I CLOSE-UP
Boris and Natalia
Drigant are looking
for work.
THE NEW WAVE
SOVIET JEWS ARE TRICKLING INTO DETROIT.
THE NEW IMMIGRANTS HAVE FAMILY AND
JEWISH AGENCIES TO HELP THEM.
LISA J!CKNOW ELLIAS
Special to The Jewish News
hen Boris and Natalia
Drigant and their daugh-
ter, Marina, stepped off an
airplane at Metro Airport
three months ago, their
eight-year battle to leave the Soviet
Union had ended. But their struggle
to make a new life in a strange and
different country had just begun.
The Drigants are part of a recent
wave of immigrants who were per-
mitted to leave the- Soviet Union as a
result of the thaw in relations with
the United States. In 1987, approx-
imately 100 Russian Jews came to the
Detroit area, up from practically zero
in the last five years.
Unlike Russian immigrants from
the influx in 1977 to 1981, most new
arrivals, like the Drigants, come to
Detroit to be reunited with relatives.
They learn to adapt to their new
home with the help of family and a
support system of agencies designed
to ease the often difficult transition.
IN
24
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 1988
The Drigants' journey began last
summer, when they received permis-
sion to depart from their home in
Moscow. They went first to Vienna,
where they were met and housed by
the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society.
After several weeks in Vienna, they
were sent by HIAS to Rome, and spent
three months there waiting for per-
mission to enter the United States.
They came to Detroit because they
had family here — Natalia's aunt and
uncle, Celia and Solomon Katznelson
— and because Boris, a mechanical
engineer, thought he could find a job
in the area
The Drigants decided to leave the
Soviet Union because of a strong
desire to practice Judaism. When
they applied to leave in 1979, Natalia
lost her job, but Boris was able to keep
his.
"In Russia, Jews don't have
rights, it's not possible to be Jewish:'
Boris said. "Being Jewish is a na-
tionality, not a religion. It is more dif-
ficult for Jewish people to get jobs, to
get the right education for their
children. You don't have the possibili-
ty to learn Hebrew, Jewish history or
Jewish traditions. You only know that
it's bad to be a Jew."
"We have no freedom in Russia,"
Natalia added. "There is no political
and religious freedom. We want to be
Jews. That is very important to us:'
Preparations for the Drigants' ar-
rival began months before they
landed in Detroit. They contacted the
Katznelsons, who called the Resettle-
ment Service, the Jewish agency
primarily responsible for settling im-
migrants into their new home. Reset-
tlement Service provided the first
month's rent and deposit on a
Southfield apartment, and furnished
it so that the Drigants would have a
place to live as soon as they arrived.
The Drigants have since received ad-
ditional furniture from friends and
relatives.
"We provide 120 days of financial
support while a family is situating
itself for independence:' explained
Resettlement Supervisor Elaine Zaks.
"Often, the local family finds the
apartment and pays the rental and
security deposit if they can. If not, we
will do it for them. And in some cases,
the local family is able to help with
financial support?'
Refugees receive a stipend to pay
rent, utilities and buy food for the
120-day period, Zaks said. The agen-
cy also provides "bare essentials" of
furniture, a sofa, lamp, end table,
kitchen table and four chairs, and a
bed and dresser for each member of
the family. If someone in the im-
migrant family is unable to find work
after 120 days, Resettlement counse-
lors will refer them to the Depart-
ment of Social Services for govern-
ment assistance.
Resettlement Service is funded
through the Jewish Welfare Federa-
tion. In the 1987-88 budget, the agen-
cy was slated to receive $225,600, an
increase of $18,000 from the previous
year. But because of the sudden rise
in immigrants, the JWF Board of
Governors approved an additional
$150,000 allocation, much of which
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