Stalin's Strange Story He publicly denounced anti-Semitism, then ceaselessly persecuted Jews. ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM ASSOCIATE EDITOR Q: I know that the best-sell- ing album of all time was Michael Jackson's Thriller, But what was the biggest seller by a Jewish artist? A: That would be an album by Bold and Beautiful Hand Made Diamond 14K Gold Bracelets. y p a t Fine Jewelers ko Est. 1919 Bril/iance Since 1919 30400 Telegraph Rd. Suite 134, Bingham Farms • 642-5575 STEVEN TARNOW Since 1986 I PREFERRED BUILDING co. Additions Kitchens • Bathrooms Remodeling Building Quality Into Every Project With Unmatched Personal Service. Cr) .■■ 810-626-5603 NARis THE DETRO Licensed & Insured 36 1,10114)1IS a woman, released in 1971. Can you guess? It's Carole King's Tapestry, which to date has sold more than 10 million copies, along with M.C. Hammer's Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em, AC/DC's Back in Black, Pink Floyd's The Wall and Lionel Richie's Can't Slow Down. Interestingly enough, while that 10 million figure doesn't come near the Thriller record of 24 million, it tops any album by Madonna (her biggest-sell- er was the 1984 Like a Virgin, with 9 million) or the Beatles, whose 1969 Abbey Road also sold 9 million. By the way, the next-biggest sellers by Jewish singers were Billy Joel's 1977 The Stranger, which sold 9 million copies, then Billy Joel's Greatest Hits Volume I & II, Kenny G.'s Breathless and Michael Bolton's 1991 Time, Love & Tenderness, all of which — inexplicably — sold 8 million copies. Q: I recently heard that Stal- in, of all people, had a son who married someone Jew- ish. Is this true? Isn't this strange considering the fact that Stalin was one of the greatest anti-Semites of all time? A: Few figures in history were more schizophrenic in their at- titude toward Jews than Josef Stalin. There's no question that he instigated some of the most murderous campaigns against Jews, though it would be wrong to put these on par with the ac- tions of Adolf Hitler. At the same time, the Soviet leader is- sued remarkable public con- demnations of anti-Semitism and stepped forward, on more than one occasion, to support Jewish causes. But more on that in a minute. First, it is indeed true that Stalin had a son, Yakov, who married a Jewish woman. Dad made it clear he did not approve of the union. Nor was Stalin de- lighted to learn that his daugh- ter, Svetlana, was involved with a Jewish film director named 'Copier — so he had the man ar- rested and deported to a labor State of Israel. Anyone who camp. knows anything about Marx- Stalin was an early support- ism understands why no com- er of Lenin and the Bolsheviks. munist worth his weight in As such, it's not surprising to kopeks could advocate a cause learn that he denied the exis- like Zionism. Yet Stalin couldn't tence of a Jewish people and seem to say enough on behalf saw no validity in Judaism (or of Israel — a decision certainly any other religion, for that mat- inspired by political considera- ter). tions, not heartfelt concern for Throughout the early years the Jewish people. of his long career with the Com- Once Israel showed little in- munist Party, Stalin rarely terest in becoming a Soviet pup- made anti-Semitic remarks. He pet state, Stalin became the worked with Lenin's many Jew- country's chief critic T Ake some ish associates, including Ka- manev, Litvinov and Radek. — men whom he would lat- er denounce or destroy. Es- pecially odd was Stalin's relationship with Red Army founder Leon Trotsky, with whom he was closely associ- ated for many years. Of course, after Lenin died and wrote in his will that Trot- sky (and specifically not Stal- in) should be his successor, all that changed. Stalin found and destroyed the will, and Trotsky was forced to flee the Soviet Union to save his life. In the 1930s Stalin was in- volved in one of the more cu- rious episodes in Soviet- Jewish history: Birobidzhan. Thanks to Stalin, Leon Trotksy never This region was supposed to became Lenin's successor. be a kind of Jewish home- land, complete with a Yiddish modern-day anti-Semites, he press, schools and theater. Ini- insisted he had nothing against tially, Stalin was an advocate; Jews; it was the Zionists with later, he was responsible for its whom he took issue. He began downfall. lambasting Soviet-Jewish citi- No doubt Stalin's relations zens left and right, unearthing with the Nazis had much to do "Zionist plots" at every turn, ac- with his behavior toward Jews cusing anyone and everyone during the late 1930s. Though with a Jewish connection of be- he would later deny it, Stalin ing a spy for the West. The re- signed a Soviet-Nazi anti-ag- sult was the death of literally gression pact (which the Nazis thousands of innocent men and abrogated). Soon thereafter, he women. insisted there was no such Despite these actions, Stal- thing as Nazi anti-Semitism, in never owned up to perse- and deported to the Third Re- cuting Jews. In fact, he stepped ich Jewish-German commu- forward as one of the most out- nists who had fled Hitler's spoken opponents of anti-Semi- regime. tism. In a 1931 interview with After the Nazi invasion of the American reporters, Stalin la- Soviet Union, Stalin once again beled anti-Semitism "the most did an about-face with the dangerous vestige of cannibal- Jews. He created the Jewish ism." ❑ Anti-Fascist Committee — whose members included some Send questions to Tell Me Why, of the leading actors, writers The Jewish News, 27676 and authors of the day — which Road, Southfield, MI he allowed to function virtual- Franklin 48034, or fax to (810) 354-6069. ly unsupervised. When the war All letters must be sig,ned and in- ended, Stalin had most of the clude the writer's address. Ques- committee's members killed. tions answered in the column will Perhaps most curious was feature the writer's initials Stalin's attitude toward the and city only of residence.