2 friday; Marchil 1981
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
Purely Commentary
Israel's Many Difficulties Mount When Internal Issues
Emerge From Reactionary Forces . . . Fascinating Tale
About Two Eminent Brothers . . . Marx's Jewish Daughter
The Evils That Add Misery
to Israel's Many Troubles
Christianity. His private letters are replete with
anti-Semitic remarks, caricatures, and crude
epithets: "Levy's Jewish nose," "usurers,"
"Jew-boy," "nigger-Jew," etc. For reasons per-
Israel suffers from many plagues. The threats from
haps explainable by the German concept
antagonistic Arabs often appear minor when contrasted
Selbsthags (self-hate), Marx's hatred of Jews
with the inner struggles that stem from extremists.
was a canker which neither time nor experience
The settlements problem is serious enough when ele-
ever eradicated from his soul.
ments who are determined to establish themselves in re-
stricted areas defy authorities.
Dr. Padover quoted an interesting judgment of Karl
When aspirants for the messianic go to such extremes Marx by Michael Bakunin, described as "a Russian aristo-
as to appeal to the secretary general of the United Nations crat four years his (Marx's) senior," thus:
to "protect" them from the Israel government they are the
In origin, Herr Marx is a Hebrew. He unites in
foes of reason and the destroyers of their fellow Jews.
himself, one may say, all the characteristics and
The demonstrations a week ago by gangs who insti-
shortcomings of this gifted tribe. Nervous, as
gated rioting and forced government resort to police action
they say, to the point of cowardice, he is extraor-
was good copy for Israel's enemies who could not be ex-
dinarily ambitious 'and vain, quarrelsome, in-
pected to rationalize and understand that a normal gov-
tolerant and absolutist like Jehovah, the Lord
ernment could be harassed by irrationally motivated
God of his ancestors, who is, like Marx himself,
people who will not recognize civilized parliamentary gov-
vengeful to the point of madness. Thereis no lie
ernment in their quest for what they term god-inspired
or calumny that he is not capable of inventing
legacies which are never "g" capitalized by responsible
against anyone who has had the misfortune of
Orthodox or other leaders.
arousing his jealousy or, which is the same thing,
The re-emergence of the state of Israel is in itself Mes-
his hatred.
sianic. The few hundred, even the few thousand, who await
a corporeal Messiah need not accept that judgment. But
There is an ironic note to the Karl
their tyrannical and barbaric actions are inexcusable. This
Marx story. His youngest daughter
is an element that causes trouble. It has been condemned by
became deeply involved in Jewish
Orthodoxy. The wholesome Orthodox element must rule
labor ranks, contrary to her father's
them out of the human factor and their actions must be
failure to take b.n interest in the
treated with contempt.
Jewish laborer. She became deeply
involved in efforts in behalf of the
Saul K. Padover: Biographer
Jew in the needs of the exploited
Jewish working people in London's
With Skills as Researcher
East End.
Saul K. Padover, former Detroiter whose death oc-
Eleanor Marx, the youngest of
curred last month, left a rich legacy of scholarly works. He
the Marx daughters, who was born in
will surely be ranked among the most brilliant biographers
1855 and whose life ended in tragedy
in his generation.
— she committed suicide in 1898 —
Skilled as a researcher, he
was a friend of Israel Zangwill. She
produced several volumes on
KARL MARX
assisted him in collecting material
Thomas Jefferson which will
surely be among the most im- for his "Children of the Ghetto." In the course of her activi-
portant sources of study for ties with the Jewish working class in London's East End
she learned to speak Yiddish.
historians.
It was during the beginnings of the Alfred Dreyfus
Then came the several vol-
affair that Eleanor Marx said, "I am a Jewess."
umes on Karl Marx, and
Dr. Padover did not mention the Eleanor Marx factor
these, too, will be cherished
in his book and it is presented here as a mere addendum.
by students of Socialism,
Dr. Padover made many contributions to scholarship
Capitalism, Communism, as
with his published works, his lectures and during his teach-
well as the events that
ing career. He will be remembered with admiration by the
marked the industrial revo-
lution and the social and few of his Detroit associates who continue to remember him
as a personality of note and one whose accomplishments
political conflicts affecting it.
In "Karl Marx: An Inti- leave an important mark on American literature.
mate Biography" (McGraw Late Jewish Human Rights Leader
Hill), Dr. Padover traced the
Socialist doctrinaire's Jewish
background and attitudes.
SAUL PADOVER
Marx was baptised in his
youth and his attitude towards the people he stemmed from
(Editor's note: "The drawing on his Jewish tra-
was one of hatred. Dr. Padover's description of his defama-
Crisis,"
official organ of dition. As a result, he spent
tory, attitude is especially interesting. There was one occa-
most of his lifetime working
sion when his abusiveness was mitigated. The Padover the NAACP, celebrated on two concerns: full equal-
its
70th
anniversary
re-
biography reveals it, while emphasizing the hate that
cently with a special ity for black Americans and
dominated the Socialist leader. Dr. Padover wrote:
issue devoted in part to the welfare of the Jewish
"the forerunners," men people.
The only known instance when Marx spoke of
Kivie, as he was known to
and women who had de-
Jews without derision was an article for the New
voted themselves to the thousands across the coun-
York Daily Tribune on April 15, 1854, wherein he
civil rights struggle. One try, became a NAACP
described the condition of 8,000 Jews in
of nine persons singled member in 1953. He was
Turkish-occupied Jerusalem, whose total popu-
out for their contribu- elected to the national
lation was about 15,500. Marx wrote:
tions to the NAACP was board of directors the fol-
"Nothing equals the misery and the sufferings
the late Kivie Kaplan, a lowing year. Soon thereaf-
of the Jews at Jerusalem, inhabiting the most
leader of Reform ter, he took over a faltering
filthy quarter of the town, called Hareth-el-
Judaism in the United life membership program
Yahoud, in the quarter of dirt, between the Zion
States through his serv- which, at the time, had 221
and the Moriah, where their synagogues are'
ic-e as a member of the members, only 88 of whom
situated — the constant objects of Mussulman
board of the Union of had paid the full $500 fee.
oppression and intolerance, insulted by the
American Hebrew Con- Using his superb business
Greeks, persecuted by the Latins, and living
gregations, and skills and immense energy,
only upon the scanty alms transmitted by their
president of the NAACP Mr. Kaplan increased the
European brethren . . ."
number of life memberships
from 1966 to 1976.)
to Well over 50,000 by 1975.
After writing "Zur Judenfrage," Marx never
He was one of the special
Until his appointment
returned to the subject as such. Having solved
ones — a sensitive, hard-
by Dr. Channing Tobias
the problem to his own satisfaction and having
driving, resourceful and
as head of the program,
settled with his family background, he dropped
Courageous man. He con-
the life membership drive
the whole matter. Neither did he write exten-
fronted life with a gargan-
sively on religion in general in later years. He
tuan verve that etched him was the proverbial step-
child. Though organized
found it, he told Engels in 1851, a "boring
indelibly in the memory of
theme."
everyone he met. In two de- in 1927, a general feeling
had developed that few
cades, he probably did more
Marx never retracted his defamation of the
persons would be willing
to boost NAACP life mem-
Jews, and this was to have its influence on
— or able — to contribute
berships
than
any
other
socialist thinking. On the contrary, he harbored
such a high fee even for a
member of the association.
a lifelong hostility towards them. In his "Theses
"The teaching is not the lifetime of commitment to
on Feuerbach" (1845), a brief compilation of
chief
thing, rather the the cause,
pithy sayings, he thought it necessary to drag in
Convinced that the pro-
deed," he said repeatedly,
his bias, referring to the "dirty Jewish" aspect of
By Philip
Slomovitz
The Saga of Two Brothers
Who Gained Eminence in U.S.
The passing, in Washington, on Jan. 30, of Morris
Freilicoff, calls attention to the eminence of two brothers.
Mr. Freilicoff was the brother of Solomon Freehof, the
distinguished rabbi from Pittsburgh. -
Both brothers attained fame in two diverse fields — the
elder Freilicoff as a Labor Zionist leader, his brother, Dr.
Freehof, as an eminent rabbi, author of many volumes on
Responsa and in his lifetime one of the very distinguished
book reviewers.
Mr. Freilicoff was the
elder, born in Russia; hig
brother was born
England.
Mr. Freilicoff was a
founder of the Labor
Zionist movement. He
was also distinguished.
Mr. Freilicoff, who
died at the age of 94, was
his brother's senior by
two years. When he came
to this country at the age
of 17 he gained two de-
grees in the National
Law School and began a
career as a Yiddish jour-
nalist in New York in
1925. He was on the staff
of the Jewish Daily
Day-Jewish Morning
Journal until the demise
of the newspaper in 1963.
MORRIS FREILICOFF
His devotion to Jewish literature also distinguished
him as a champion of the Yiddish language. He entertained
confidence that Yiddish would live as long as there were
Jews reading and cherishing the language, that in the
course of time the language would gain ascendancy.
He was the friend and associate and co-worker of the
distinguished Zionist leaders and was an intimate of Is-'
rael's Presidents Yitzhak Ben-Zvi and Zalman Shazar. The
latter said about him: "He was my steady and long, dear
friend. Our meetings in the past were from the days when
he brought us into possession of the spiritual legacy of
Mazzini of Italy."
Mr. Freilicoff's numerous writings included a book on
Giuseppe Mazzini, the Italian nationalist leader.
Mr. Freilicoff was the eminent Zionist and propagator
of Yiddish creativity. Dr. Freehoff continues to be actively
involved in writing and defining Responsa. The eminence
of the two brothers assures a lasting record for them in 20th
Century Jewish history.
- The NAACP Pays Tribute to Kivie Kaplan
•..
be
could
gram
strengthened, Kaplan per-
suaded the board of direc-
tors to create a life member-
ship committee to raise
much needed funds. The
committee appointed Kap-
lan and Dr. Benjamin Mays,
then president of
Morehouse College, as co-
chairmen.
With his "keep smiling"
card as introduction, Kap-
lan sold life memberships to
nearly everyone he met —
passengers on planes,
strangers at conventions,
waiters in restaurants, and
well-known personalities in
government, theater, and
business. Few of his associ-
ates escaped his bulldog
tenacity.
Not surprisingly, many
whites whom he signed up
failed to understand Kap-
lan's motivation to work so
diligently for civil rights.
But to Kaplan that was al-
most beside the point. He
believed in the goals of the
NAACP and understood
fully the financial burdens
incurred in wagiiig its
struggle for equality.
Kaplan was genuinely
committed to a pluralistic
society, one in which all
, ti Ii
faiths, Jews and non-
Jews, Chriitians and
non-Christians, blacks
and whites, and rich and
poor could successfully
work together. Kaplan
encouraged other whites
to join the NAACP.
He wrote: "The organiza-
tion should try hard not to
practice what we're fighting
against — racism. The
NAACP must welcome and
invite white members n
than ever. White bigots
doing all within their power
to keep Jews and blacks at
each other's throats . . . No
minority is safe when an-
other minority is unsafe."
Kaplan was born in Rox-
bury, Mass. in 1904. He was
later president of the Colo-
nial Tanning Co., a multi-
million dollar patent
leather firm, until his re-
tirement in 1962.
In 1966, he succeeded Ar-
thur Spingarn as NAACP
president. He was also di-
rector of the Hebrew Loan
Society, a trustee of the
Combined Jewish Philan-
thropies and a vice chair-
man of the Union of Ameri-
can Hebrew Congregations,
central body of Reform
Judaism.
.
C 1.11,HY't