!•• f !"! THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS Friday, November 16, 1;354 LOCAL NEWS Jewish triumph over Nazis: museum to 'extinct race outlives Third Reich' BY HEIDI PRESS Local News Editor The musuem to an extinct race outlived the Nazi Third Reich." This was the message Dr. David Altshuler, editor of The Precious Legacy catalogue, delivered to more than 700 persons who attended the opening of the 33rd annual Jewish Book Fair Satur- day at the main Jewish Commu- nity Center. During his slide presentation, Dr. Altshuler explained how the Precious Legacy exhibit of Jewish artifacts — mezuzot, Torah crowns, menorot and the like — currently touring the U.S. dis- played a "confluence of many stories" showing the "beauty and creativity" of Jewish artistry. "The Precious Legacy is the story of a rich and varied history. It tells about the, human spirit. The Jewish Musuem in Prague is the window on this spirit." He spoke of how the Nazis methodically catalogued the ritual and other "Jewish" items stolen from Jews who were sent to the concentration camps. The scope of the stolen loot cannot be understood until one sees slides of drawers of mezuzot, cabinets fil- led with Torah crowns, even dried lulavim and half-used Havdalah candles were collected and preserved in the Czechoslovak warehouses, in what the Nazis de- scribed as the "musuem to the ex- tinct race." So meticulous were the Nazis, that "so had they numbered Jews" who came through the camps "so had they numbered their trea- sures." According to Altshuler, tens of thousands of Jewish treasures were sent to Prague, where they filled 50 warehouses. Despite the numerous items stored in Czechoslavakia under the protec- tion of the Czech government, "the majority of items stolen by the Nazis were destroyed and what was not destroyed by the Nazis was destroyed by Allied bombings," Altshuler said. Included in the Precious Legacy exhibit are artifacts from the Theresienstadt (Terezin) concen- tration camp. Most of the items shown by Altshuler were draw- ings, including those by children. According to Altshuler, there was one theme common to the items in the overall collection. "The objects show how the values of Jews upheld Torah principles." Even in the concentration camps under threat of instant death Jews fashioned menorot and other ritual items. Altshuler recalled the Jewish presence in Prague, dating back to about the 16th Century. At that time he said, Prague Jewry was in the midst of a renaissance, and it was the home of the first Hebrew press north of the Alps. In the 17th Century, he said, the Jews helped defend the coun- try against the Swedes, and in gratitude, the Czech emperor allowed the Jews to fly a flag which became the coat of arms for the Prague Jewish community. By 1700, 11,000 Jews resided in Prague, making it the largest Jewish community in Europe. "It was a time of new synagogues and new guilds," Altshuler said. The 20th Century was a turn- ing point. There was a movement afoot to recover Jewish tradition, and an interest in Zionism was rampant. "Prague Jewish Zionism is like the Zionism practiced by the U.S. Jews today," Altshuler said. Just as American Jews support Israel from afar, they shy away from making aliyah, he said. The Prague Jews "wanted roots in Prague where they were secure, they believed. They didn't want to make aliyah." Altshuler worked with dozens of American and Czech scholars who cooperated on compiling the Precious Legacy catalogue. He encouraged Jews to go to Prague to see the collection and said he hoped that the exhibit will be allowed to tour in Europe and Canada. One Sure Wall To Get Results! Did you know that your area newspa- per reaches more people than any other advertising medium? Because of that fact, it's the best vehicle to get your message across... and get results! Call us right now! The Jewish News NEWS 424-8833 Studying Jewish poverty in NY New York (JTA) — Most of New York City's poor Jews are chil- dren and working-age adults, and these non-elderly poor account for about 70 percent of all poor Jewish individuals and about half of all poor Jewish households in the city, according to a new study by the Metropolitan New York Coordinating Council on Jewish Poverty. Rabbi David Cohen, Coordinat- ing Council executive director, said the data came from a draft summary of a recently completed report on "The Low Income Jewish Population of New York Study." He said the formal report would be issued shortly. Cohen said the data showed that nearly 77,000 Jews, who to- gether made up 38,000 house- holds, had family incomes below the federal poverty guideline. For a family of three, that meant an annual cash income of less than $7,250 in 1981. The data is based on an estimate by the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies of a total of 1.1 million Jews in the city of 1981. The preliminary report said that "taking a somewhat higher, more realistic poverty guideline equal to 150 percent of the federal figure, to account for New York City's higher living costs, there were about 144,000 Jews or 68,000 Jewish households living in poverty in 1981." The summary indicated that elderly Jews — aged 65 and older . Concluding Book Fair activities SATURDAY 8 p.m. — Klez-Meydlekh: New York Jewish women's band. SUNDAY 10:30 a.m. — Kenneth Libo, "Jews in the West." 1 p.m. — Frank Stiffel, "Life in Poland Between the Wars." 2 p.m. — Children's program, Mask Puppet Theater, "Joseph and His Brothers." Admission charge. — Kevin Klose, "Jews in the Soviet Union Today." 3 p.m. — Allan Rya, "Nazi War Criminals in the '80s." 4 p.m. — Leonard Simons, "More Simons Says." — account for about 30 percent of all of New York City's poor Jews but, because many of them live alone, they account for about half of all poor Jewish households. These data do not include persons living in such institutions as nursing homes, many of whom are elderly. Compared to the total Jewish population of New York City, low income households are more likely to be headed by a young person, under 25, or an old one, 65 or older. Low income Jewish households are also more likely to be small — two out of five consist of only one person, but some are much larger, according to the summary, containing four or more children. Two out of every five poor Jews live in Brooklyn, the borough with the city's largest Jewish population. Another 25 percent live in Manhattan and Queens. At present the Bronx has less than 10 percent of the city's poor Jews. The summary reported that few of the city's poor Jews admitted needing help. When asked what they found it hardest to afford, they cited, in almost equal per- centages, food, shelter, clothing, health care and payment of utility bills. When they were asked what services should be made more readily available, responses fo- cused most on home care — 14 percent of respondents; senior citizens services — 12 percent; and cash help — eight percent. Cohen said one of the goals of the Coordinating Council study was to show that, in some re- spects, the needs of the city's Jewish poor are different than those of other poor in the city. "In particular, they differ because more of them are elderly and be- cause low income Jewish house- holds tend to live in different neighborhoods from those in which the city's poverty (and anti-poverty) help is concen- trated." these are only a few of the features you'll find weekly The Jewish News order a subscription or gift subscription today! in The Jewish News 17515 W. 9 Mile Rd., Suite 865 I Southfield, Mich. 48075-4491 1 1 Gentlemen: 1 Please send a (gift) subscription to: 1 I NAME I ADDRESS 1 CITY STATE ZIP • I If gift state occasion n $18 enclosed 1 1 11111111111 ■ 9111•1111111r11WW1M1111•11111•11MMIIIIIII =MOM 14(1 93