Purely . Commentary
By Philip
Courage Defies the Authoritarian Kremlin as
Ydung'JeWs Speakrfor 'Justice . .• Attitudes of
Newsmen and the Factual Status - of U.S. Jewry
•
A Lesson in Compassion: Israel's vs. Arabs'
Honor as a Jew More Ithportant to Girsh Feigin Than War Decorations
There is a serious lesson for those who fail to understand the con-
Soviet Russia threatened with what an American spokesman called "officially inspired retaliation."
flict in the Middle East in the contrasts in compassion and humanitarian The acts of a few dozen Jewish Defense League extremists frightened the great Russian empire. Not a
approaches between Israel
word of regret from the Kremlin over the brutalities imposed upon many of its citizens, non-Jews as well
and the Arabs.
as Jews!
There is a tradition for
aV
iplop
Many cases of oppression are specific. A typical instance is the imprisonment of Maj. Grischa
radio and televiiion . brOad-
to tip4 n
6
(Girsh) Feigin, a war hero who returned to his government the decorations he had earned during the war
casters- in that' area Of the —
• •
•
against
Naiism, asking only that he be given the right to settle in Israel. It is reported that Feigin
world to conclude the Gaily
741 tpum; nrip - mv
DI)
was punished for returning the medals he received for heroism by being sent to .a mental institution.
program With a - tiaotatIon
That's the new policy of the great Communist regime! (Is that what was done to another hero of the
from Scriptures or at/m.0°1y ;: ilgi'Otnf?V.- 6 41140-'-m7. 1;n1%. ,
last war, the Christian Raoul Wallenberg, who rescued tens of thousands of Jews as a Swedish volunteer
Writings.
for
a service of mercy?)
On the day after the death 1,-7 0
frirAl
ri2413
Grischa Feigin is a Latvian Jew. He wrote his appeal to the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the
of Gamal Abdel Nasser, the
:
'MO)
iirws
•
1.11itp
W
USSR
on May 4, 1970. Let his plea serve again as proof of the courage Jews are displaying in the Soviet
Hebrew television broadciat-
itO Di' • in1tt4 TiA7 -incum
Union in their - demand for justice. Here it is in a translation from the underground Soviet Jewish fact-
er read the selection from
Proverbs, 24:17:
sheet Exodus:
' 2 ?# ( DlODO nq)
411-M-
Rejoice not when thine
probed anvil which has broken more than one
I, Girsh Isakovich FEIGIN, find it necessary to state
i rro Milt 120v/1)1 =POP "MI
enemy falleth,
hammer.
to you: Israel is my national homeland, the his-
And let not thy heart be
I am proud of my people who after many centuries
toric. homeland- of my
--ntAlks
will
VS
•
2111
.
1
■14,
glad when he stum-
of dispersal have found the strength to recreate
Two and It halt:million or, ..brothers and sisters
bleth .
their own Jewish state.
lye ttikr.e, my,own mother hves'tkere.
On the same day, the Arabic counterpart was the selection from The strcntoest desire; of mys_whole'life is my desire to
It is not surprising therefore that from my young-
est years all my thoughts and strivings have been
-
live=
-
ilt.t,srdet.
•
••
•
the Koran: "Ye shall smite and kill them (the infidels) with all , your
linked wih Israel
might, and ye shall drive them out from all the places whende they This strivi n g of 'Mille is identical to the wishes of
I began to fight for the realization of this, my life's
a great number of Jews lying in the USSR who.
drove you out."
, , ..
dream, a very long time ago.
just as I myself, are deprived of the possibility of
When I was sixteen in 1943I joined the Soviet Army
The contrast, indicated in the accompanying reproduction from the
realizing their dream.
to fight against the most terrible enemy of the
This striving is the manifestation of the secular
Hebrew magazine Lamishpakba; speaks for itself.
Jewish people, Hitlerism.
dream of my people for a national renaissance, for
an Exodus to the Land of our Fathers from the
I took part in battles on the First BelorUssian Front.
I took part in the liberation of Warsaw and the
countries where we are dispersed.
Generalizing About Terrorists
,w
, m9
.
We do not minimize the sincerity of an editorial writer in. the
Detroit News who undertook to teach the Jewish people a lesson about
terrorists and terrorism. He was disturbed by a bomb thrown at a USSR
building in Washington. But he could have changed the-appellations and
spoken about Irish violence against the British: or Algerians in pre.
liberation days rebelling against the French; or the Quebecans reacting
against their mother country Canada.
If that editorial writer has a sense of history he might have written
about the Sinn Feiners, equating them with the Irgun.
But his argument doesn't hold water because it does not stem from
realism and is based on hysteria. It's shallow. He commences with an
assumption which he presents as fact that "Jewish zealots" bombed a
Soviet Union installation. How does he know? Is there proof? Might it
not have been an Ukrainian anti-Communist, or a Lithuanian libertarian
protesting the USSR's actions against his people, or a Russian defector
—or perhaps an employee of the Soviet embassy who was ordered to
commit a bit of damage to a Russian installation so that it could be
blamed upon the Jews?
Don't overlook the matter of a search for a scapegoat. The Kremlin
is in plenty of trouble with its own intellectuals who refuse to take the
gaff from the Communist rulers. Russia needs a scapegoat to make her
the martyr. Dictators traditionally thrive on mrtyrdom when it serves
their purpose. Isn't it possible that Russia, in need of defense for its
actions against innocently accused Jews in a trumped-up law suit,
needed—and acquired—just this type of defense of its position?
The Detroit News editorial went a bit afield. It concluded with a
warning: "This nation will not tolerate a renaissance of the former
Irgun terrorism of old Palestine in our land." This calls for a correction
in lecturing Americans, whether they are Jews or of other faiths. The
Detroit News' rebutal might just as well have been applied to university
rebels or anti-war demonstrators or pleaders for justice for any cause.
It assumes that Jews are building up terrorism and it draws upon a
page from history that has no relation to a domestic Amercian affair,
and that's unfair.
Even worse: it chooses to speak of a handful of affiliates in a mili-
tant organization as if it were the Jewish people resident in this country.
That's rather discourteous. It makes no sense when applied to one of
the most law-abiding ethno-religious groups in America. It wasn't wise,
Mr. Detroit News editorial writer, and it wasn't nice !
A word about the cartoon that appeared on the same page as the
editorial to which-we take exception. It belonged in a counterpart of
Streicher's Stuermer of the Hitler era because it branded the defend-
ers of Israel as laboring under U. S. dollar-signed helmets. The im-
pression given is not that the arms are PURCHASED by Israel from
the U. S. but that it is this country that is directing the war with its
Silk. It's an unreal description of what is °ceasing in the Middle
East and the cartoonist and newspaper this rendered an injustice
to the United States and to Israel.
•
•
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Curiosity Seekers Get Their Rebuke
Newsweek carries an item that has a lesson for visitors to Israel.
Under the heading "Hey, Look—Soldiers!," Newsweek states:
Israelis manning the Sum defenses *since the cease fire find
friends more bother than enemies. Hordes of sightseers, Israeli
and foreign, hive been descending on thte Bar-Lev Line, "interview-
ing" and filling albums with snapshots. The harassed soldiers have
started posting-signs: "Don't Feed the Monkeys," "Don't Annoy the
Animals" and bluntly, "Go Home!"
There is so much about the relationship to Israel that inspires
the Israelis' Jewish kinsmen that criticism should be welcomed. We
hear, all-too-often about Diaspora Jews who would like the red carpet
This striving to return to one's homeland is not the
result of provocations and appeals of Israeli lead-
ers. It is the result of the appeals of many genera-
tions of the Jewish people.
It is the appeal of the blood shed by a free people
headed by Maccabees who fought for national
independence.
It is the appeal of those who revolted against slavery
in a foreign land under the leadership of Bar-
Kochba and who perished in the struggle.
It is the appeal of our ancestors who were burned'
on the fires of the Inquisition and who did not
renounce their people and their faith in a nation-
al renaissance.
It is the appeal of women and children who perished
at the hands of the "black hundreds" of Tsarist
Russia.
It is the cmpeal of millions of Jews whose ashes are
:Tattered throughout Europe.
It is the call of those who rose in the Warsaw Ghetto.
It is the amaeal of my brethren who died on the
gallows of Baghdad.
It is the voice of my people who are building a new
life in their own land.
It is the voice of my mother who calls her son
to her.
The people of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is a well-
capture of Berlin. I was wounded twice. I received
seven government decorations. Thus I fought to
the limits of my strength for the defense of my
long-suffering ancient people, for my relatives who
were destroyed by the Hitlerites, for the future
of Jewish children.
From the moment when my people realised its secu-
lar dream and created its own national state on
the historic motherland of the Jews, I felt myself
to be a citizen of Israel and I cannot imagine my-
self away from Israel and without it.
As all representatives of the Soviet power refuse
to give me the right to leave for Israel, I hereby
declare that I do not consider it possible to wear
the distinctions granted to me by a government
which does not honor my rights and which is
hostile in its policies towards my own country.
I ask you to deprive me, in accordance with the re-
levant procedures, of all the distinctions I have
been awarded and I appeal to you: LET MY PEO-
PLE GO HOME!
Girsh Lsakovich FEIGIN
Lachplesha St. 48/50-15
Riga, Latvian SSR
4 May 1970
Let it be recorded In support of the just appeals being made on a world wide scale to secure
just rights for USSRJews that the fearlessness of Girsh Feigin had compelled the Russian authorities
to release him from a mental institution after being unfairly held there for two and a half weeks.
In his fearless declaration is embodied the self-respect and the courage of Russian Jewry. The
Kremlin's rule of terror meets the proper defiance inthis will to live as a Jew. Blessed the fearless in
Russia whine acts set an example for all Jewry and all mankind never to give up the battle for freedom!
An Appeal to Our Black Fellow-Citizens:
Do Not Give Comfort to Arab Racists
Among the most disturbing developments in the current revolts
among the Blacks in our community is their antagonism to Israel
which is developing into a hatred for all Jews. The anti-Zionist cam-
paign among the Blacks is especially regrettable because our black
fellow citizens have as yet failed to realize that the most serious anti-
Negro movements are in evidence in Arab countries. What the blacks
in this country fail to acknowledge is that the only vestiges of slavery
in the world today are in the Arab countries.
The Negro community has been alerted to this for a long time,
yet the anti-Zionist campaign that has been encouraged on a worldwide
scale from Communist quarters has gained ground while the Blacks
themselves have done nothing against the slavery trade in Arab lands.
Perhaps the appeal from black Sudanese to the United Nations
against the genocide and slavery movement in the Sudan will bring
better results than the pleadings for justice that have come from our
ranks. The Sudanese rebels' plea was described under the beading,
"2 Sudanese Rebels, Charging Genocide, Seek Help at UN,"
in an
article in the New York Times by Michael T. Kaufman. The story reads:
Two representatives of a black Sudanese liberation movement
charged here yestreday that the Arab-led government of Sudan was
using Egyptian and Libyan troops as well as Soviet planes In the
16-year conflict that has pitted Christian and pagan Blacks of the
south against Moslems of the north.
In what they described as an overt appeal to world public opinion,
the two men described the policies carried out by the national gov-
ernment in Khartoum "as genocide against the 4,000,1111 Blacki
of the Southern Sudan."
"We call upon the nations of the free world to express their
indignation at what is happening and to bring pressure to bear en
the nations that supply armaments le Khartoum," said Laurence
Wol Wol, a Sorboune graduate who, as a member of the Southern
Sedan Liberation Front, has presented a petition to the United
Nation calling for observer teams to investigate his charges of
wherever they may travel In Israel, and it is possible that there are
too many requests for permission to go to the very border of the Suez
by those who come to Israel for brief visits.
geswelde.
That can be corrected by some restrictions which are always justi-
fled.
Tho other spokesman, Frederick B. Maggott who idestilled him-
But in the instance of the sightseeing that arouses anger and re- -. self as a camel of Anya'nya; the guerrilla - army of the south, said
that 25 Soviet-bolt aircraft were being, used In bombardments of
sentment we have no doubt that Israelis themselves, out of their anx-
iety to see all that is unique and especially the captured territories,
the southern provisces-aad that Libyasis and Baptises were among
the 25,111 troops fighting tie _rfrb kale lima-
also flock to the soldiers' encampments. If such practices are objec-
tionable and create embarrassment among soldiers, causing them to
Be said that M the last mon Years some 251,111 black Sudanese
express strong resentment, tie intrusions should be corrected. There
had lima abet to death aad 211,111 had died of banger.
are no excuses for circus - riding in a time when the battle is for Israel's
- 'new: •
- pastilles! le the United Nations by the two
•
security and a future engrossed in dignity.
2•rldwy, Jesting 15, 1971
'
"
SOW
Jaws! NEWS
men
details; - of strachies. lidward Lawns, who is in charge
ef defile* wilhaadt-ammemakermee Baited Nathan*, esiadahmed
that neentel
.
.
. .fly! es
and
circulated confidentially at the
next meeting of the Human
Rights Commission in Geneva.
But under resolutions of the Eco-
nomic and Social Council, the
Commission "has not power to
take any action."
For its port, the Khartoum
government has accused outside
forces of stirring rebelioa and
secession. "They stirred up civil
wars in the Congo and Nigeria
and they are trying to play the
same evil game in the Sudan,"
said Premier Grater al-Nlmeiry
in a recent interview in Khar-
toum.
Now we renew our appeal to
the blacks in our communities in
this country to end their unjust
campaign against Zionism, not to
be unfair to Israel which is ack-
nowledged as the freest and most
democatic country in the Middle
East.
There is every effort at raising
the standards of Arabs who live
amidst the Israelis. Friendship is
encouraged not only with Arabs
within Israel but with those in
Israeli occupied territories, with
all Arabs everywhere -who wish
to trade with Israel or to -exchange
good will with Jews everywhere.
.
What we need is an elevation
of the standards of living among
the Arabs as a measure that should
lead to peace-between Israel and
her neighbors. When tha t is
achieved there inevitably also will
be an end to slavery in Arab
lands: To attain this we must
have the friendship and under-
standing of our black fellow-citi-
zens. Let there be an end to
malice and a beginning of good
days for all people in a world striv-
ing for peace! '