Senators Are No Shows For
Bergstein Invocation
R
abbi Chaim Berg-
stein wasn't too
nervous last month
when he delivered
the invocation before the
U.S. Senate.
After all, just a hand-
ful of senators actually
witnessed his two-
minute speech.
As he was being intro-
duced by Sen. Byron
Dorgan, D-N.D., Rabbi
Bergstein looked around
the room. Just where
were all of the senators,
he wondered? Noticeably
missing was Michigan
Sen. Donald Riegle.
"I read the prayer and
there was no audience,"
he said. "I did not look
up toward the camera. I
did not know it was
there. I didn't want to
look out into an empty
room. -
"I realized He was
here," Rabbi Bergstein
said.
Rabbi Bergstein was
invited to Washington to
deliver an invocation at
the urging of Sen. Carl
Levin.
When he completed his
speech, Sen. Riegle
approached him. The
rabbi, aware that the
state's senior senator
was late and missed his
prayer, provided Mr.
Riegle with a copy of his
text. The rabbi spent
some time utilizing his
one-day floor pass, meet-
ing with legislators and
visiting the U.S.
Holocaust Memorial.
It was a full day and
one he said that was
filled with excitement.
Sen. Carl Levin meets with
Rabbi
Rabbi Bergstein started
Bergstein and Dora Bergstein.
the day on a private tour
(for which he was joined
Capitol.
Levin, D-Michigan, who
by his mother, Dora
Bergstein's
Rabbi
showed him copies of
Bergstein, some relatives
speech was printed in
Thomas Jefferson's first
and Rabbi Levi Shemtov
the June 9 Congressional
letters and plans for con-
of the American Friends
Record.
struction
of
the
U.S.
of Lubavitch) with Sen.
Maxine Berman Waging
Breast Cancer Funding Fight
S
tate Rep. Maxine
Berman is tired of
legislative games
that deflect atten-
tion away from women's
health issues.
She contends that the
males in the state
Senate were "sexist and
insensitive" when they
omitted language in a
bill that — if passed —
would cut state money to
fund breast cancer out-
reach programs.
The predominently
male, 38-member Senate
left alone a section in the
bill that retains outreach
programs to help battle
prostate cancer.
"The Senate action
shows complete disre-
gard for a disease that
will strike one of eight
Michigan women," Ms.
Berman said. "Breast
cancer is the leading
killer of women."
Three women serve in
the Michigan Senate.
Twenty-five women serve
in the 110-member
House. Ms. Berman
chairs the House
Appropriations budget
subcommittee on public
health, which left alone
language that would
have insured state
money for breast cancer
programs.
Ms. Berman believes
voters should flood the
offices of the
House and
Senate
members
with
let-
ters, urging repre-
sentatives to make cer-
tain that the breast can-
cer language is put back
into the public health
bill.
"We can't be silent,"
she said.
The American Cancer
Society estimates that
1,700 Michigan women
will die this year from
the disease and another
6,800 will be diagnosed.
Some 1,300 Michigan
men will die from
prostate cancer, and
another 6,100 will con-
tract it, the ACS said.
Ms. Berman said she
never would suggest
removing language from
a bill that provides for
funding of outreach pro-
grams for prostate can-
cer.
Maxine Berman
The bill now is under
discussion in a confer-
ence committee and is
expected to be brought
anticipated
they
back to the full legisla-
increased federal dollars.
ture for a final vote in
Because of the language
the coming weeks.
of the bill, state monies
The federal govern-
in previous years that
ment gives the state
were left over from other
most of the money it uses
promotional health cam-
to warn women about the
paigns like AIDS aware-
dangers of breast cancer
ness programs were ear-
and to encourage mam-
marked for breast can-
mograms to detect the
cer.
disease in its earliest
"I don't think it was
phase.
malicious," Ms. Berman
Therefore, some of the
said. "The senators said
senators suggested they
it was not their intent to
eliminated language
cut out funding for
from the bill because
breast cancer."
Some senators said
female administrators at
the state Department of
Public Health encour-
aged them to remove the
funding language to
allow for more flexibility
to use leftover AIDS
money for other pro-
grams.
"What if all of the fed-
eral dollars dry up?" Ms.
Berman asked. "Then we
would have nothing in
the state that directs the
state to spend money on
breast cancer."