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Former Prisoner of Conscience Yosef Mendelevich and Akiva
Day School students released balloons for Soviet Jews during
his 1985 visit to Detroit.
Jewish Life In Russia
A Soviet Viewpoint
A Detroiter Responds
YAKOV LOTSHTEIN
WILLIAM GRAHAM
oscow — According to the
Western press, all Soviet citi-
zens of Jewish origin are
dreaming of the day they will pack their
trunks and leave the Soviet Union,
where they don't want to live, and go to
the West where they think life is better.
If we look at the facts, however, We
will see that Jews are a rather advan-
taged segment of the Soviet population.
Though they comprise less than one per-
cent of the population, they constitute
from 10 to 20 percent of the people
engaged in the political and cultural life
of the country. About 45 percent of the
people with advanced degrees are Jews.
In other words, we cannot say that
Soviet Jews are languishing in poverty.
Judging by a poll conducted among
3,000 ex-Soviet Jews by experts at Il-
linois University, much more than 50
percent had been satisfied with their
jobs, living conditions and medical serv-
ice in the Soviet Union. Why, then, did
they leave?
The primary reason for Soviet Jews
leaving for Israel and other countries
(about 300,000 have left to date) was the
desire to unite with relatives who had
been scattered around the world just be-
fore and during World War II.
In the 30s, when the Nazis began to
persecute the Jews in Germany and
other European countries, the Soviet
Union opened its borders to them, thus
saving thousands of lives. After the war
M
akov Lotshtein represents a fine
example of the new Soviet pub-
lic relations effort. It is interest-
ing that the author's name, or "pen-
name," is one that would lead us to be-
lieve he is Jewish. This is a typical
Soviet tactic to gain credibility and to
disarm the reader. In the past, Soviet
spokesmen were all old, overweight,
dressed in drab, ill-fitting suits and
spoke with a strong accent and a husky
voice. Generally they came across as
Soviet hardliners.
Today's Soviet spokesperson is more
typically young, has a very good com-
mand of the English language, does not
have an accent. They are no longer old
overweight men and they dress as if
they bought their clothes at Hudson's.
This new breed of spokesman typically
doesn't attack the West in an aggressive
belligerent manner as we have been ac-
customed to in years gone by. They are
typically charming, more sophisticated,
more subtle and more persuasive -than
their predecessors. Yakov Lotshtein is
no exception, and, although he isn't as
smooth as one of the spokespersons we
have seen on television lately, he is
quite effective- in presenting his case.
We are told that Jews represent "10
to 20 percent of the people engaged in
the political and cultural life of the
country." This is a vague and broad
statement that defies definition or ver-
ification. He wants us to forget that
Continued on Page 24
Continued on Page 22
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