PURELY COMMENTARY

the yishuv to greater self-
reliance. Just as their early self-
protection units, the Haganah,
developed into a modern army,
so did Zionists in Palestine con-
tinue to construct the economic
and political institutions that, in
1948, facilitated the transition to
statehood. Stephen S. Wise had
stated in February, 1930, "The
answer to every Zionist question
will ultimately come, and come
not in London, New York or
Warsaw, but in Eretz Yisroel,
and by them who are its
builders and remakers." To no
small degree he prophesied
accurately.
The author of the researched ac-
count of what happened as a result of
the Hebron pogrom outlined the even-
tual attainment of support for the
planned Jewish state in what was then
Palestine. But she recalled the
divisiveness that existed in jewish
ranks and the disrespect with which
Jewish leaders were treated in
diplomatic ranks. In her words:
Like the events of the 1930s,
the aftermath of the Palestine
riots pointed up the qualified ac-
ceptance of Western Jews within
the body politic. Ever since their
emancipation Jews had tailored
their behavior and beliefs to win
gentile approval, but to non-
Jews they were largely a group
apart. "One of your community"
was the way in which Prime
Minister MacDonald referred at
his meeting with American Jews
to British-born Sir Herbert
Samuel; "our Jewish friends
was the expression used both by
one who called himself a sym-
pathetic liberal (Henry Mussey,
editor of the Nation) and by an
anti-Zionist American official
(Paul Knabenshue). Encompass-
ing non-Zionists as well as
Zionists, reverberations of the
"Jew as alien" theme added
another dimension to the
economic and social discrimina-
tion suffered by American Jews
between the wars:'
The revelations accumulated in this
important volume indicate the
weaknesses in Zionist ranks, the failure
to attain unity, and especially the pre-
judiced diplomatic corps.
In the latter respect the
reconstructed record is especially
saddening.
Are the conditions of that distress-
ing period applicable to the present?
Are Jewish aims and feelings now
similarly disrespected? Time will prove
many things but the lessons are on the
record, as is the one about Hebron.
The reminder of the tragedies of the
1920s and the years that followed are
in this volume. Arabs are shouting
"Deir Yasin" and have made it a slogan
for children in the process of their rock-
throwing. The errors in the Deir Yasin
occurrences will be dealt with here next
week. Meanwhile, it is necessary to re-
mind ourselves and the savages who
were responsible for it that there were
more than 400 Jewish casualties in the
Arab riots of 1929, that Jewish

40

FRIDAY, MAY 13, 1988

the Hebrew yeshiva, that it was a con- theological students were murdered in an article by Morris D. Waldman, who
tinuing pogrom against Jews by Arabs.
was the first executive director of the
With respect to emergency
"The Year After the Riots" serves
Jewish Welfare Federation of Detroit,
relief, American Jews scored
an important purpose as a reminder of
written for The Detroit Jewish News of
well. The mere fact that no
tragic events more than half a century
Nov. 2, 1945. That article, which was
wrangling greeted the appoint-
ago that are like the occurrences now.
entitled "David A. Brown and Our
ment of Brown, a non-Zionist,
The lack of Jewish unity is one impor-
Times," gave an account of that relief
meant that ideological dif-
tant aspect in the reconstruction of the
campaign.
ferences had been set aside in
former events. The indifference of the
The David A. Brown article
favor
of
expertise.
non-Jewish world is another.
becomes such an important historical
There is one aspect in the recalled
This is part of the long chapter in record that I must postpone relating it
era that needs special attention. It is the history of American Jewish philan- a bit later. This note is merely to assure
the way in which American Jewry espe- thropy. It provides recollections of the that I, at least, will not forget him as
cially responded philanthropically.
activities of the interesting personali- a friend of many years.
There is a special Detroit interest ty of Detroiter David A. Brown.
here. The fund that was raised was
Prof. Cohen's "The Year After the
secured under the direction of David A. Riots" will surely occupy one of the Frank L. Simons:
Brown, a famous Detroiter who was most important places in the bookshelf Temple Administrator
With Distinction
among the leading personalities in the devoted to Zionist and Israel history.
early years of the American Jewish
t was in the character of Frank L.
Joint Distribution Committee.
Simons to strive for perfection in
A
Personal
Note
It was under the title of Palestine
everything he had undertaken.
To
My
Readers
Emergency Fund that Brown supervis-
He was a good newspaperman. In
ed the relief effort Prof. Cohen's book
rof. Naomi Cohen revelaed an
his
career
as Jewish News city editor he
recalls:
important American Jewish oc-
was a good reporter, a fine copyreader,
currence
in
which
David
A.
Notwithstanding
the
Brown played another of his great roles. an editor who exercised excellent judge-
obstacles in the way of unity,
It was his chairmanship of the cam- ment in selecting the news.
fund-raising got off to a good
He loved the synagogue and yield-
paign to raise a relief fund for the vic-
start. Under the experienced
ed
to
the call that came for him to
tims
of
the
Hebrew
pogrom
by
Arabs
in
direction of David Brown, a
become the administrator of Temple
1929.
wealthy industrialist who had
It is the manner in which historic Israel's numerous functions. In that
successfully run previous civic
facts get lost that compels this note. capacity he attained national leader-
and Jewish campaigns, the PEF
After reading the David Brown story in ship, was president of the temple ad-
established 250 local commit-
Prof. Cohen's book — she lists him ministrators' movement and helped in
tees across the country by
without the middle initial: "A" — I the selection of aims to increase
September 1. In response to
started searching for the facts. The synagogue enrollments and encourage
telegrams and letters of solicita-
Jewish Welfare Federation, which must youth participation in synagogues as
tion, gifts of $1 up to $100,000
have been involved in the Hebron fun- worshipers and students.
poured in to the local commit-
draising effort, didn't even have a
It is in his family life that these
tees or directly to Brown's office.
reference to his name in his truly perfections were similarly reflected.
Leaders in numerous cities from
historic record. Neither did 'Temple There was the sharing of devotions
coast to coast combined fund-
Beth El, or any other source. Then which they perpetuated. Children and
raising with resolutins of pro-
Wayne State University History Pro- grandchildren in Israel added to it, with
test. Brown mobilized
fessor Matthew Schwartz, who is work- a daughter a reform temple cantor.
machinery and personnel of the
ing on a second volume of the history
There was always genuine pride in
Joint Distribution Committee,
of the Jews of Detroit, assisted me in having him as an associate and a
the United Palestine Appeal, the
tracing my own files. There we located friend.
ZOA, and Hadassah, and, by
keeping campaign expenses
down thereby, was able to
transmit ninety-eight cents of
every dollar to Palestine. While
the PEF operated in high gear,
Brown asked that other
organizations or individuals
engaged in support of Palesti-
nian institutions suspend their
customary fund-raising. Other
general guidelines were set to
keep the fund apolitical and ac-
ceptable to non-Zionists and
anti-Zionists: the money was on-
ly for victims of the riots, the
fund was not to supplement the
budget of the Jewish Agency,
beneficiaries did not have to be
Zionists. (Although Felix War-
burg would have liked to see
relief go to innocent Arab vic-
tims of the riots, that suggestion
was rejected.)
By October 15, when the for-
mal appeal of the PEF was clos-
ed, over $2 million had been
raised from about 1500
American communities. That
sum did not include the first
sizeable individual donations
that were sent to Palestine
directly — $25,000 each from
Warburg and Julius Rosenwald,
Soldiers mourn an Israeli officer who was killed during a terrorist incident April 26 along the
$75,000 from the venerable
Israeli-Lebanon border.
Nathan Straus.

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