
in vacation periods, and they main-
tained that denying the Jewish stu-
dent his right to worship without
fear of missing important classes
was discriminatory.
Benezet expressed his regrets
that there was nothing he could do
to close the school this year. Sev-
eral days later, at Benezet's weekly
conference with students, 200 stu-
dents challenged his decision. Di-
rectly after this meeting, the Uni-
versity Senate met and overwhelm-
ingly approved a bill urging Presi-
dent Benezet to reconsider his
earlier decision.
The next morning, Steve Shaw,
a student leader in the fight to
have classes canceled for the Jew-
ish High Holy Days, received a
phone call from the president's
office, informing him that the
president had "changed his mind
and that classes would be suspend-
ed for Rosh Hashana and Yom
Kippur.
Mirrachi Women's Fresh Air
Fund, in its 10th year, helped pro-
vdie trips and vacations for more
than 1,500 underprivileged chil-
dren in Israel during the summer
months.
Phillips Shoes—stores for finicky people.
Northland, Eastland, Westland, Southland, Downtown (Broadway and Gratiot), Flint's Genesee
Valley Center, Toledo's Woodville Mall. Open evenings (except downtown).
Most charge cards honored.