Of West Bloo ield
stands strong for Israel
t h e rally.

Sally and

Bernie Schiff

of Huntington

Woods

The Rev.

Glenn Plummer

is enthusiastic

in his support

of Israel.

Free Gilad!
Gilad! from page 19

defending his country and ter-
rorists who have been convicted
by due process."
Binah thanked the United
States government and the
Detroit Jewish community for
their steadfast support. "We must
tell Western governments that
giving in to terrorism is only
the beginning of making the
West increasingly vulnerable to
extremism:' he said.

Christian Support
Two African-American minis-
ters energized the crowd — the
Rev. Nicholas Hood of Detroit's
Plymouth Congregational Church
and the Rev. Glenn Plummer of
Ambassadors for Christ Church
in Redford and head of the
Fellowship of Israel and Black
America (FIBA).
Hood traveled to Israel with
Christian and Jewish religious
leaders on a JCCouncil-spon-
sored trip several years ago. "You
do not stand alone," he said.

20

July 13 ® 2006

"There are others in the world
who are watching, who have an
interest, who want peace, and
who believe Israel has a right to
exist.
"I believe in a God who hears
the prayer of people worldwide.
We work for peace and we work
for the security of Israel."
The Rev. Plummer, quoting
the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King,
said, "The world is in greater
peril from those who tolerate evil
than those who perpetrate it."
He said he came to the rally "to
represent African Americans and
Christians to say,'We, too, shall
not be silent?
"Radical Islam wants to see the
demise of the Jewish people," the
Rev. Plummer said. "We have a
concern as Christians. We know
they say,`First the Saturday peo-
ple, then the Sunday people' We
stand with Israel unashamedly
and absolutely."
Josh Berkowitz, vice president
of the Michigan chapter of the

Friends of the Israel Defense
Forces, demanded Shalit's uncon-
ditional release. "We need to be
one people and make sure the
world hears us:' he said.
"We need to remember that
everyone benefits from the blan-
ket of security that the soldiers
of the IDF provide. Our common
goal is the existence and security
of the Israel, the Jewish people
and peace throughout the world."
Rabbi Steve Gutow, executive
director of the Jewish Council for
Public Affairs in New York, the
umbrella organization for Jewish
community relations councils
around the nation, marveled at
the support of the Detroit com-
munity."This is a statement of
what is important:' he said.
The rally ended with a call
to action by Robert Cohen,
JCCouncil executive director. He
urged attendees to use postcards
Council distributed to reach
President Bush and to send sup-
portive messages to Shalit's fam-
ily. He also encouraged people to

wear blue ribbons, distributed by
B'nai Brith, as reminders until
Gilad is released.
Evan Bloom, 12, of West
Bloomfield, said it felt good to
be part of his first Israel rally.
But like more veteran activists,
he wasn't sure how to improve
things. "They've got to try to stop
the missiles, somehow:' he said.
Sporting a white hat with
American and Israeli flags,
Ed Panasiewicz came from
Westland with Teresa Sardinha
of Plymouth. Her T-shirt read,
"America and Israel, Allies in
Liberty, Fighting Terrorism
Together."
"It's ridiculous that Hamas and
their cronies want to use [Shalit]
as a bargaining chip. I don't agree
with that:' Panasiewicz said.
Sardinha spends "a good deal
of time" on the Detroit News
Internet forum defending Israel
and "fighting the ignorance."
"It was very moving, and
I wish there was more we
could do," said Sally Schiff of

Huntington Woods. She has been
advocating for Israel since at
least 1947, when she was a stu-
dent in New York.
While appreciative of the non-
Jewish support, Schiff recognized
that much more must be done.
"There are so few non-Jews who
give a damn or understand what
is going on," she said. "So much
press says Israel is the aggressor
and occupier. We've got to get
past that."

❑

Postcards to President
Bush are available from
the Jewish Community
Council office, (248) 642-
5393.
Send messages in sup-
port of the Shalit family
to the Jerusalem Post
at http://www.jpost.com/
serylet/Satellite?cid=1150
885888505&pagenamez
JPost°/02FJPArticle 0/02F
Show Full