UP FRONT

The Anita Hill Syndrome
In The Jewish World

Sexual harassment is a factor among
Jewish organizations.

JAMES D. BESSER

Washington Correspondent

his story began during
the recent Clarence
Thomas Supreme
Court nomination hearings,
when millions of Americans
were forced to confront their
own behavior in the
workplace — and their own
victimization.
The graphic charges of
sexual harassment against
the nominee by Anita Hill
unleashed an outpouring of
stored-up anger and fear
among women around the
country.
During those hearings, a
number of women who work
for Jewish organizations as
professionals or volunteers
called this reporter —un-
solicited — and angrily de-
scribed their own experi-
ences with sexual harass-
ment in the Jewish
workplace.
The tales ranged from the

graphic and ugly to the am-
biguous.
One woman described her
confusion when her immedi-
ate superior, a man, com-
plimented her on a new
dress; was this sexual
harassment, simple sexism
or an innocent gesture?
Others described situa-
tions that were anything but
ambiguous, including wo-

The tales ranged
from the graphic
and ugly to the
ambiguous.

men professionals in Jewish
organizations who faced bla-
tant sexual coercion by male
superiors.
But then a curious thing
happened.
In a matter of days, most of
these women called back and
pleaded that their stories not
be used, or that extreme
steps be taken to conceal

their identities from readers
and colleagues.
"It's too scary to talk
about," said a female official
with a major Jewish group.
"I have been discussing this
with women in my agency,
and we all have stories to
tell. But we won't; it's too
dangerous. Maybe we're
contributing to the problem
by not talking about it. But
we have careers to worry
about."
This, in a nutshell, is the
problem of sexual harass-
ment in the Jewish world. It
exists, and the danger of
speaking out is magnified by
the fact that, despite some
exceptions, the Jewish com-
munal world is still a male
preserve.
Just how prevalent is sex-
ual harassment within the
Jewish community?
One official with a major
Jewish group estimated that
up to 80 percent of the wo-
men working in the Jewish
communal establishment —

NASZa,a4. 9 .500.

Artwork kern Newsday by Bemis Costner. Copyright . 1989. Newsday. Distributed by Los Angeles Times Sync:Beate.

professionals and volunteers
— have experienced some
degree of sexual harass-
ment.
Despite the lack of reliable
statistics, harassment is a
serious problem in the Jew-
ish world, according to Gary
Rubin, director of national
affairs for the American
Jewish Committee.
He said that when he
casually asked women col-
leagues in the Jewish corn-

munity if they had experi-
enced incidents of harass-
ment, "I was amazed at the
number who said 'yes,' and I
was amazed at the rage and
the emotion that it provok-
ed. It was like floodgates
opening."
Jewish organizations, he
said, provide particularly
fertile soil for the wide range
of behaviors that add up to
sexual harassment.
"We not only have worker-

ROUND UP

Is Elvis' Fate
Sealed In Scrolls?
If you're one of those peo-
ple who subscribes to those
haughty, big-name papers
out of New York and Wash-
ington, you may think you
know everything there is to
know about world events.
But have you heard the
latest secrets of the Dead
Sea Scrolls? Readers of the
tabloid Sun know all about
these amazing finds!
"Newly discovered secrets
of the Dead Sea Scrolls
reveal everything from proof
of reincarnation to the
whereabouts of Elvis!" ac-
cording to this week's issue
of the Sun.
Discovered in 1947 in
caves in the Judean desert,
the scrolls recently became
available to biblical experts
around the world. Dr.
William Magen, whom the
Sun describes only as "a
biblical historian," re-
portedly examined the
scrolls and found they
predicted that "mankind
will destroy the Earth in the
21st century" with a ball of
fire, probably nuclear
weapons, and that a cure for

AIDS can be made from olive
tree extracts.
"But the strangest revela-
tion of the Dead Sea Scrolls
pertains to a modern-day
prophet named Elvis," the
Sun reports.
A Dr. Francis Shields (no
further identification is
given) said that a fragment
found in the cave spells out
the name of the Pelvis
himself. "It says he will be a
beloved prophet who will
retire to the Holy Land when
his mission in other coun-
tries is finished," Dr. Shields
told the Sun.
Dr. Shields also said the
scrolls "may indeed tell us
where he (Elvis) is today,"
but he doesn't give a clue as
to where this could be.
Perhaps future scholars will
find another fragment spell-
ing out: Kalamazoo.

`Messianic Jewish'
Facilities Grow
One-hundred thirty-eight
new "Messianic Jewish"
congregations were estab-
lished in the United States
in the past year, according to
a report in The Intermoun-
tain Jewish News.

California led the survey,
with 18 new such congrega-
tions, while New York was
second, listing 15 new
"Messianic Jewish"
facilities. Michigan has one,
the report noted.
Other states with new
"Messianic Jewish" con-
gregations listed include:
• Florida, with 13
• Illinois, with 9
• Maryland, with 8
• New Jersey, with 7
• Texas, with 7
• Ohio, with 6

MDA Honors

Israeli Soldiers
Israel Defense Force
soldiers annually donate
some 75,000 pints of blood,
or 41.5 percent or all blood
donations in Israel, accor-
ding to Magen David Adom.
At a ceremony last month
at Tel Hashomer, units that
had made outstanding dona-
tions were presented with
awards and certificates of
appreciation. These included
military prison, training and
combat units which gave
blood during operations in
the field.

Lt. Gen. Ehud Barak honors
soldiers.

Addressing the soldiers,
Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Ehud
Barak noted that "a part of
the population totalling 5
percent of the nation donates
more than 40 percent of
blood in Israel."

Doctors Group
Seeks Volunteers
Doctors to the World, an
international charitable
organization, is recruiting
volunteers to help with new

Soviet and Ethiopian Jewish
immigrants to Israel.
Dedicated to aiding the
underprivileged throughout
the world, Doctors to the
World holds tax-deductible
status. It has brought vol-
unteer medical personnel,
including physicians,
nurses, technical and sup-
port workers, to aid in relief
efforts including the after-
math of Hurricane Hugo and
the 1988 earthquake in
Armenia. It has sent vol-
unteers to clinics in the West
Indies, the Netherlands,
Central and South America.
The program is being
designed so that Doctors to
the World will be able to
cover all transportation
costs for volunteers, while
the host area will pick up
housing and land transpor-
tation costs in Israel. Vol-
unteers will be expected to
give only their time and tal-
ents for a minimum of one
month.
For information, contact
Doctors to the World, P.O.
Box 37167, Denver, Colo.,
80237, or call (303) 758-5405.

Compiled by
Elizabeth Applebaum

THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

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