32
Friday, November 2, 1984
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
OP-ED
Lillian and Samuel Hechtman
and the
Freeway story criticized
Board of Directors
Continued from Page 4
of the
Jewish Federation Apartments
cordially invite you
to join them for an
Open House
inaugurating the
Lillian and Samuel Hechtman
Federation Apartments
6700 W. Maple Road
West Bloomfield
Sunday, November 11, 1984
1:00-5:00 p.m.
Program 3:00 p.m.
LI ENENEA.NEXXXXXXXXXEXt -EXCXXXXXXNEXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXtXXXE.XXXXV
YOU WON'T BELIEVE IT!
10
S! FACTOR
SMOG
Y 0
0
► OU,
THE
LEATHER
FACTORY
• WALLETS • PURSES • BRIEFCASES • BELTS FOR MEN & WOMEN
• HANDBAGS •LEATHER PANTS •LADIES LEATHER JACKETS & SKIRTS
ros
.1)
I EVERY LEATHER ACCESSORY IMAGINEABLE!
TYPES OF LEATHER: EELSKIN, SNAKESKIN, KID, CALFSKIN, COWHIDE, SHEEP, LAMB, GOAT, CROCODILE, ETC.
EXECUTIVE GIFTS FOR
YOUR HOLIDAY SHOPPING
GRAND OPENING
FRIDAY, NOV. 9, 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.
30835 WEST 10 MILE RD., 1 /2 Blk. East of Orchard Lake Rd. • 411-5120
- „
41,
more attractive Victoria Park
— a long-standing commit-
ment to the residents north of
Ten Mile Road — is well on the
way toward completion. In
fact, anyone who follows the
1-696 route along Ten Mile
Road will see how many spe-
cial features we have been
able to negotiate, not only for
our Orthodox Jewish commu-
nity, but for our many other
Jewish residents and for our
entire citizenry.
Oak Park today is, after all,
a multi-ethnic community. Its
ethnic diversity has received
worldwide recognition
through media coverage that
has included a lengthy feature
article in theNew York Times.
We appreciate our diversity of
citizenry.
Oak Park's ethnic diversity
is working, and MUST work,
for the city's benefit. Our resi-
dents must live their own be-
liefs and traditions and lifes-
tyles as they wish, in mutual
respect. We must NOT be di-
vided by our differences; but
we must be equally free to
exercise them.
Regarding this very sensi-
tive and very human issue, I
must point with great excep-
tion to your story's quote of
Rabbi Kaplan that Oak Park,
from "Eight Mile Road to 1-696
will eventually be all-black."
The statement, first of all,
smacks distastefully of ra-
cism. Even if Rabbi Kaplan
were a qualified urban
sociologist armed with histo-
ry's first truly functioning
crystal ball, his statement
would be grossly irresponsi-
ble, as well. Further, there is
no way possible to substan-
tiate the notion that any such
consequences will result from
the completion of 1-696.
Yet, your reporter saw fit to
quote this statement and your
editors saw fit to print it with-
out even a nod to the basic
journalistic principle of chal-
lenging Rabbi Kaplan to sup-
port his claim or to that of in-
viting a response from those
governmental officials who
are involved not only with the
1-696 project but with the
overriding responsibility of
protecting the general welfare
of Oak Park's future!
Aside from being highly
questionable journalism, this
was a clear insult to the many
fine families of all back-
grounds who have lived in Oak
Park for years and those who
have more recently moved into
the city to live in harmony
with their neighbors.
In this respect, and in its
entirety, The Jewish News ar-
ticle is a slur against Oak
Park's municipal officials and
its residents of all back-
grounds and beliefs.
The story's fundamentally
unfair narrowness of approach
and obviously preconceived
slant is all the more frustrat-
ing because of Oak Park's
long-established and continu-
ing record of serving the needs
of its Orthodox Jewish com-
munity.
Alan Abrams responds:
The negotiations in which
the 1-696 concessions were
hammered out were con-
ducted in 1980, when Char-
lotte Rothstein was an Oak
Park councilwoman. No one
at those meetings recalls
Mrs. Rothstein being in
attendance.
Mrs. Rothstein's travels to
Washington three times in
the last two years were sub-
sequent to the 1980 negotia-
tions, and underline the
story's contention that the
concessions have been facing
erosion by the federal gov-
ernment.
The statement in the story
about the ethnic makeup of
Oak Park from Eight Mile to
1-696 was made by a number
of observers, including Rabbi
Kaplan, and was commented
upon by Mark Schlussel.
NEWS
7 terrorists killed,
3 Israelis injured
-
in Lebanon clashes
Tel Aviv (JTA) — Seven ter-
rorists were killed and three Is-
rael Defense Force (IDF) soldiers
were wounded in two separate in-
cidents in south Lebanon last
Wednesday.
The three soldiers were
wounded in a clash with three ter-
rorists who were trying to cross
the Awali River. The Israelis
opened fire and killed two of the
terrorists. The third terrorist
threw a grenade at the IDF patrol,
which exploded and wounded two
soldiers. In chasing the third ter-
rorist, the other IDF soldier slip-
ped on the steep rocky hillside and
was injured. Other IDF soldiers in
the patrol chased the terrorist and
killed him.
At about the same time, an-
other IDF patrol in the Baroukh
mountain area clashed with an-
other terrorist group. Two ter-
rorists were killed on the spot and
two others were killed while at-
tempting to flee. There were no
Israeli casualties in this incident.
Cemetery ruined
Bonn (JTA) — The Jewish
cemetery of Weyhers near the
town of Fulda was desecrated last
weekend.