Cover Story

The Modern,
Sophisticated,
Wearable Looks
of Lafayette 148.

Future Without Rabin

"The first reaction I had was 'Oh,
my God.' The second reaction was
`I hope it's not an Arab [who did
it],'" said Canton's Terry Ahwal of
the local Arab-American Anti-
Discrimination Committee. "I knew
deep down in my heart it wasn't. I
think the consequences would have
been worse. And I also hoped there
was a process in place so that the
peace wouldn't die with him."
Ahwal said it's impossible to sec-
ond-guess what might have happened
if Rabin hadn't been killed.
"He took the courageous step for-
ward, and I don't think in the back
of his mind that his intentions were
on anything else but to reach the
peace," she said. "He really, genuine-
ly, thought the coexistence would
work."
Some think it will never work.
"The assassination of Yitzhak Rabin
was indeed a great tragedy," said
Jerome S. Kaufman of Bloomfield
Hills, national secretary of the
Zionist Organization of America.
"Also tragic is that the left has used
the event to deify Rabin, politically
demonize the right and divide the
entire Israeli nation in its attempt to
sell their so-called peace process.
"It is still going on and the conse-
quences to the state of Israel have
been devastating. Even Rabin's
widow, Leah Rabin, said that if
Yitzhak knew of Barak's concessions
to the Arabs he will be turning over
in his grave," Kaufman said.
"As to the effect of Rabin's death
on [Palestinian Authority Chairman]
Yasser Arafat — it should, by now,
be painfully obvious to all that it
does not matter to Arafat who is the
prime minister of Israel. His plan of
1974 for the 'phased destruction of
Israel' continues unabated," Kaufman
said. "Arafat's only surprise is proba-
bly how much the Israelis and the
Jews of the West have helped him in
his appointed task."
Regardless of politics, Rabin
Square, the site of the assassination,
has become hallowed ground.
"Every time I go to Israel, it is like
some magnetic power to go to the
place where he was killed," said
Berkovitz. "You stand there and the
buses are going by, people are eating
in the restaurants, yet you can feel
the pain in the air of that place.
School kids stop by there, just plain
civilians. They stop there, light some
candles and say a prayer and they go
on. It happens all the time
all year
long." El

OTHER N

led him to openly admit on occa-
sion that some of his best-laid
plans did not succeed, but also to
admit that Israel could not control
another people. He used to tell me
that he needed to try peace, so if
Israel was forced to fight again, he
could tell every Jewish mother
whose son fell in battle -- as he
did so many times in the army
and as defense minister -- that
Israel left no stone unturned in
the pursuit of peace.

Dr. Mandell Ganchrow, presi-
dent, Union of Orthodox Jewish
Congregations of America:
Rabin's vision of peace included
a world where Arab and Jew could
live together. But as a decorated
soldier, he was also a realist who

understood that only the passage
of time would enable the Israelis
to objectively evaluate whether or
not gradualism and incremental-
ism represented the best approach

to peace. I don't believe that
Rabin ever imagined his govern-
ment giving away the Jordan
Valley or dividing Jerusalem.
Rabin, the unifier, had an atti-
tude toward the religious element
of Israeli society that distinguished
him from the country's current
leadership. That sensitivity is in
sharp contrast to Priine Minister
Ehud Barak's leadership. Yitzhak
Rabin's greatness lies in the fact
that he was a unifier — in life and
in death. His brilliance as a war
hero helped unify the Jewish peo-
ple during the Six-Day War. And
his assassination solidified world
Jewry, reminding each of us, even
as we mourned, that we are all
one people. Let us hope that in
Rabin's memory, these difficult
lessons are not lost on us.

Judith Kipper, Middle East spe-
cialist with the Council on
Foreign Relations and the Center
for Strategic and International
Studies, Washington, D.C.:
Yitzhak Rabin, the prime minis-
ter who committed Israel to the
peace of the brave, has left a his-
toric legacy. He brought Israel face
to face with its most important
adversary, Palestinian nationalism,
which he reluctantly recognized

LAFAYETTE
YoRK148

NEW

Attend the Lafayette 148 trunk show,
featuring suits, separates, dresses and
scarves in fabrics that migrate from

season to season.

November 9-11, 2000
hursday 10-8, Friday and Saturday 10-6

A Spring Preview and Trunk Show

presented by

plic 8111- 111EILM

Bloomfield Plaza • 6536 Telegraph Road

248-855-8877

Improve Grades and
Confidence!

Our individualized learning
program will help your child
learn to think, focus, and
discover motivation at school.

Elementary - High School

Commerce • (248) 366-6730
Canton • (734) 844-0580
Novi • (248) 349-9987
Troy • (248) 813-8945
Ann Arbor • (734) 663-2070
Farmington Hills • (248) 474-8570
Bloomfield Hills • (248) 988-8030
W. Bloomfield • (248) 538-3782

Rochester Hills • Coming Soon!
Livonia • Coming Soon!

OXFORD

LEARNING CENTERS°

Voices on page 12

11/3
2000

11