4 Friday, August 17, 1984 THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS THE JEWISH NEWS Serving Detroit's Metropolitan Jewish Community with distinction for four decades. Is `Hatikva' song too Jewish to be Israel's national anthem? Editorial and Sales offices at 17515 West Nine Mile Road, Suite 865, Southfield, Michigan 48075-4491 TELEPHONE 424-8833 PUBLISHER: Charles A. Buerger EDITOR EMERITUS: Philip Slomovitz EDITOR: Gary Rosenblatt BUSINESS MANAGER: Carmi M. Slomovitz ART DIRECTOR: Kim Muller-Thym NEWS EDITOR: Alan Hitsky LOCAL NEWS EDITOR: Heidi Press EDITORIAL ASSISTANT: Tedd Schneider LOCAL COLUMNIST: Danny Raskin LIFE IN ISRAEL OFFICE STAFF: Marlene Miller Dharlene Norris Phyllis Tyner Pauline Weiss Ellen Wolfe BY CARL ALPERT Special to The Jewish News Haifa — The song "Hatikva," which is sung at Zionist and Jewish meetings the world over, is recog- nized as the official anthem of Zionism. Many believe it is also the anthem of the State of Israel. This is PRODUCTION: not so, and when Pinchas Goldstein, ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES: Donald Cheshure a Likud member of the Knesset, in- Lauri Biafora Cathy Ciccone troduced a bill not long ago to give it Rick Nessel Curtis Deloye formal recognition as the national Danny Raskin Ralph Orme Seymour Schwartz anthem, he ran into objections. ,c) 1964 by The Detroit Jewish News (US PS 275-520) The proposal stimulated a meet- Second Class postage paid at Southfield, Michigan and additional mailing offices. Subscription $18 a year. ing of Arabs who claimed that the wording of "Hatikva," which speaks VOL. LXXXV. NO. 25 of a Jewish soul and the 2,000-year CANDLELIGHTING AT 8:13 P.M. longing to be a free people in Zion, fails to take note of the fact that Arabs also live in Israel. They ob- jected to "Hatikva" and called for a national anthem which would be ac- ceptable to both Arabs and Jews. Amidst all of the other happenings in the Mideast of late, most notably Jewish leaders of left-wing parties the Israeli elections and the Red Sea mines, a disturbing incident has gone agreed with them and decided to virtually unnoticed. We are referring to the Reagan Administration's fight the proposal with ridicule. apparent acceptance of Syria as the dominant force in Lebanon, indicated by a Newsview magazine noted that State Department spokesman's statement that Syria is playing a "helpful" this was the first bill ever presented role in restoring "stability" in Lebanon. to the Knesset with a musical score in That's what Richard Murphy, Assistant Secretary of State for the Near its text. Shulamit Aloni commented, East, told a stunned subcommittee on House Foreign Affairs recently. The in opposition, that since the exact members sharply questioned him about the Administration's apparent shift music score would become part of the in attitude but Murphy stuck to his statement, which defies logic. law if adopted, anyone singing it off- Have we forgotten that it was Syria that was implicated in the key would be technically liable for assassination of Lebanon's President-elect Bashir Gemayel and the prosecution for violating that portion truck-bombing of Marine headquarters in Beirut which killed 241 of the law which called for punish- Americans? It was Syria that sabotaged the American-arranged ment of up to a year in jail for "disre- Lebanese-Israeli troop withdrawal agreement and took control of the spect" to the anthem. Lebanese government. Another Knesset member, also This is helpful? against the proposal, offered an Only a few months ago President Reagan said "Syria is trying to lead a amendment: that "Hatikva" be radical effort to dominate the region through terrorism and intimidation." played only in F-sharp major, to "Times change," said Murphy. So does Administration policy it seems. make it more difficult. Another unfortunate example of Washington's policy of illusion which lacks The Labor Party members pre- the staying power to support one's allies and criticize those who would destroy sent were united in their opposition. them. They claimed a law was unnecessary, and would deprive "Hatikva" of its spontaneous, sentimental aura. Further, it would exacerbate Arab- Jewish relations. When the vote was taken, only Already tested, and proven workable, a program of guidance for the 37 of the 120 members of the Knesset handicapped to become their home masters as homemakers raises high the standards of services performed by the Jewish Association for Retarded Citizens. While group homes predominate, the ability of persons with minimal handicaps to care for themselves has inspired the procedures which are already proving workable. In the name of the Aaron and Helen L. DeRoy Independent Apartment Program, a remarkably progressive project has been made possible with funds provided by the DeRoy Foundation, with the encouragement of the Jewish Welfare Federation. The training program for independent skilled living and independence for those fitting into the projected undertaking is to the credit of the movement which has become a widely accepted ideal in behalf of the retarded, the handicapped who need the support for human approaches with fellow citizens. While the Federation gives the movement encouragement, JARC's functions are in themselves fully autonomous, while benefiting from Federation and Jewish Center cooperation. The Jewish Association for Retarded Citizens — JARC — commenced with a handful and now has thousands of members. Many more thousands owe respect to communal conscience to uphold the hands of those who have established group homes for those who need the enlarged comforting and those who display ability for measures of independent action who benefit from the Aaron and Helen DeRoy Independent Apartment Program. Detroit Jewry's standards for services to the less fortunate in the social spheres have been raised by JARC, under whose direction they earn admiration. Much is yet to be accomplished in this field of human endeavor. for it must be given on a high scale. JARC qualifies for the task. Support .w r..• , 'a `Helpful' Syria Courage for disabled if *ft. g16,11• 4.8 26 11...4...b were present. Likud members were conspicuous by their absence, and the bill was defeated 25 to 12. The hope was expressed that some day twc composers, a Jew and an Arab work ing together, would present a trulk national anthem which all could sink without reservation. Did anyone consider that thi was not merely an idle debate over song, but a confrontation with a fun damental question: Is Israel a Jewisl state? If so, there could be no objet tion to "Hatikva." And if not, why ar Jewish holidays given state statu; The Knesset was placed in the humiliating position of voting against Israel's de facto national anthem and why is Hebrew the primary lat guage and why are Jews urged I come here? It would appear thl many of the opponents of the bill, i their eagerness to turn down an: thing suggested by a Likud membe have commited a major faux pas, ar have in effect denied Jewish rights 1 be in Israel and to establish a state Likud members who failed to 1 present to support the bill are no le guilty than their Labor colleague who voted against. Their excuse th, they could not imagine that Lab would ever vote against "Hatikv does not exempt them from criticisn There is also another una swered question. When Goldste realized that his bill was doomed failure, why did he press ahead wi it, placing the Knesset in tl humiliating position of votii against its de facto national anther whatever the reasons. Though denied legal statu Continued on Page 6