III Chaldean News J
T
"r4"1""k
community
Noim IN ITIATIV E
is being adapted from a local Jewish model. A pair of $10,000
• Left ancient homelands to cross the Atlantic.
foundation grants support mentoring by administrators of
• Thrived through refugee resilience and entrepreneur-
Project Chessed — a Hebrew word for kindness — to guide
ial skill.
counterparts building Project Bismutha — Aramaic for mercy.
'We have a lot of things in common," says Joseph T.
For Kaufman, who moved into Jewish Federation's top
Kassab, executive director of the Chaldean Federation of
job
last October, interfaith relations stretch back to Berk-
America, based in Southfield. "That's why we relate well
ley High. "My friends were first-generation
and feel close to each other."
Chaldeans," recalls the 1984 graduate, who
The closeness brings cooperation to address We have a lot of
grew up in Huntington Woods.
current challenges.
things in common.
Now he explores ways for the communi-
'We've worked with the Chaldean commu-
ties to help create opportunities that will keep
nity on refugee issues," notes Robert Cohen, That's tv/i y we
executive director of the local Jewish Commu- relate wel I and feel young Chaldeans and Jews in Metro Detroit. 'A
lot of influential movers and shakers are from
nity Relations Council of Metropolitan Detroit. close to e a eh other
the
Jewish and Chaldean communities. We can
"Chaldean leaders spoke twice to our board
--Joseph
T.
Kassab,
help
reinvent Michigan," Kaufman suggests.
about their concerns." His council has joined
Federation
Chaldean
"We all must embrace new risks because
three dozen prominent Jewish organizations
business as usual isn't cutting it. We're com-
from around the country in urging Washington of America
fortable with risks and bold visions because our
policymakers to ease entry quotas for Chaldeans
This is the first in
people got on a boat or a plane to leave home
and other religions minorities fleeing Iraq — an
a series of monthly
—
risk-takers by definition."
exodus that resonates in the Jewish community.
installment s that will
Indeed, these Metro Detroit neighbors rep-
Gideon Aronoff, an East Lansing native who
explore par allels of
Jewish and Chaldean
resent the continuity of centuries and the re-
heads the national Hebrew Immigrant Aid So-
cultures,. N ext month
sourcefulness of modern strivers. "These are two
ciety (HIAS), spoke in February with commu-
we will foe us on
unusual groups with a 3,000-year history," says
nity leaders at the Chaldean News about ongo-
the geogra phis
Professor Mary C. Sengstock, a Wayne State so-
ing assistance for new arrivals and support for
concentrat ions of
ciologist who has studied Chaldean Americans
Jews and C haldeans
refugee policy reforms. Kassab of the Chaldean
in Metro D etroit.
since 1962. "How many other groups can tie
Federation credits the society with "helping
themselves together that long? None."
open doors for asylum for refugees persecuted
Their unity is an inspiring bridge between two religions
for religious reasons." He adds: "HIAS and our other Jewish
born in a distant place and time.
community partners have worked side-by-side with us."
Other exchanges involve health care. "Jewish Family Ser-
Alan Stamm, a longtime Detroit journalist, is a
vice gives us a lot of guidance and support," says Kassab. A
communication consultant in Birmingham.
pro bono medical care program to help uninsured Chaldeans
Detroit arrival: Chaldeans begin
settling here around 1910, drawn
by automotive factory jobs and a
community of Christian immigrants from
Lebanon. Earliest arrivals came from
Te.lkalf, a Christian farming town in the
northern Iraqi province of Mosul, near
the ruins of ancient Nineveh. Nearly 50
percent of local Chaldean Americans
trace roots to that town, also known as
'Telkeppe ("hill of stones" in Aramaic).
Parish to
diocese:
This nation's
first Chaldean
Church was
founded in 1947
in Detroit as
Mother of God
Parish.
Dramatic
changes:
The local
Chaldean
American
population
triples from
1943 to 1963,
reaching about
3,000 persons.
■ building
PRESENTING SPONSOR
Bank of America.
GOLD SPONSORS
WAY N E STATE
UNIVERSITY
meijer
MC
DETROIT MEDICAL CENTER
SILVER SPONSORS
Exodus continues: U.S. immigration
changes let more Iraqis conic during the
mid-1960s, boosting the community to
about 45,000 in 1986 and approximately
75.000 by 1992. And since the U.S.--
led invasion of Iraq in 2003, tens of
thousands more have arrived.
n
County
Robert .1. flentio
Wiple
Eucutise
Lawrence
Tec
11E7:
of oppression, attack and dis-
placement, creating refugee
migrations that enlarged the
population of Metro Detroit
in modern times as Jews
and Chaldeans sought better
economic, social and reli-
gious opportunity — as Iraqi
Immigrants: A "Great
Migration" from Eastern
Europe expands Detroit's
Jewish population to
nearly 35,000 in 1920
and 85,000 in 1940.
Industrial jobs draw
families who had settled
in other U.S. cities.
Chaldeans continue to do.
• 'Chain migration': Like
some other immigrants,
each group has helped rela-
tives and friends relocate
by providing money for pas-
sage, jobs, lodging and oth-
er support. Each also has
Wartime impact:
Detroit Jewish News
is founded in 1942.
Massive downtown rally
in May 1948 celebrates
Israel's creation. Jewish
community absorbs
Holocaust refugees.
generally stab e, decades-
long ties to Detroit and its
northwestern suburbs.
• Careers: In ancestral
lands and as first-generation
immigrants, each minority
group faced education and
career barriers that led
New influx: Jewish Welfare
Federation coordinates
and finances resettlement
of Soviet emigres. Jewish
Community Center campus
in West Bloomfield, second-
largest in the world, reflects
suburban population shift.
many to eve op se -suffi-
cient business skills as mer-
chants and entrepreneurs.
Younger generations are
represented more heavily
in law, medicine, dentistry,
accounting, education and
other professions.
114
VEAR BO
COLLEGE
OF BUSINESS
Challenges: 2005 population
study shows downward trend
over a decade and a half, but
highest per-capita charitable
giving among any Jewish
community in North America.
Activism and involvement levels
also are highest of about 20
comparison communities.
April 1 • 2010
29