30 Friday, September 9, 1977 THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
IBM
Many persons have a
wrong idea about what con-
stitutes true happiness. It is
not attained through self-
gratification, but through
fidelity to a worthy pur-
pose.—Helen Keller
typewriters Selectric etc.
'400
Add 'n Type
342.7800 399-8333 342-1221
-* •
•
L
•
10
3
, r
eS„
/ 4 p •
4•!,.1
VAIN);
(
It' 7
, r • fgri
1 .
0
14.ri' • ff
•
;
Li- \ I • V 1: ;Oil
.4;
17N,s-
FORESTS
that bear your name
Long after you have gone, forests in Israel
renewing themselves in the cycle of sea-
sons, will keep your memory eves green.
When making your Will, provide that a
forest in Israel be planted in your name or
in that of someone dear to you, handing
down your last wish from generation to
generation.
A bequest to the J.N.F. is a bequest to the
entire Jewish people. linking the name
of the Testator with Israel in perpetuity.
For information and advice
in strict confidence apply to
Jewish National Fund
22100 Greenfield, Oak Park, 48237 (968-0820)
U-M Interviews Basis for Study
of Russian 'Drop-Outs' in U.S.
By MAURICE
SAMUELSON
LONDON (JTA)—Most of
the 17,000 Soviet Jews who
have immigrated to the
United States rather than Is-
rael nonetheless retain a fa-
vorable image of the Jew-
ish state, and many have
gone to the U.S. in order to
be reunited with relatives
already living there.
These are two of the cen-
tral conclusions in an ar-
ticle in the journal, "Soviet
Jewish Affairs," published
here by the Institute of Jew-
ish Affairs. Its findings help
to nullify official Soviet
propaganda claims that
these people—the so-called
"drop-outs," "noshrim" in
Hebrew—invalidate the
whole Jewish-Zionist emi-
gration movement of recent
years.
Although the article is
based on interviews with im-
migrants in Detroit—they
numbered 244 last year—
this group is said to be rep-
resentative of the 17,000 So-
viet Jews who immigrated
to the United. States be-
tween 1971 and 1976 on
visas permitting them to go
to Israel.
Among those interviewed
were 19 who arrived in the
U.S. from Israel rather
than immigrating direct to
the U.S. from the Soviet
Union. According to the au-
Sam Tanenhaus and
The Staff Of
THE
HARUARD SHOP
TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO
WISH
YOU AND YOUR FAMILY
A VERY MARVELOUS
AND HEALTHFUL
NEW YEAR
THANKS FOR MAKING US THE
NUMBER ONE INDEPENDENT
Palm Beach For Boys
and
Pierre Cardin For Boys
RETAILER IN THE METROPOLITAN DETROIT AREA
THE Martiateh SHOP
FINE APPAREL FOR MEN AND BOYS
SEARS-SOUTHFIELD SHOPPING PLAZA
SOUTHFIELD & 121/2 MILE RD.
557-2290
MON.-SAT. 10 to 9
SUN. 12 to 5
thor, Zvi Gitelman, associ-
ate professor of politics at
the University of Michigan
in Ann Arbor, these 19 had
not developed a more nega-
tive image of Israel while
there than the other "drop-
outs."
They also see Israel as
basically capitalist, not So-
cialist, and developed
rather than under-devel-
oped. There is also a strong
agreement among the immi-
grants that Israel is basi-
cally a peaceful state, in-
dicating that they reject the
Soviet portrayal of Israel as
unremittingly. aggressive.
A more surprising finding
is that 70 percent consider
Israel as a religious, not
secular, state, and for the
great majority this is an un-
desirable characteristic. Ac-
cording to Gitelman, "This
image may have been but-
tressed by reports from So-
viet Jews in Israel who
have encountered religious
authorities in charge of
marriage and divorce and
conversion to Judaism."
But since so many of
their other perceptions of Is-
rael are positive, why did
they not immigrate there?
The largest proportion-42
percent—cited the fact that
they wished to join rela-
tives in the United States.
The more educated also
emphasized that there were
greater vocational and eco-
nomic opportunities in
America and some were at-
tracted by America's power
and standing in world af-
fairs.
The other side of the
same coin are fears about
war in the Middle East—
cited by more than 15 per-
cent as the reason for not
going to Israel—and the Is-
raeli climate. Others empha-
sized that the United States
is a democratic country.
"We were attracted not by
religion but by freedom,
that is, by the U.S.," one ex-
plained.
The commonest single
main reason for emigrating
from the Soviet Union was
given as the wish to join rel-
atives abroad. However
among subsidiary reasons,
political alienation, anti-
Semitism and anti-Jewish
discrimination in education
were mentioned the most
frequently.
Tracing the growth in the
number of "drop-outs"
-from Israel-bound emi-
grants, the article shows
that when the current So-
viet emigration began in
1971 less than one percent
of those leaving the USSR
did not proceed to Israel.
The same was true in 1972.
But in • 1973, 4.5 percent
"dropped out" in Vienna.
In 1974, the "drop-outs"
reached 18.7 percent; with
37 percent in 1975 and 49
percent in 1976. At the
same time. there has been
an overall decline in immi-
gration to Israel. At least
part of the "drop-out". phe-
nomenon is explained by Gi-
telman in terms of the dif-
ferent kind of Soviet emi-
grant leaving the USSR
after 1973 as compared with
MOST
RA
those in the preceding peri-
od.
The immigration to the
U.S. has been largely from
the Ukraine and the Belo-
russian Republic, in which
Jewish culture and con-
sciousness, and hence Zion-
ist convictions, are weaker
than from the western per-
ipheries of the USSR and So-
viet Asia (including
Georgia) where Jewish con-
sciousness is relatively
high.
The interviews which con-
stituted the basis for the ar-
ticle were carried out by
the Center for Russian and
East European Studies at
the University of Michigan
with the cooperation of the
Jewish Family Service of
Detroit.
E FIRST
CHI
•
•
•
•
•
H
WI
DAVIS
FAUN
PRINCE THERS
WE' RE#
UN
RACKET BAL
TENNIS...FUL
WITH CLOTHI
AND FOOTWEA
LOVE & SPORTS
EVERGREEN & 12 MILE
Evelyn" Plaza
Seitldisld
COIN D'OR
JEWELERS
Would Like To Wish
All Our Customers
HAPPY HOLIDAYS
~
LJ 1.0 MO 111J -
1 (1 ithei - _,4„11,1,,,3
Sate - Repa ir3
COIN D'OR JEWELERS
Chatham Square
25794 Middlebelt Rd:
Farmington, Mich. 48018
(313) 477-5320
HAPPY NEW YEAR
May It Be Thy Will
0 Lord Our God,
And God Of Our Fathers
To Bless Us All This
Coming Year With The Joy
Of Long Life And Lasting Peace
Throughout The World.