RHETORIC page 5 Jewish Life Moves In The Fast Lane. An example: Arnold Wiznitzer is cited in a footnote as writing that "Jews dominated the slave trade." Wiznitzer actually wrote: "It cannot be said that Jews played a dominant role in Dutch Brazil." It seems unlikely that any readers will check the accuracy of such quotations or footnotes. From 12 to 15 million Africans were forcibly shipped to the At- lantic sugar islands from the mid-15th to the mid-18th cen- turies. Millions more perished at sea or in African wars for slaves. Africans were exploited by Arabs, Berbers, African ethnic groups, Italians, Portuguese, Spaniards, Dutch, Jews, Germans, Swedes, French, English, native Ameri- cans and even New World free blacks. Catholics, Protestants, Jews, Muslims all sanctioned. slavery. Jews occupied at best a very marginal place in the slave trade. Perhaps what's most disturbing about The Secret Relationship is the willingness of some univer- sity faculty to grant it a scholar- ly platform, to actually address the book as a potential work of scholarship. They correspond to university administrators who grant speaking platforms to the Can You Spare A Few Minutes? Subscribe To The Jewish News. ar, How Can You Afford Not To? SOLUTIONS page 4 to me underscores what most Israelis feel about religious plu- ralism. Would it not seem strange to many Americans if an Israeli leader was to advocate for mandatory Army service for all U.S. citizens? We are a democra- cy and if there is a will on behalf of the constituents, the laws can be changed to accommodate. Reform Judaism was started by Jews living in the Diaspora in an attempt to allow Jews to prac- tice their religion and, at the same time, integrate more easi- ly into a foreign society. There- fore, for Israelis, the idea of Reform Judaism should be a moot issue. It is a Diaspora phe- nomenon. When Rabbi Yoffie speaks of the "politicalization of Judaism," he has hit the nail on )UST A FEW MINUTES A WEEK GIVE YOU ALL THE IMPORTANT LOCAL INFORMATION AND NEWS DELIVERED TO YOUR MAILBOX ONCE A WEEK. THE JEV ✓ gli-1 NEWS r gleam tato tom 0,300 PAIBM Mgcs1 WWI1%.M MOM VON FAMV) Osig= MASII = 91MX ; 5 Save 31% off the newssbnd price by responding today. Receive 52 issues of The Jewish News plus five issues of Style magazine for only $39 ($54 out-of-state). Yes, I'd like my own subscription to The Jewish News. a ❑ Please bill me. ❑ Charge to my ❑ MasterCard Cr) UJ C/) I Name City Signature (required) Chicago Publicity Deadlines Zip New subcribers only F- LU Phone LLJ Please send all payments along with this coupon to: The Jewish News, P.O. Box 2267, Southfield, MI 48037-2267. Allow 2-3 weeks for delivery. is. For faster service call 810-354-6620 and charge it to your Visa 3 Zip Gift Card Message State City State Phone My Name CC the head in terms of the essence of the argument. This is a prob- lem unique to Israeli society, the solution to which will have to come from within. I am by no means saying the system in Israel is perfect. I am saying, though, that the issue of religious pluralism should be de- cided by Israelis, the people who will be the ones directly affected by any change in the laws. Just as Israel has found a solution to its military, agricultural and so- cietal problems, so, too, will it find a home-grown solution to its sec- ular/religious problem. Elisa Lupovitch Information Officer Israel Consular General's Office, Address Exp. Card # My Address CD ❑ I'd like to send a subscription as a gift to: ❑ Payment enclosed. ❑ Visa book's supporters, like Mr. Mar- tin, Mr. Muhammad and Mr. Farrakhan. As with Holocaust deniers, it sometimes may be necessary to decline to engage in dialogue over some factual questions — like de- nial of the Holocaust, the argu- ments that rehabilitate collective fantasies of Jewish conspiracies and "racial" theories might be perceived as too absurd for ra- tional response. As with deniers, exposure of motives and identi- ties of the speakers may be more appropriate. While it may not be clear how much it affects African Ameri- cans, the new, more vitriolic anti- Jewish rhetoric most assuredly has affected Jews — the fright- ened student was not alone in her panic. Jews may now be tak- ing more aggressive measures to combat this old-style castigation. Given the pseudo-scholarly ba- sis to this decidedly dated atti- tude, we should begin from a position of informed rational dis- course. Blacks and Jews have plenty of tragic history, some of which they share. There is enough real past to confront and assimilate, and no need to fabri- cate some other one. ❑ or MasterCard between the hours of 8:30 an and 5:00 pm mom wmm vmmx mon mmm mmm mmm mnm m.m mtn 5 1 AD3:, The normal deadline for local news and publicity items is noon Thursday, eight days prior to issue date. The deadline for birth announcements is 10 a.m. Monday, four days prior to issue date; out-of-town obituaries, 10 a.m. Tuesday, three days prior to issue date. All material must be typewritten, double-spaced, on 8'12 x 11 paper and include the name and daytime telephone number of sender.