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Expands Educational Programs and Increases Public Relation's Efforts
Israel's Defense: Weisonan,,,ItexlElected: Detroiter Hamburger a V-P
(Continued from Page 1)
former president of the- ZOA, Jac-
ques Torczyner, who was named
chairman of the national adminis-
trative committee, were emphatic
in their assertions that President
Nixon had shown genuine friend-
ship for Israel and an understand-
ing of national American needs in
the Middle East in his policies of
adhering to an Israel-U.S. friend-
ship. They appealed for a continu-
ing program of protecting the
American position in the Middle
East arm' to stand firm against
Soviet threats in the area.
At the same time, Weisman,
Torczyner and other convention
speakers protested against policies
of appeasement in the State De-
partment.
Weisman, in his presidential ad-
dress, urged the Nixon administra-
tion and the State Department not
to press for Israeli withdrawals to
borders that existed unrealistical-
ly prior to the Six-Day War, as
part of a proposed diplomatic
package" to secure a Middle East
settlement. Weisman stated that
the "self-imposed" and "self-de-
feating" American dictum4for ,Is-
raeli concessions—he' called it "a
perennial State Department sang-
up"—is "responsible more , than
any single factor for encouraging
the Arab-RusSian axis to belitye
a genuine peace can be avoided."
President Nixon, in a mes-
sage to the convention, real- •
firmed "the strength of the com-
mon goals of the United States '
and Israel toward the realization,
of a Middle East settlement,"
and he promised to "continue
to help Israel and its Arab
neighbors" to make peace "a
permanent reality."
There was therefore this evi-
dent inconsistency in American
policies—of the President stand-
ing firmly for an Israel friendship
and the State Department's "fixa-
tion" with an Israeli pullback,
which surfaced most recently in the
United States' abortive proposal
to reopen the Suez Canal.
Weisman said this "fixation"
"supports the Arab-Soviet posi-
tion that sheer inflexibility will
pressure Israel into concessions
that will restore her vulnerabil-
ity, thereby frustrating any change
for real negotiations." He de-
scribed this attitude as "particular-
ly unwise" in light of recent in-
stances of unrest within and
among Arab states.
The unrest, Weisman said, in-
dicates # favorable timeliness for
the introduction of "a stronger
and more affii-mative American
policy which would seek to move
the Arabs away from precondi-
tions that leave hardly anything
open to negotiation."
Weisman urged- the U.S. gov-
ernment to launch "immediate con-
sultation" with the Soviet govern-
rnent on an eventual pullout of
Soviet military personnal from
Egypt and a cessation of arms
deliveries to the Cairo regime.
The ZOA leader also asked
Washington to end its "prolonged
and agonizing reappraisal of the
Military balance between Israel
and e Egypt" and sell Israel the
planes and other aid she has asked
for. Weisman called on the U.S.
to recommend direct Arab-Israeli
negotiations as soon as possible.
Such a policy shift, he said, should
be made in advance of the fall
session of the United Nations, be-
ginning Sept. 21, at which time
the Middle East situation is ex-
pected to be taken up again. "A
new thrust in American policy is
essential," he said, to prevent
"any tampering" with the Security
Council Resolution of Nov. 22,
1967, setting guidelines .for a Mid-
dle East settlement.
The role played by youth at
inspiration to the elders. A siz-
the convention was a source of
56 Friday, September 10, 1971
—
r
I
The,: Kahane view was ex-
pressp in a leaflet his follow-
ers distributed 'which resorted
to the warning in the Book of
Daniel, (5.25): "Mene Mene
Tekel Upharsin" — "Thou art
_weighed . in the balance and
found w a n t i n g" — and pro-
claimed: "Jew,—It is Time to
Go Home!" The leaflet carried'
the imprimatur "Jewish Defense
League Office of Aliya Alert."
Expressing gratitude to the
ZOA for permitting him to speak,
Rabbi Kahane referred to earlier
unpleasant experiences and said:
"Pittsburgh (meaning the meeting
he was addressing) is not Brus-
sels." He was referring to the in-
ternational meeting in Brussels
from which he was barred.
The ZOA is the only national
Jewish organization that has, thus
far, granted Kahane a platform.
Both Spector and Weisman re-
plied to Kahane. They wished him
happiness in Israel, and they dis-
agreed that there was danger in
the American democratic way of
life. Weisman especially deplored
JDL 'actions 15y means of "demon-
strations /which besides being il-
legal stimulate the false and harm-
ful opinion that Jews sanction vio-
lence and disorder."
Prof. Mikhail Zand, the Rus-
sian linguist whose struggle to
leave Russia for Israel aroused
Worldwide attention, addressed
two sessions of the"convention.
While opposing violence and dis-
approving of JDL methods, he
urged continuing protests and ap-
peals in behalf of Russian Jews
to - enable them, like himself, to
secure visas to settle in Israel.
Dr. Zand spoke in gratitude for
efforts in his and his family's be-
half and he emphasized that Rus-
sian intellectuals sympathize with
Jewish desires to settle wherever
they wish. He maintained that
strong action and insistent appeals
will get the desired responses when
there is consistent demand for the
rights of Russian Jews.
"Non-violent protests from all
over the world gave me the pos-
sibility of leaving," he declared.
He also stressed in an inter-
view that nonviolent protest was
the most effective way of aiding
Soviet Jews.
"We want a national life, a cul-
tural life, for all of us and we have
concluded that this is impossible
in the USSR," he declared.
In an important address to the
convention, Congressman Gerald
Ford of Michigan, minority lead-
er of the House of Representatives,
stated that President Nixon strong-
ly adheres to a policy of friend-
ship for and assistance to Israel
and that this policy will be car-
ried out to the fullest.
Rep. Ford said that "whatever
diminishes the long-range security
of the United States diminishes
the longe-range security of Israel
end the free world."
Declaring that "Israel stands in
the path of the historic Russian
drive to the south . . . that it is
neither in the national interest If
Israel nor of the - United States—
nor of the Arabs—to permit one
great power to consolidate its grip
on this vital region—he made this
statement:
"We all know that Israel's 120-
mile coastline is in fact de-
fended by the U.S. Sixth Fleet
against any outright Soviet am-
bitious intervention, just as Is-
raeli soldiers and airmen man
the ramparts of the free world
in Israel itself."
The Detroit delegation had a
brief conference with Congress-
man Ford after his address to
the convention.
Announcement was made by
Weisman that the ZOA is em-
barking upon a project to convert
the Kfar Silver agricultural high
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS school into a center of secondary
able delegation of Masada mem-
bers, affiliates with the ZOA,.
participated in discussions and
evidenced determination to share
in Zionist goals.
It was to a group of /Masada'
members that Rabbi Meir Kahane,
head of the Jewish Defense League
came to review needA for aliya
—settlement in Israel of large
numbers of American Jews. By
the time he had met with the
youth, Rabbi- Kahane had already
been given permission to speak to.
the- Zionist delegates for 15 min-
utes.
Meeting privately with the youth
—Rabbi Kahane asked that the
New York Times and Jewish News
correspondents should leave and
permit him privacy in disclussions
with the youth—he. warned of an
impending holocaust in this coun-
try, of dangers akin to what had
happened in Germany because of
.a growing anti-Semitism. He espe-
cially related to the Masada mem-
bers his experiences' with police
who accosted him and said Hitler
had not done his job completely.
At the convention, the appear-
ance of Rabbi Iahane was an-,
nounced, in advance by Weisman,
who said that the JDL leader had
c ome unannounced, uninvited;
that he had- consulted the chair-
man of the administratiVe com-
`mittee, Joseph Spector of Balti-
more, and the latter, after getting
appioval from other officers, grant-
ed Kahane the right to speak on
aliya.
There was a debate on the ques-
tion at the Sunday morning ses-
sion, and a small group, led hy
Rabbi Joseph Sternstein, criticized
the welcome to Kahane and pro-
tested against his speaking. But a
resolution by a member of the De-
troit delegation was adopted unani-
mously approving the administra-
tion's actions. The resolution,
which was approved overwhelm-
ingly, commended Zionist adher-
ence to democratic procedures.
In his address, Rabbi Kahane
emphasized that anti-Semitism is
rising in his country, that -there
are dangers akin to those -experi-
enced by Jews in Germany, that
Jews are blind to realities and
are acting as the German Jews
did when they were warned of
impending calamities. He called
for mass migration of American
Jews to Israel and announced that
he was leaving the following Sun-
day to settle in Israel.
He told the convention dele-
gates that they must work on
the basis that "Eretz Israel v'Am
Israel Ehad Hu" — that the
land of Israel and the people
of Israel are one — and if that
is not acknowledged "tomorrow
may be too late."
He told the delegates that "the
land is available" for Jewish ,set-
tlement and "the land awaits us."
"Why sit here, with Panthers
threatening us?" he asked.
"The future of the Jews in this
country is a bleak and a dark
one," Kahane said., "Bitter anti-
Semitism grows with every pass-
ing day. Dark clouds hover over
American Jewry. Today is not as
golden as yesterday, and tomorrow
won't be as golden as today . . ."
He admonished the delegates
that Jews are blamed for every-
thing, for pornography, for drugs.
"Those who have enjoyed pros-
perity for 25 years and are now
unemployed are dangerous," he
declared. "We have our country
with huge sections calling to us.
If Zionism means what it claims
to be, it must mean aliya."
Kahane's attorney, Bertram
Zweibon, accompanied him to the
ZOA session.
Viewing American Jewry's posi-
tion as "bleak" Kahane prophesied
great dangers in recommending
that Jews see the dangerous con-
ditions under which they live.
V-.
.
education designed to serve the
underprivileged youths of North
Africa and other Moslem coun-
tries.
Leon Ilutovich, ZOA executive
director,. added an explanatory
note that the plan announced by
Weisman called for enlargement
of the Kfar Silver student popu-
lation from 400 to 1,000.
The Jewish National Fund's 70th
anniversary medal was given at
the convention to the veteran Zion-
ist leader, Dr. Emanuel Neumann.
Dr. Neumann's address on
Theodor Herzl's "Jewish State" on
the occasion of the 75th anniver-
sary of its issuance was among
the major presentations at the con-
vention.
_It was reported to the convention
by Abram .Salomon, the JNF's new
executive director, that JNF,
whose 70th anniversary will be
celebrated in Basle, where the
fund was founded, next month,
has planted 100,000,000 trees ; re-
claimed 125,000 acres of land and
built 1,500. miles of roads.
Convention resolutions called
for stronger U.S. support of Is-
rael, pleaded in behalf of Soviet
Jewry, endorsed the Masada
youth program, commended the
JNF and endorsed expanded edu-
cational programs.
Weisman's recent statement re-
tarding. the Koch Bill fpr the ad-
mission of 30,000 Russian Jews to
the U.S., above the established
quota, was a subject for debate
at ZOA convention sessions and
in caucuses. The delegates were in
accord with Weisman that the
proposed bill is not a matter for
serious consideration since visas
for admission of Soviet Jews exist.
It was acknowledged that only a
handful of Russian Jews asked to
be permitted to go to the U.S.
and that the major point, em-
phasized by Weisman, is that the
Jews in the USSR are claiming
national status in Israel, else the
desire for emigration becomes un-
realistic for Jews in their status
as USSR citizens.
Dr. Joel Hamburger. president
of the Zionist Organization of De-
troit, was elected a ZOA vice pres-
ident and Philip Slomovitz was re-
elected honorary vice president.
The following Detroiters were
named members of the ZOA Na-
tional Executive Council: Louis
Panush, Dr. Alex Friedlaender,
Dr. Jack Greenberg, Dr. Sidney
Leib, Carmi M. Slomovitz and
Richard Kramer.
The Detroit delegation — third
largest from any community at
the convention—included: Dr. and
Mrs. Joel Hamburger, Dr. and
Mrs. Sanford Bennett, Dr. and
Mrs. Sidney Leib, Mr. and Mrs.
Carmi M. SlOreeeit7, Mr. and Mrs.
Norma
Hudosh, Dr. and Mrs. Jack Green-
berg, Mr. 2- Louis Panush,
Dr. and Mrs
ac-e.
and Dr. Ber -
Weston.
Accompai the Detroit dele-
gation as guests at the convention
were Daniel, Sheldon and Paul
,Hamburger and Randy D. Slomo-
vitz.
Detroit delegates were active
on all committees, and Dr. Ham-
burger was co-chairman of the
Saturday night session.
The convention considered seri-
ously the situation affecting the
American Zionist Federation and
the forthcoming World Zionist
Congress scheduled to open in
Jerusalem on Jan. 17. It was stat-
ed that the ZOA insists upon dem-
ocratic elections of delegates, and
decisions on the manner of select-
ing delegates will be reached this
week.
An important question raised by
Mrs. Hudosh on behalf of the De-
troit delegation elicited the reply
of Presidenf Weisman who said
that ZOA members everywhere
are among leaders in AZF
activities, in their desire for
.
unity, but that unified effort. is
yet to be attained from all func-
tioning Zionist parties.
The traditional Sabbath services
Were directed, as in the past sev-
eral years, by the ZOA national
treasurer, Jack 'Lefkowitz of -New
York.
Zionist Congress Elections
in Latin American Countries
NEW YORK (JTA)—The Zion-
ist organizations in Uruguay,
Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Mex-
ico have agreed to conduct ele0!
tions by ballot to elect delegates'
to the next Zionist Congress 1,v1-' -
will be held in Jerusalem in <,
ary 1972, according to
Korn, member of Israel's Knesset
and secretary. g e n e r al of the
World Labor Zionist Movement.
Arriving in New York on his
way to Israel, he hold a press con
ference that Israeli and world
Jewry must "pay great attention".
to the problems of South American.
Jewry. The political and social
aspects in most of these countries
evoke "deep concern" for the fu-
ture of the Jewish communities
there. Korn said the Zionist move-
ment and the state of Israel have
recently enlarged their interest
and concern for these commu-
nities.
He cited the success of the
Tnuat Aliya movement which had
in many places doubled and tripled
its membership of persons commit-
ted to immigrate to Israel. At the
same time, "it must be admitted,
that the majority of the younger
generation of Latin-born youth and
intellectuals are far from actively
participating in our Jewish na-
tional life," Korn added.
The Jewish educational systems
in Latin America are in "a crisis
stage" and require "immediate and
substantial" assistance in both
finances and professionalism in or-
der to recover their former lead-
ing roles in Jewish life, Korn -re-
ported. He said that while in Chile
he was an official guest of the
Chilean Parliament where a re-
ception was given to him by all the
parties.
Zand ' first Jew to Be Interviewed
on VOA for Broadcast to USSR
NEWS'' YORK (JTA) — Dr.
Mikhail Zand became the first
Russian Jew to be interviewed on
the Voice of America.
According to the VOA editor
who interviewed Dr. Zand on Sun-
day by telephone while he at-
tended the Zionist Organization of
America annual convention, he
was chosen because he is an "ex-
traordinary man."
The 161/2-minute interview was
broadcast Tuesday in full on the
VOA's Russian "political show,"
a 40-minute program of news and
events. However, there were no
advertising spots publicizing the
interview or informing listeners of
the program and the time, as is
usually done with special pro-
-ams. -
Zand was interviewed in 1
sian, not Yiddish, the VOA editor,
told the JTA, because non-Jewish
Russians, he said, could under-
stand Dr. Zand's remarks.
The VOA is under considerable
pressure to begin directing Yiddish
broadcasts to Russian Jews, but
has so far resisted urgings by
most major Jewish organizations. –<
In the interview, Dr. Zand tole -
the VOA officials that anti-Semit-
ism manifests itself in educational
quotas and limits on promotions
for Jews.
Asked why the number of Jew-
ish emigres rose dramatically dur.
ing the last Communist Party Con-
gress in March and then slackened
to a trickle, Zand suggested that
the Russians wanted to avoid dis-
cussions on the subject by con-
cerned Western Communist
parties.
Public opinion played a large
and important role, Dr. Zand
added.
"