72 Friday, October 21, 1983

THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

Anti-Semitism in U.S.: Clear and Present Danger

By IRVING GREENBERG

National Jewish
Resource Center

NEW YORK — In the
United States today, there
is a build-up of anti-
Semitism. History repeats
itself — but not always in
the same format. The
danger here is not that
anti-Semitism may come to
power. In American popular
opinion, anti-Semitism con-
tinues to decline. Therefore,
the new danger of anti-
Semitism will not be stop-
ped by increased
generalized drives against
anti-Semitism.
The clear and present
danger is the growth of spe-
cialized neo-Nazis or other
violent groups. In West
Hartford, Conn., there were
four arson fires in syna-
gogues and a rabbi's home.
At Yeshiva University in
New York, there have been
several automatic rifle at-

tacks on students. In
Bloomington, Ind., Nazi
graffiti and arson of the
community center/syna-
gogue occurred but the news
has been kept down at FBI
suggestions. God knows
what other situations have
been kept quiet for fear of
publicity generating more
activity.
I believe that these are
individual phenomena, not
the product of one general
conspiracy. Some of these
actions will prove to be the
work of deranged people
and not of organized anti-
Semites. But with the cur-
rent climate of opinion
(criticism of Israel, social
unrest, Posse Comitatus,
etc.) and the widespread ac-
cess to guns in America, a
successful, bloody armed at-
tack on a Jewish organiza-
tion or gathering is a
tragedy waiting to happen.
Such an attack -could be a

double disaster in that it
would break the circle of se-
curity and peace which has
kept foreign and anti-
Jewish terrorism out of the
United States and could un-
leash armed violence all
over the U.S.
Two steps are needed ur-
gently: a major tightening
of security and alertness by
all American Jewish organ-
izations and synagogues —
local as well as national —
and pressure on the Ameri-
can government and the
FBI to investigate and infil-
trate these violent groups.
A friend of mine stumbled
upon a meeting in the
Radisson Hotel in
Scottsdale, Ariz. during the
week of June 14-21. Mem-
bers of an American Ex-
press tour group of over 125
people from Germany called
the "Frankfurter-Stuermer
Chapter" were meeting
with representatives of the

RABBI GREENBERG

Nationalist Socialist White
People's (American Nazi)
Party.
He had his Congressman
contact the FBI. The FBI
wrote back that it is "not
currently investigating the
Nationalist Socialist White
People's Party" and that
"we do not conduct investi-
gations merely because a

group espouses dissident ition and imitation. Once
views."
airline hijacking succeeded
This could be an accept- a few times in America, it
able answer if we were only spread among "crazies,"
dealing with views. In fat,
ideologically motivated and
violence is spreading; arms ' dissident groups alike. The
are being gathered. We face
result has been a perma-
the danger that as in
nent reduction in the
France, when the outburst
standard of safety, con-
of anti-Semitic right-wing venience and humaneness
violence came, the police in travel and the burden of
were unprepared. It was increased security policing
discovered that police had
in airports. Focused, effec-
infiltrated only the left-
tive high priority action
wing terrorists.
now may still avert such a
Jews must pressure the
development in Jewish in-
government to step up in-
stitutional life in America.
filtration of the right-wing
The lesson of the
violent groups before it is
Holocaust that applies here
too late. Action after the
is not that another
fact may mean that the evil
Holocaust looms in
genie of anti-Semitic vio-
America. The lesson is that
lence is out of the bottle,
turning points are best pre-
never to be returned. A
vented beforehand rather
permanent deterioration of than reacted to afterwards.
Jewish condition in
Concentrated political-ad-
America could be the tragic
ministrative Jewish politi-
result.
cal power should be exer-
Such actions invite repet- cised domestically.

Gemayel, Lebanon Facing Internal, External Treason

By REV. FRANKLIN
LITTELL

National Institute
on the Holocaust

PHILADELPHIA —
Amin Gemayel, president of
Lebanon, is facing the open
treason of certain clan lead-
ers in his effort to re-
establish Lebanese sover-
eignty.
There has been no "Leba-
non" since the civil war of
1975-1976. Clan chiefs —
some of them backed by
Iraqi, Syrian, Libyan, and
(more recently) Irani money
and equipment — have,
during seven years of chaos,
staked out fiefdoms with all
the marks of sovereignty:
taxation, appointment of
regional and local officials,
armies, schools. The rump
of legitimate government
was isolated in east Beirut
and surrounding villages.
During the civil war,
which cost 100,000 lives
and approximately 400,000
refugees — tragedies later
attributed by the yellow
press to the Israeli police ac-
tion of 1982 — Syria in-
vaded Lebanon and eventu-
ally controlled two-thirds of
the country. In that terri-
tory, there was stored by
Russia, Syria's controlling
sponsor, enough military
materiel to equip a major
army engaged in a
(planned) major war.
The IDF action not only
rooted out the terrorist
training camps of the
PLO, but eventually
forced Arafat and his
entourage to flee Leba-
non. The PLO has found
its way back in, capitaliz-
ing on the assistance of
the Syrian dictator and
the weakness of the

the Russians and their sur-
rogates. Israel was left with
the sacrifices and the cost,
to salvage as best it could
the basic objective: to secure
the northern border against
terrorist raids.
News of this is unintellig-
ible if one depends solely
upon newspaper reports.
They continue to savage the
Lebanese government at
every opportunity, just as
they lied wholesale about
the IDF action throughout
the campaign.
Nowhere do the re-
porters point out that the
REV. LITTELL
president of Lebanon is
Western democracies. If confronted by organized
either the U.S. adminis- treason on the part of tri-
tration or the European bal chieftains, deter-
community haci been mined to retain their sov-
capable of decisive ac- ereign fiefdoms, receiv-
tion — like, for example, ing constant assistance
President Eisenhower's from Syria, Iraq, Libya
action in 1954 — both and Iran — the dictator-
Syria and the PLO would ships still at war with Is-
have been out of Leba- rael and ready to destroy
non. And Lebanon would Lebanon rather than see
be under way to re-
another government sur-
establish its national vive that has declared an
sovereignty.
armistice with Israel.
Unhappily, such decisive
Walid Jumblatt, one of
action did not occur — and
Israel was left alone to con- the traitor chieftains, has
solidate base line gains as established a "Peoples
best it could. Offered a Authority for Civil Ad-
major setback to Russian ministration" in his terri-
expansion on a silver plat- tory. He proposes to set up
ter, through the sacrifice of again an area independent
Israel, the Western democ- of the central government,
racies — including the Ad- with civil and military ad-
ministration in Washington ministration including a
"Peoples' Congress" and a
— allowed Russia and its
tax system. He proposes, in
vassals to re-establish
short, with the aid of foreign
their aggressive program.
governments that intend Is-
The appeasement experts rael's destruction and the
in the State Department, destruction of Lebanon's
ably sided by Francis Pym government, to set up again
of Britain and Claude a despotic fiefdom that will
Cheysson of France, sur- undermine Lebanon's ar-
rendered the initiative to mistice with Israel.

Walid Jumblatt, whom
the yellow journalists por-
tray as a legitimate leader,
represents that level of
society and civilization
which reigned in China for
decades during the decline
of the Manchu Dynasty and
before a national govern-
ment was established under
Chiang Kai-Shek.

It is indeed a question
whether Amin Gemayel
will be able to re-establish
Lebanese sovereignty with
the internal disloyalty of
tribal chieftains, the de-
clared hostility of Russian
satellites and the flaccidity
of Western resolve com-
bined against him.
The death warrant of
the Lebanese govern-
ment which functioned
until the civil war and the
Syrian invasion was

signed when that gov-
ernment refused to link
up its military forces with
the other armies in the
rattlesnake attack on Is-
rael on Yom Kippur 1973.
For seven years, until the
IDF police action of 1982,
there was no "Lebanon"
— just as for long years
there was no "China" —
except on old maps.
Whether, with the odds
against him, the president
of Lebanon can re-establish
again a national govern-
ment depends entirely upon
whether he can get a real
commitment from the West
— from either the European
community or America, or
preferably both. So far the
signs are not encouraging.
The Syrians have never
sent an ambassador to Be-
irut since Lebanon was es-
tablished. They call it a

"province" — a part of
"Greater Syria."
Russia, temporarily set
back by the IDF action in
the Lebanon, is happy to be
back in a powerful position.
The Administration in
Washington, apparently as
traumatized by memories of
Vietnam as its predecessor,
has not as yet been capable
even of a modest initiative
such as President Carter
took in helping to firm up an
armistice between Israel
and Egypt.
All of this puts extraordi-
nary strains on Israel, with-
out and within. The peace
pact on the northern border
which was within reach is
now in danger of being lost,
as the enemies of America
and Israel — inside and out-
side Lebanon — are allowed
to recover and re-assert
their aggressive intent.

Russians Mob Israel Display

By MOSHE RON

The Jewish News Special
Israel Correspondent

TEL AVIV — Israel par-
ticipated in the Interna-
tional Book Fair in Moscow
last month.
More than 3,000 books,
mostly in Hebrew, were
brought from Israel to Mos-
cow. The Israeli pavillion
was decorated with national
flags and pictures of places
in Israel. During the fair,
which lasted six days, Is-
raeli songs were played in
the pavillion.
Jews from all over Russia
came to the pavillion and
listened to the Israeli songs.
In the Israeli delegation
was singer and conductor
Sara Sharon and poet Benz-
ion Tomer. Many Jewish
visitors copied the songs.
The radio and press in Mos-
cow, which reported about
the fair, did not mention the
Israeli participation.
The Israeli pavillion
was only open four hours
daily, but the Jewish vis-
itors did not leave, even
when the doors of the
pavillion were closed.

•

KGB agents and police
steadily watched the
pavillion to hinder Jews
from taking Hebrew
books with them. But
they could not stop a few
Jews from taking Heb-
rew books and hiding
them under their coats.
There were "incidents"
between the management of
the fair and the Israeli dele-
gation when the Israelis
tried to give Jewish visitors
sourvenirs from Israel. The
management even banned a
few books from the fair. The
protests of the Israeli dele-
gation were rejected and the
books confiscated for the
Lenin Library in Moscow.

The Israeli Communist
Party, Rakach, had a sepa-
rate pavillion with its publi-
cations, managed by Arab
students from Israel who
are studying in the Soviet
Union. The secretary gen-
eral of Rakach, Meir
Wilner, visited by mistake
the Israeli pavillion.

An old Jew asked Sarah
Sharon to sing a special

Hebrew song in the Israeli
pavillion. Sharon took the
Jew to a corner and started
to sing. Many Jews
gathered around them.
They all wept.
The Russian Jews asked
for souvenirs from Israel.
Before the pavillion closed,
they took pages from Heb-
rew books, Israeli flags and
other items.
Two Jews from Odessa
wished to buy a religious
book. The manager of the
pavillion explained that he
was not allowed to sell
books. The Jews tried to es-
cape with the book, but were
caught by Russian police-
men. The police allowed
them to pay 150 rubles for
the book.

The manager of the pavil-
lion noticed a young Jew
standing for hours in the
section for religious books.
He met the young man af-
terwards in the subway. He
mumbled with a happy
smile: "I wish to confess to
you that I took the book `Ot-
zar Hageonirn' of Prof.
Sirnha Assaf with me . . ."

