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Let's Stop Questioning
Holocaust Memorials' Intent

Much has been written and said about the open-
ing of the U.S. Holocaust Museum in Washing-
ton, D.C.
Those who have toured it have either given
it their support or have not found it to their
liking. There is little gray area. Some don't
like the Holocaust Museum because it isn't fo-
cused totally on the extermination of the Six
Million. The Jews, some will say, hold own-
ership of the Holocaust because of the sys-
tematic way in which they alone were killed.
There is no argument here. There's nothing
to dispute. Yes, there were millions of others
murdered as well: homosexuals, gypsies, right-
eous gentiles, communists.
What's bothersome is that in 1993, only 50
years since the Holocaust, we're arguing over
whose museum is better, more complete. We're
writing about who suffered more.
Meanwhile, look what's happening in the
modern, "safe" world of 1993. An American
Olympic luge team barricades itself in its ho-
tel rooms because it is terrified by neo-Nazi
skinheads in a small German town. One of
those lugers was black, another Jewish.
Last week, a young neo-Nazi filed to run in
a race for mayor of his town. He's seen by some
as a symbol of the difficulties German youth
are having in being part of society. Where have
we heard that before?

We don't have to travel to Germany for ex-
amples, either. Last week on the campus of
Michigan State University, a Holocaust re-
visionist letter made its way into the campus
newspaper. Vandals, meanwhile, threw a brick
through the window of the campus Hillel on
the 55th anniversary of Kristallnacht.
Why are we debating who has a better Holo-
caust museum? Why does it matter that part
of the U.S. Holocaust Museum confronts not
only the Final Solution of the Jews but also
the slaughter of 5 million others?
We waste our time on this sort of debate.
We waste our time when we look around the
world and we see that, like a dormant earth-
quake, the aftershocks of hate shake our souls
and make us remember.
As long as every museum teaches our chil-
dren what happened as a reminder that it
shouldn't happen again, then it is doing its
job. We cannot afford to pick apart those good
intentions.
The challenges are many. As each Holocaust
survivor dies we lose another living "muse-
um," and it becomes all the more important
that we teach our children about the Holocaust
with a sense of unity.
Let's stop arguing about who has a better,
more complete museum. There are more im-
portant discussions to have.

Letters

Blaming Victims
At Borman Hall?

The announcement that Bor-
man Hall will be closed in the
wake of the array of violations
levied against it by the Michi-
gan Department of Public
Health is indeed tragic. The
tragedy is that the care of res-
idents was of such poor quality
that severe levels of violations
were found there.
I was shocked to see in the
Nov. 5 Jewish News state-

Mr. Arafat, Where Is
Your Strong Voice Now?

Again, Mr. Arafat, we're wondering why
your voice is barely loud enough to be heard.
We're hearing from more and more of our
friends, relatives and associates in Israel that
people are now changing their minds about
the peace accord.
The recent blood on Mr. Arafat's hands is
getting more and more difficult to wash off.
The change Israelis need to see is one that fa-
vors their security. President Clinton did the
right thing by demanding more vocality from
Mr. Arafat. But even a president's demands
are easy when made thousands of miles away.
As Israelis live with this accord, as they hear
about troop pullouts and see the PLO colors

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waving in their very faces, they deserve more
from the other side. What's worrisome here is
that the same uncanny ability that the Pales-
tinian leadership has shown over the years to
shoot itself in the foot politically could also
bring down this peace process.
But perhaps it is better for this process to
re-examine itself. Perhaps it is better for the
world to see that the Palestinians might not
be ready to manage themselves. Perhaps it is
better for the world to understand the con-
cerns of the Israelis before land is given over
and a new sort of vice presses in on Israel.
Are the Palestinians ready for peace? Mr.
Arafat needs to shout "Yes!," not whimper.

ments made by officials of the
Jewish Federation and oth-
ers that appear to deflect re-
sponsibility for this
deplorable situation away
from where it belongs. State-
ments were made that these
conditions came about as a
result of factors such as a
lack of community caring and
a lack of involvement on the
part of residents' family
members.
Ever since the early '80s,
concerned citizens and resi-
dents' family members have
been expressing concern and
even alarm about conditions
at the JHA to the board ad-
ministration and the Jewish
Federation. These concerns
went unanswered and un-
heeded.
The public was also in-
formed that Borman Hall
was never meant to provide
skilled care. This is utter non-
sense. If Borman Hall was
not intended to provide
skilled care, then why did it
for so many years admit peo-
ple who needed skilled care?

Families had every right to
expect the board, adminis-
tration, physicians and staff
to insure adequate and ap-
propriate care for their loved
ones without a need for a
family member to stand over
them. Every resident of the
JHA had a legal and moral
right to proper care whether
they were visited daily by rel-
atives or they never had vis-
itors.
The community had every
right to assume that the
Board of Directors would car-
ry out their duties to insure
proper care for all the resi-
dents of JHA. The communi-
ty had a right to expect that
all levels of administration
and staff knew that the only
reason they were there was
to provide care for each indi-
vidual resident.
I commend the Nov. 5 edi-
torial in The Jewish News
which states that the re-
sponsibility for the conditions
at the JHA lie with the mem-
bers of the board and the ad-
ministration. The kinds of
excuses that have been ad-
vanced for these conditions
are nothing more than the
time-worn tactic of trying to
put the blame for the victims'
suffering on the victims
themselves.
The blame for the tragedy
of Borman Hall lies squarely
on those who had the re-
sponsibility to protect and
care for residents and so dis-
mally failed to do so.
Rozanne Seller
Southfield

Where Will
Residents Go?

Speaking for the families of res-
idents at Borman Hall, we ap-
peal to our Jewish community
to support us in maintaining a
Jewish Home for the Aged.
Where are our loved ones to
go if Borman Hall closes? Our
main concern is to allow them
to live with dignity in a Jewish
atmosphere. The residents are
concerned as well. They keep
asking, "Where will we go?"
Please show that you care.
Ethel Wasser
Southfield
LETTERS page 22

