THE JEWISH NEWS
THIS ISSUE 60(P
SERVING DETROIT'S JEWISH COMMUNITY
SEPTEMBER 16, 1988 / 5 TISHREI 5749
Anti-Semitic Charges
Rock Bush Campaign
JAMES D. BESSER
Washington Correspondent
Publicly, George Bush's large
Jewish team is trying to maintain an
upbeat profile as the election moves
into the home stretch.
But privately, there is consterna-
tion at the wave of charges linking
Bush operatives to incidents and
groups with anti-Semitic overtones.
"There is no question that these
allegations have put an entire
strategy in jeopardy," said one Jewish
Republican activist. "At this point, I
think we are looking at some serious
slippage. The test for us will be
whether we can develop a counter-
strategy"
Last week, Jewish politicos in
both parties were taken by surprise
by charges that three members of a
Bush "ethnic panel" had ties to anti-
Semitic Eastern European groups.
Several members of Bush's ethnic
advisory panel, including honorary
chairman Florian Galdau, subse-
quently resigned. Insisting they had
been unfairly accused, the panel
members said they resigned to spare
the Bush campaign further controver-
sy. A co-chairman of the panel,
Jerome Brentar, was immediately
dismissed by the Bush campaign.
Brentar had been active in defending
John Demjanjuk, the ex-Nazi who
was sentenced to death by an Israeli
court for his role as "Ivan the Terri-
ble" in the Treblinka death camp.
Brentar also has been linked to
the Institute for Historical Review, a
Torrence, Calif., group that claims the
Holocaust was a fraud.
Two days after reports surfaced of
the pro-Nazi leanings of Galdau,
Continued on Page 18
Impact Downplayed
Of B'nai Moshe Move
ALAN HITSKY
Associate Editor
Congregation B'nai Moshe
members voted 130-27 last Thursday
to authorize the purchase of land in
West Bloomfield and to move from its
Oak Park home of the last 30 years.
President Robert P. Roth assured
congregants that the synagogue
leadership intends to maintain a
presence in Oak Park, either by leas-
ing space from new owners when the
synagogue building is sold, or
through rented space in the area. The
synagogue's new nursery school,
which Roth said is at its enrollment
limit, will also maintain an Oak Park
presence.
Leaders of the Jewish Welfare
Federation and its Neighborhood Pro-
ject downplayed the impact the con-
gregation's decision would have on
Federation efforts to maintain the
Jewish community in Oak Park and
Southfield.
"Other strengths have been
developed in the last two years;' said
Norma Silver, director of the
Neighborhood Project. She said more
than 200 Jewish families have been
given mortgage assistance to move in-
to the area, adding that the project
has also served as a catalyst for im-
proving neighborhood ambiance and
relations between the neighbohoods
and the municipal governments.
B'nai Moshe members were told
at an Aug. 30 meeting that a new
synagogue would take several years
to construct at a site still being
negotiated on Drake Road, a quarter-
mile south of Maple Road. B'nai•
Moshe's leadership envisions a new
structure costing $5.5 million to serve
a congregation of 600-800 families.
The synagogue's present member-
ship is estimated at 400 families.
Federation President Dr. Conrad
Giles said he respects the right of any
congregation to choose the communi-
ty it wishes to serve, but he is concern-
ed "when any Jewish communal in-
stiution leaves an area that we feel
deserves communal support."
He expressed confidence that the
other Conservative synagogues re-
maining in the area will continue to
"grow, thrive and serve that com-
munity." He said B'nai Moshe's deci-
sion "does nothing to change our
plans to continue to enhance the
neighborhood and make it a viable
Jewish area for many years to come."
B'nai Moshe's Roth expessed
similar concerns, and said the
synagogue leadership hopes it can
sell its Oak Park building to a Jewish
institution.
On the sports field, the Arab war
against Israel has ranged from terrorism
to political intimidation
A Woman's Place