Soviet Jews' Quiet Heroism Finds Support in Detroi Community

By CHARLOTTE DUBIN
Eleanora Poltinnikova res-
olutely marched three miles
for Soviet Jewry Sunday
afternoon.
But the show of firmness
wavered as she later related
to a rally audience the
agonies with which she and
her family have lived as

Jews in the Soviet Union.
Miss Poltinnikova broke
down several times as she
told the 2,500 young people
and adults of the daily har-
assment, threats of imprison-
ment and sheer fight for sur-
vival that -have confronted the
Poltinnikovs since they first
applied for exit visas to
Israel in March 1971.
Eleanora, her husband and
THE DETROITJEW1SH NEWS
grandfather were permitted
10—Friday, May 10, 1974
to emigrate in 1972, leaving
behind her parents and sister.
Her grandfather has since
died — waiting in vain, she
said, for the phone call from
Novosibirsk bringing news
that that the rest of the fam-
ily could come to Israel..
Eleanora thanked the De-
troit community for its help
in sustaining her family.
Several Detroit physicians
have hired her parents and
sister, all doctors, as paid
consultants. Thus, with some
means of 'support, the fam-
ily has been able to chal-
lenge the accusation of "par-
asitism."
Additionally, the Poltinni-
kovs have been "adopted" by
local organizations, and an
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a special bond between them
and Detroit Jewry.
The occasion for Eleanora's
visit here was Solidarity Day
for SovietJewry—a combina-
tion ."walkathon" . through
Oak Park and a rally follow-.
ing, at Cong. Bnai Moshe.
An estimated • 500 persons
joined the walkathon, the
brainchild of Hillel Day
School teacher Yoram Dahav
and his sixth grade classes.
The 11- a n d 12-year-old
youngsters came out en
masse because, as Lisa Char-
lip put it, "we're Jews, and
we want the Soviet Jews to
be free like us."
The students preceded the
Solidarity Day project with
week's of preparation, includ-
ing collecting funds for the
Detroit Committee for Soviet
Jewry, which sponsored the
event •with the cooperation of
the Jewish Community Coun-
cil. The Hillel youngsters
raised a total of $2,200, and
two students, Eve Reider
and Avery Lampert, raised
almost $250 each on their
own.
Others who raised more
than $100 each were Steve
Arbit, Barb Lewis and Julie
Weisberg of Sharey Zedek
and Alicia Blas, Bert Gold-
man, Joel Levin, Molly
Bindes, Lisa Steiner, Steve
Lupovitch, Ilene Ross, Donna
Boesky, Mark Freedman,
M elis s a Krakauer, Lisa
Charlip, Anita Liwazer, Lisa
Applebaum and Julie Rosen.
Although all age groups
were represented in the
event, the day clearly be-
longed to the young. Bnei
Akiva-Young Israel, Bnai
David and Bnai Moshe USY
were among the youth groups
that braved the threat of rain
to complete the walkathon.
(The rain held tack until the
stragglers made it into the
synagogue.)
Reiolutions pr ocl ai ming
Solidarity Day, May 5, were
read at the rally by Roy
Williams, representing Gov-
ernor Milliken, and by State
Sen. Jack Faxon, on behalf
of the Michigan Legislature.
The latter resolution was in-
troduced by Faxon and Sen.
Daniel Cooper.
A special guest was Rabbi
Irving Greenberg, chairman
of the department of Jewish
studies at City College of the
City of New York. Dr. Green-
berg, who was in Detroit for
a Jewish Welfare Federation-
-sponsored function, delivered
a brief 'address to the rally,
urging its participants to
continue their fight for Sov-
iet Jewry.
"There's a saying in the
Talmud," he said, "that if
you uphold one life, it is like
saving the whole world." Ap-
plying that precept to the
present situation, Dr. Green-
berg said, American Jewry
must uphold the quiet hero-
ism of the Soviet Jews by
continuing to make phone
calls, to write letters, to hold
rallies. -
"It is no wonder that • the
Soviet government is so furi-
ous," he said. "A simple peo-
ple has forced it to make con-
cessions in a way that Mao
Tse Tung and the power of
the U.S. government have not
forced it to do."
Miss Poltinnikova, a 26-
year-old English teacher,
echoed that theme in remarks
to The Jewish News. "You
must make a big noise," she

said. "I don't believe in quiet
diplomacy. The only real
leverage is the Jackson
Amendment; the rest is only
words. The Soviet Union is
much weaker economically
than the Americans think,
and trade is very important
to them."
Her own "exodus" was a
result of President Nixon's
pre-election visit to the Soviet
Union, she said. But she had
to pay a high price. "The
Soviets were trying to help
his campaign, so they gave
permission to a group of Jews
to leave without paying the
education tax". She received
word on Nov. 3, but before
she had time to acquire a
visa, the election was over.
"The next day, they started
charging the fees again."
While in Detroit—prior to
returning to Washington
where she has been working
on her parents' release —
Eleanora spoke at Beth
Shalom Sabbath services and
before several school groups.
She was the house guest of
Mr. and Mrs. Myron Joyrich.
"I have almost family here,"

Eleanora said. "Everybody
is worrying about me."
She told the Bnai Moshe
audience: "I'm not going to
stop till my family is all out.
And I know you won't. My
family is only one of thou-
sands. As long as you sit
quietly, someone there is suf-
fering. The more you do, the
less suffering there will be."
Participants in the rally in-
cluded Arnold Michlin and
Shirley Leopold, co-chair-
men of the Detroit Commit-
tee for Soviet Jewry; Rabbis
Moses Lehrman and Irwin

Groner; Cantor Louis Klein;
and Rae Sharfman, who has
been particularly active in
efforts on behalf of the Pol-
tinnikovs.

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