OPINION I CONTENTS 22 FREEDOM SUNDAY `Let Our People Go' GARY ROSENBLATT 200,000 persons voiced support for their Soviet Jewish brethren. M MICRON Sti Ni ) fO aTROIT. Word Went Out DAVID HOLZEL Behind-the-scenes logistics smoothed the way for Detroiters. The White Hats Keith and Svetlana Braun: Continuing the fight. The Battle Is Still in Jeopardy For Jews In The Soviet Union KEITH BRAUN vetlana and I would like to express our gratitude to the Detroit Jewish community for the warm welcome which it has extended Svetlana. It only confirmed my assurances to her that this was. a wonderful community to be part of because of its friendliness. The current Soviet-American summit bears even greater meaning for us since we are well aware that Svetlana received exit permission only because of the summit, not because of any claimed change in Soviet emigration policy. It is clear that Svetlana waited as long as she did, not because she was Jewish, but because I was an American. In fact, only about 25 percent of the divided couples were Jewish. Yet, Svetlana's attraction to me was precisely her Jewishness, and the whole ex- perience has served to strengthen my Jewish identity. We American Jewish spouses, though a minority, were the big- gest fighters (to the benefit of all the spouses). Unlike many of the non-Jewish spouses, we fully understood (thanks to our history) that to accomplish anything in this world you must work for it. Further, we knew that we could depend on each other (even after our own situations had resolved). As the leader of the Divided Spouses Coalition, I attempted to wage a national campaign on behalf of Svetlana and other divided spouses. Senator Paul Simon was instrumental in drawing national atten- S Soviet Jew Svetlana Braun was allowed to leave the Soviet Union last month to join her American Jewish husband in Detroit. tion to our struggle. I was particularly for- tunate in having congressional support on a national scale and in having develped a close relationship with a cadre of congres- sional aides, many of whom were Jewish (such as Noam Gelfond of Congressman Levin's office and Diane Blagman of Con- gressman Carr's office), who fought ceaselessly for me, kept me informed of what was happening in Washington and gave me needed encouragement. Although our personal struggle has ended, we remain concerned for others seeking to emigrate, including Svetlana's parents (refuseniks since 1981). While emigration numbers have risen this year and I honestly believe that the Soviets would like to allow all of the 10,000-25,000 refuseniks remaining in the Soviet Union to emigrate, the picture seems far bleaker (or at least uncertain), for those who have not previously applied but now intend to. Many would like to but are prevented by ridiculous Soviet emigration regulations or by fear of receiving a refusal and suffering retribution. All is not well and we should not be fooled by pre-summit ploys which, in fact, only emphasize that the Soviets continue to view people as pawns to be bargained with. Finally, when Svetlana arrived in the United States, we spent a week in Washington before coming home to Detroit in order to express our gratitude to State Department officials (who were aware of us at the highest levels) and members of Con- gress and their aides because we realized that saying thank you (and allowing peo- ple to see their successes) encouraged peo- ple to press for others. Continued on Page 16 ALAN HITSKY Michigan's delegation marched proudly. 47 HOLIDAYS .Shalom Chanukah! A Hadassah group expands its annual holiday party. 58 SPORTS Detroit Roots MIKE ROSENBAUM Our new sports section debuts with a look at our Israel tennis ties. 64 AROUND TOWN Three Stars A community-wide Havdalah service brings the old, the young, the stars. aa-111 . 41. - At?" center The Jewish News family section focuses on the Chanukah festival. DEPARTMENTS 40 44 50 58 81 104 114 Synagogues Life In Israel Inside Washington Sports Entertainment Cooking Seniors 120 122 124 125 130 132 157 Business Women Engagements B'nai Mitzvah Births Single Life Obituaries CANDLELIGHTING December 11, 1987 4:43 p.m. THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS 9.