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A Viable Jewish Detroit

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Fund, which would fund initiatives that
our communal process and priority set-
are
designed to benefit young profession-
ting, yet these are approaches that we have
als
and
families.
undertaken in the past on behalf of our
These could be: low-interest funds for
own community as well as other Jewish
establishing local businesses and ventures,
communities when drastic measures
interest-free financing for purchasing a
were called for to ensure Jewish sur-
first home, interest-free higher educa-
vival and continuity.
tion loans, which would be forgiven once
We
must
acknowledge
the
severity
•
students graduate and settle in the Detroit
and extent of the risks we are facing:
area for at least 10 years.
The first step in changing direction is
This fund would include a Jewish
to acknowledge that we are heading
Business Alliance of all Jewish-owned
towards an imminent crisis.
business, designed to promote economic
In our long and proud history, we
have acted this way when other Jews in and employment growth through a variety
of creative initiatives. The idea behind
the diaspora and in Israel were faced
such a fund is to make our Jewish corn-
with extinction. Now, it's our turn;
munity an attractive option for starting
we must redirect our complete and
uncompromising community attention businesses, for entrepreneurial initiatives,
for Jewish-owned companies that may be
towards insuring our own survival.
looking for the right location to relocate
• We must divert significant resources
and for young professionals who are mak-
from helping Jews in other places to help-
ing ourselves: The rapid aging of our corn- ing a decision where to settle and raise a
family.
munity will be sapping more and more
There is no guarantee that these ideas
resources from a shrinking resource pool.
would have the intended outcome. Yet we
This will actually divert resources from
areas that may need investment to encour- are at a critical juncture that requires us to
abandon our "business-as-usual" attitude
age young professionals and families to
and replace it with a proactive and reso-
settle and stay in Michigan.
lute approach.
By keeping more of the money we raise
I do believe, based on our rich and
in Michigan, we can deploy this money
vibrant history, that our community has
to provide free Jewish services such as: a
the capacity to change the course of its
free JCC membership to every Jew in the
destiny, once it decides to do so. ❑
area, free summer and day camp tuition
for every child, free day school education
to every Jewish stu- Hannan Lis is a Farmington Hills resident.
dent or free Sunday
school education
to every Jewish
student.
Making our
Answering Israel's
Jewish communi-
Critics
ty's most important
resources free to
The Charge:
every Jewish family
In Gaza, Israel is violating the "most
would set us apart
fundamental norms of humanitarian
from others while
law and human rights law,".United
drastically increasing participation in our
allocating resources, setting community
Nations envoy John Dugard told a spe-
most important communal institutions.
priorities and developing new strategies
cial session of the U.N. Human Rights
This would make southeast Michigan the
for financial resource development and
Commission this month.
friendliest place in North America for
fundraising.
raising a Jewish family. The extra funds
Yet the most important issue is the
The Answer:
that remain in Michigan could fund a
ones that have to do with the essence of
That particular U.N. body ignores the
Community Development Fund, which
the study: Can we do something about
rights of one side and holds a special
leads to my third and last point.
the continued decline of our Jewish
meeting to defend the rights of only
• Years ago, we recognized our responsi-
population? While we debate the issue, the
the
other side. There is an inherent
bility to manage social and demographic
flight of our young people will continue
unfairness
to the process from the
change in the Oak Park/Huntington
unabated.
get-go.
Woods/Southfield area by launching the
Neighborhood Project. The time is right
At The Core
— Allan Gale, Jewish Community
for a communitywide Neighborhood
So here are three core ideas that I'd like to
Council of Metropolitan Detroit
Project. This would be done through the
throw out for consideration and debate.
creation of a Community Development
These ideas involve a significant shift in

he spring release of the most cur-
rent Jewish population study in
the Detroit metropolitan area may
validate an irreversible trend. However,
behind population
trends are real people
whose decisions about
where to settle and
raise a family are influ-
enced by a variety of
considerations.
My conclusion from
the study has to do
with the simple fact
that the Jewish com-
munity of Detroit
is losing its best
and brightest young
people. A sufficient number of young peo-
ple who will settle here and raise a family
here are the first prerequisite to a vibrant
and viable Jewish community.
The continued economic and social
decline of this area is clearly part of
the reason. Young college graduates are
attracted to the opportunities of larger
and more vibrant metropolitan areas,
which they perceive offer a much greater
choice of employment, business, cultural
and social opportunities.
There are many communal implica-
tions, both immediate and long term,
to the newly released census. They all
essentially involve a different approach for

Can we do something about the
continued decline of our Jewish
population? While we debate the
issue, the flight of our young people
will continue unabated.

This Week

DET R OIT

FEDEATIoN'S

TEEN MISSION TO ISRAEL

Teen Mission '06

Detroit teens learn the lay
of the land from their Israeli
counterparts, all participating on
Federation's Teen Mission. Look
for new stories and photos galler-
ies each week.
Just visit JNonline.us and click
on the Teen Mission (TM06) but-
ton on the left.

JBLOGS

Perspectives by Jeff Klein

Jeff Klein of Waterford offers his
Perspectives on life and living.
This week he talks about find-
ing the happy medium regarding
respect between the sexes.
Only at JNonline.us . Just click
on JBlog on the menu on the
left.

Latest From Israel

Want the most current news from
Israel? Check our streaming news
from ynetnews.com .
Just visit JNonline.us and click
on a scrolling story on the left.

You Voted

The International Red Cross and
Red Crescent movement has
allowed Israel's Magen David
Adorn to join under a new symbol,
the Red Crystal, rather than the
Star of David. Do you view that
decision as a success, an insult or
a mixed blessing?
Success: 29%
Insult: 29%
Mixed Blessing: 42%

This week's question:
Have rising gasoline prices
changed your driving habits?
Visit the JNonline.us homepage
to cast your vote.

Jul ;3 2006

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