OPINION CONTENTS A Weak Response To Black Anti-Semitism MAURICE KELMAN A t the recent national convention of the NAACP, some blatantly anti-Semitic state- ments were made at a panel discussion about oppor- tunities for black performers in the entertainment industry. Executive Director Ben- jamin Hooks refused to do anything more than "dis- associate" the organization from the speaker's diatribe (which had evoked much au- dience applause). Hooks declined even to label the of- fensive remarks anti-Semitic, much less to denounce them. This was merely the latest sorry example of the unwill- ingness of black leaders to react forcefully against anti- Jewish bigotry within their own constituencies. The episode was widely reported by the press and produced fit- tingly indignant commen- taries by editorial writers and columnists (George Will, for one noble example). What, then, are we to make of a published letter (July 23) to the Detroit News from the executive director of the Jewish Community Council, Mr. David Gad-harf, in which he not only refrains from criticizing Ben Hooks but takes the News to task for "focus(ing) disproportionate attention on a single panel that was in no way central to the concerns being addressed by our nation's premier civil rights organization"? Does Mr. Gad-Harf mean to suggest that black anti- Semitism is too inconsequen- tial to be of legitimate news Maurice Kelman is a professor at the Wayne State University Law School. interest? Or is his point that it has become so much a leit motif of black grievances that it no longer satisfies the man- bites-dog test of news- worthiness? I hear the clank of double standards. Surely Mr. Gad- Harf does not think that media coverage of the libera- tion of Eastern Europe and the rise of glasnost in the USSR focuses "dispropor- tionate attention" on the ac- companying re-emergence of native anti-Semitism. I cannot believe he opposes the public clamor by world Jewry for tougher restraints on Pamyat-type movements or accepts Gorbachev's passivity in dealing with his domestic Jew-haters. But in contrast, Mr. Gad- Harfs lame excuse for an equivalent lack of leadership by Benjamin Hooks: "The NAACP" he writes, "has, in fact, distanced itself from (the panelist's) remarks as not necessarily representing the organization's own position." Distanced itself? Not necessarily representing? What a far cry from an une- quivocal repudiation of Jew- baiting as a betrayal of everything "our nation's premier civil rights organiza- tion" is supposed to stand for. Mr. Gad-Harf is perfectly entitled to express views on this or any other issue. In this instance I hope he was speak- ing for himself and not in some presumed communal voice, especially since his eagerness to exempt the NAACP from press attention contradicts the of- ficial outrage of the Anti- Defamation League and other national Jewish organiza- tions, as reported in the July 20 Jewish News (Hollywood and the Jews Defend Industry"). DETROIT Torah And Science ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM A former Detroiter equates the big bang and creation. p rofessor Kelman is correctly concerned about the Jewish com- munity's response to anti- Semitism. No Jew today can say that manifestations of anti-Semitism should be ig- David Gad-Harf is executive director of the Jewish Community Council of Metropolitan Detroit. nored; too many of our brethren suffered and died because the world ignored the epidemic of anti-Semitism throughout the centuries. However, we should make sure that in our efforts to ex- pose and counteract anti- Semitism, we refrain from making accusations that con- tain the same kind of stereo- typing and generalizing that spawns anti-Semitism. Continued on Page 12 26 CLOSE-UP Kosher Bytes JAMES BESSER and STEVE HARTZ A computer network links Jews throughout the world. 26 44 AROUND TOWN In Time To The Music Southfield and Neighborhood Project host hundreds at Inglenook. 51 FOCUS Buried fl easures ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM A tomb at Machpelah Cemetery contains holy remnants. 53 BUSINESS Waiting For. The Break ADRIEN CHANDLER Don Albaum is tapping into a new niche — yuppie billiards. IMO 53 63 PROFILE Flying Carpet MELANIE KOFF A Persian-born educator lifts a Michigan district. 69 ENTERTAINMENT • Ninja Heartthrob Communal Problem Or One Biased Voice? DAVID GAD-HARF 15 STEVE HARTZ One of Hollywood's hottest stars also is making music. DEPARTMENTS 33 39 46 56 Inside Washington Insight Synagogues Sports 86 98 102 130 Single Life Births Classified Ads Obituaries CANDLELIGHTING 6 8:33 p.m. Friday, August 3, 1990 Sabbath ends August 4 9:38 p.m. THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS 7