Community Views
Editor's Notebook
We Have Met The Enemy,
And They Are Us
A Personal Experience
In Network Marketing
BERL FALBAUM SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
PHIL JACOBS EDITOR
At times it seems, sults from the fact they're per-
as a people, we verts, and they just have to accept
have no limits for that fact — and create dialogues.
enduring humili-
We are probably the only mi-
nority group which has never un-
ation.
Throughout derstood that bigots need to be
our history, we held accountable. Nor have we
have been reluc- understood that the only effective
tant to stand up method is unrelenting and un-
for ourselves, to compromising political and pub-
confront anti-Semitism as we lic pressure.
NJCRC speakers and some of
should, confront it as blacks have
its officers should quit worrying
learned to confront racism.
In the face of this unfortunate about "what they'll think of us"
history come officials of Jewish and worry more about how to
community relations councils think of themselves as Jews.
Alan Dershowitz, whatever the
telling Jewish university students
not only that they should not shortcomings of his book Chutz-
protest against anti-Semitism but pah — and there are many — de-
need to understand its roots. scribed the failure of Jews in
What are those roots?
combatting anti-Semitism. Jews
"Jews are pushy and aggres- helped make the book a best-sell-
sive. Blacks can be put off by er, they paid Dershowitz thou-
Jews' maniacal desire for upward sands in honorariums for
mobility which can lead to being speaking engagements, and, in
opportunistic." These Jewish corn- the end, they ignored his advice.
ity. Our efforts would be counter-
productive." Well, the results are
in, and they are not very reas-
suring.
When a black Pontiac attorney
had the courage to defend Jews
at a banquet attended primarily
by blacks, black civil rights lead-
ers considered allies by the Jew-
ish community condemned him
with anger and bitterness. With
friends like these ...
If we want to continue to build
coalitions, they can only be suc-
cessful if they rest on the follow-
ing foundation: Each member
pledges to condemn bigotry wher-
ever it comes from.
If Jewish community relations
organizations want to "reach out,"
they need to make sure there are
hands coming at them from the
other side of the table.
None of this suggests that we
should not continue our work on
behalf of other minorities. We
munity relations professionals ap-
parently forgot to add that we
control the media and interna-
tional banks.
So now we have it: We don't
seem to understand that we're to
blame for being hated.
What a perversion of dignity,
self-respect, history, tradition and
respect for human values and re-
lationships. What a self-defeat-
ing message to deliver to young
people, giving credibility to the
lie.
No matter how much they hate
you, Jewish leaders told students
at a National Jewish Communi-
ty Relations Council (NJCRC)
plenum, turn the other cheek; no,
indeed, turn your entire soul.
Can anyone imagine Dr. Mar-
tin Luther King Jr. and other civ-
il rights leaders telling their own
not to picket or protest — just
smile and build coalitions.
Who can believe that gay ac-
tivists would tell their own that
discrimination against them re-
Bed Falbaum is a public-relations
have an enviable history in fight-
ing for human rights, and we
should continue to do what's right.
But we need to be forceful in
letting our "partners" know that
we will not tolerate any equivo-
cation on their part when we are
attacked.
And we don't even need to in-
vent strategies or tactics. These
exist. All we need to do is emulate
the policies of the black commu-
nity — the very ones we helped
develop for blacks, the ones we
have participated in.
For example, picket lines at
music outlets to protest Michael
Jackson's CD that contains the
words "don't kike me" would be a
wonderful sight and enhance the
Jewish people. It would state
clearly that we will not tolerate
denigration, and it would tell
young people that Jews value
their self-worth. That's the mes-
sage to take to Jewish students
on university campuses.
If we were to be more forceful
on our own behalf, we might be-
gin with a picket line at NJCRC
headquarters. 0
specialist and a freelance
writer.
Instead, we continually hear the
worn-out refrain that we need to
build "bridges of understanding"
and "coalitions."
One does not build coalitions
to negotiate for respect and tol-
erance. One does not compromise
one's self-worth. One does not
grovel, beg or plead for respect
and human dignity. One de-
mands it.
Our coalitions with the black
community have not only been
useless, but anti-Semitism has
become more mainstream. Those
that doubt this might ask to ap-
pear on a black talk-radio show
and discuss any subject relating
to Jewish-black relations. With-
in minutes, the station will be
swamped with callers spewing
hatred.
We are partly to blame for this
tragic development because we
did not confront the Rev. Louis
Farrakhan when he first
launched his anti-Jewish diatribe.
Jewish leaders rested their
case of inaction on tired, hack-
neyed concepts: "He will go away.
We'll only give him more public-
I said goodbye
to Amway 11
years ago, after
involvement in
the business
during the ear-
ly 1980s. So I
am gratified to
read Senior
Writer Julie
Edgar's Close-Up story this
week on Page 60 to learn of the
success of Jews in Amway.
I write that I said "goodbye."
The truth is, Amway is still
probably very much a part of
me. I learned how to speak in
public, how to think more posi-
tively and how to overcome ob-
stacles, largely due to my
Amway experience. To this day,
my family still uses Amway
products, which we feel are
among the finest of their type.
In an indirect way, I can
"thank" Amway for something
else as well: my Jewishness.
When I was in Amway, fun-
damentalist Christian rhetoric
was something you'd find at
business meetings, in the com-
pany's literature and on their
audio tapes. It wasn't unusual
for a Bible study to take place
after meetings or for a candle-
light ceremony, complete with
testimony about how Amway
led this distributor or that per-
son to Jesus.
A man on an audio tape once
referred glibly to Jews, the
people who "wear those
`Hanukkahs' on their heads." He
meant yarmulkes. There was an
audio tape with a man saying
that if you don't believe in Jesus,
then you believe in the "wrong"
religion.
I was often told by the people
above me (known as your spon-
sor, your upline) to think of the
business as a smorgasbord, tak-
ing from the table what you
want and leaving the rest.
When the smorgasbord of-
fered an insatiable, almost cult-
like feeling of wanting to be with
the successful, charismatic lead-
ers in one's upline, then it be-
came tougher to ignore. For me,
Amway became more than net-
work marketing or products; it
became a path of edification and
unconditional faith that simply
went too far.
But let's make one thing
clear: The Amway Corp., based
in Ada, Mich., can't control
everything that is said or done
by its millions of distributors.
Amway's founders, Rich De-
Vos and Jay Van Andel, once
wrote a poignant editorial in
their monthly magazine, the
AMAGRAM, saying that
Amway was not a soapbox to
climb on for speeches of a reli-
gious or political nature. That
anyone from any background
was welcome and encouraged.
I find that absolutely true.
Still, I must say that the first
time I ever heard the words
"completed Jew," they came
from someone in my upline. He
was Jewish and an Israeli. At a
late-night gathering at a restau-
rant over coffee and ice cream,
he talked of how Jesus was the
ultimate 'Diamond" in our lives.
To accept Jesus set us on a road
toward financial freedom. The
other distributors holding court
nodded in admiring agreement.
I was the only Jew among them.
When I called this man and
told him I was offended, I was
met with the response that I
should be more "open-minded."
Telling my sponsors, both Chris-
tians, resulted in retorts not to
let my business be held up by
something like this. In other
words, ignore it.
It came up again, though.
This time another successful
distributor who had sponsored
the Israeli man invited my wife
and me to a Friday night Shab-
bat dinner and then services at
his synagogue. We were so hon-
ored. This couple were on audio
tape; they were giving speeches
all over the country. They want-
ed dinner with us? They want-
ed to attend synagogue with us?
Like puppy dogs wagging our
tails, we went. We were nervous
and excited to be with this cou-
ple. We had a lovely Shabbat
dinner. Then we got in the car
to drive to shul. I asked my host
where we were headed. Was it
a Reform temple, or a Conserv-
ative or Reconstructionist one?
He wouldn't tell me. He said
for me to wait and see.
We ended up at a church. No
problem, I thought. Many con-
gregations unable to afford their
own buildings worship in
churches. There was a problem,
though. I knew it when I saw
the Israeli distributor walk in
the sanctuary. This was a Mes-
sianic Jewish congregation.
These were Jews and Christians
saying the Sh'ma with Jesus in
mind.
I asked to go home. My wife
cried. We had to stay until the
end, the distributor said.
We were quiet and sad in the
car. Our upline turned around,
looked at us and said that "all
we had to do to accept Jesus"
was repeat a line he'd give us.
We said no.
This man was to help us grow
as Amway distributors?
When I look in the mirror, I
see the guy who quit. I could
have done so many things to
work the business harder and
smarter. Nobody is to blame for
my lack of business success. Not
Amway, not the Messianic
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE page 30
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