Roundup

Obama On Jewish Immigration
WASHINGTON (JTA) -- President Obama
cited the wave of Jewish immigration at
the turn of the 20th century in pressing for
immigration reform.
"One of the largest
waves of immigration in
our history took place
little more than a century
ago',' Obama said in his
July 1 address aimed at
reviving a reform pack-
age that has languished
for years in Congress."At
President
the
time, Jewish people
Obama
were being driven out
of Eastern Europe, often escaping to the
sounds of gunfire and the light from their
villages burning to the ground. The journey
could take months, as families crossed
rivers in the dead of night, traveled miles
by foot, endured a rough and dangerous
passage over the North Atlantic. Once here,
many made their homes in a teeming and
bustling Lower Manhattan."
Obama referred then to the vision of
Emma Lazarus, the Jewish poet whose
poem adorns the Statue of Liberty.
"Years before the statue was built
— years before it would be seen by throngs
of immigrants craning their necks skyward
at the end of long and brutal voyage, years
before it would come to symbolize every-
thing that we cherish — she imagined what
it could mean',' Obama said. "She imagined
the sight of a giant statue at the entry point
of a great nation — but unlike the great
monuments of the past, this would not sig-
nal an empire. Instead it would signal one's
arrival to a place of opportunity and refuge
and freedom."
Obama is seeking Republican support
to back the immigration reform act, which
would add funds to secure borders, and
create a path to legal status for millions of
undocumented workers through the pay-
ment of a fine, learning English and reg-
istering. He says he cannot pass it without
GOP backing, and noted the efforts of his
predecessor, George W. Bush, to pass similar
legislation.
A number of groups oppose the legisla-
tion, dismissing it as "amnesty" for those
who broke the law, and saying it would
usurp the status of immigration applicants
who have used legal means.
The Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society and
the American Jewish Committee praised
the speech. "Our parents, grandparents, and
earlier forebears came to these shores to
seek a better life for themselves and future
generations',' HIAS said in a statement. "The
vast majority of Americans still believe this
country should remain true to these roots
by providing a hospitable legal framework
for the disadvantaged and dispossessed

to arrive and integrate into our nation's
mosaic."

Kagan Declines Response
WASHINGTON (JTA) -- Elena Kagan
refused to answer whether she would con-
sider as a U.S. Supreme Court judge a suit
brought by Holocaust survivors against
insurers.
The lawsuit, mirrored
by legislation under con-
sideration in Congress,
seeks to reopen the
process under which
the insurers paid out on
Holocaust-era claims.
In June 30 confirma-
tion hearings, Sen. Arlen
Elena Kagan
Specter, D-Pa., asked
Kagan, the solicitor general, whether she
would take on the case. Kagan has said in
testimony that she considers the court's
current intake of about 80 cases per 800
applications each session to be low.
In this instance, however, Kagan declined
to answer, noting that as solicitor general
she may have to represent the government,
which has resisted reopening the case. She
has similarly declined to answer in other
cases she may have to handle in her current
role.
The Bush and Obama administrations
have said that the process, governed by the
International Commission on Holocaust
Era Insurance Claims, included guarantees
to the participating governments that there
would be no further action.
Courts, citing executive branch foreign
policy prerogatives, have traditionally
deferred to foreign policy considerations
and declined to consider similar cases.

Barristers, Judges Meet
FARMiNGTON HILLS -- On June 2 at
Adat Shalom Synagogue in Farmington
Hills, B'nai B'rith Barristers held its annual
Judges Night. There were 15 judges and
many attorneys in attendance.
The director of the Michigan State
University Jewish Studies Program,
Professor Kenneth Waltzer, and the
program's former director, Professor
Steven Weiland, discussed Contemporary
Jewish Life in America and Contemporary
American Jewish Attitudes Toward Israel.

Hadassah Seeks Votes
WEST BLOOMFIELD -- The Greater
Detroit Chapter of Hadassah Doll Project is
a finalist to win $10,000 in a Magic Radio,
105.1 FM, contest. Doll Project volunteers
create and distribute fabric dolls to children
being treated at local hospitals. To date, the
Doll Project has delivered 60,000 dolls.
To win, the Doll Project needs to receive
the most votes through an on-line voting

process. Voting will continue until July
12. The website is www.detroitmagic.com .
In addition to the $10,000 prize, one
voter will win $1,000.

Rubashkin Appeals Case
POSTVILLE, IOWA (JTA) -- Attorneys for
kosher meatpacking executive Sholom
Rubashkin filed an appeal of his conviction
on federal financial fraud charges and long
prison sentence.
The appeal was filed last Friday in the
U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals in St.
Louis.
Rubashkin was convicted last November
on 86 counts of fraud in connection with
the Agriprocessors plant in Postville, Iowa.
He was sentenced last month to 27 years in
a federal prison.
The prison term will be followed by five
years of parole, according to U.S. District
Judge Linda Reade. Rubashkin also will be
required to make restitution of nearly $27
million to several financial institutions.
Rubashkin was acquitted last month in an
Iowa state court on 67 counts of child labor
violations relating to 26 teenagers from
South America who worked at the plant.
The Agriprocessors plant was the site of
a federal immigration raid in May 2008 in
which 389 illegal immigrants, including 31
children, were arrested.

Israel Boycott Law
TEHRAN (JTA) -- Iranian President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has called for a
total boycott on Israeli goods or companies
that do business with Israel.
Ahmadinejad signed an amendment on
June 30 to Iran's "Palestinian support law','
which includes a blacklist of international
companies that are Jewish-owned or have
branches in Israel, according to reports. The
list reportedly includes Coca-Cola, Nestle,
Intel and IBM.
Iran also reportedly plans to propose a
boycott of Israel in the United Nations and
in other international forums, as stipulated
in the law.
The Palestinian support law was ratified
by the Iranian Parliament earlier in June in
reaction to Israel's interception of a Gaza-
bound flotilla that left nine passengers
dead.

Supreme Court Rulings
WASHINGTON (JTA) -- Jewish groups
expressed disappointment in a U.S.
Supreme Court decision expanding gun
owners' rights and differed on another deci-
sion upholding a university's right to ban
discriminatory groups.
In a 5-4 decision, the court on June
28 limited the rights of cities and states
to restrict gun ownership. The Anti-
Defamation League and the National

Council of Jewish Women each filed a
friend-of-the-court brief in the case of
McDonald v. City of Chicago.
A similar decision last year, involving the
District of Columbia, was seen as applying
only to federally controlled areas, and this
decision was closely watched because its
implications were broader. Observers who
had hoped that conservative justices might
see states' rights as trumping their broad
interpretation of Second Amendment rights
were disappointed.
"Today's Supreme Court decision limit-
ing the rights of states to regulate firearms
is a disappointing setback in the fight
against extremism and violence," ADL said
in a statement. "We deeply regret that the
Court has restricted the latitude that cities
and states retain to keep guns out of the
hands of extremists, terrorists and violent
bigots. The decision makes America a less
safe place for law enforcement officers and
the communities they protect."
NCJW and the Reform movement's
Religious Action Center also expressed "dis-
appointment" in the ruling.
"Whenever sensible gun control laws are
struck down, it is a disappointment" said
Rabbi David Saperstein, the RAC's director.
In the case of Christian Legal Society
V. Martinez, the court ruled 5-4 that the
University of California Hastings Law
School, which receives federal funding, may
reject official status for a group that dis-
criminates on a religious basis.
Five Jewish groups — the American
Jewish Committee, ADL, the Union for
Reform Judaism, NCJW and the Jewish
Council for Public Affairs — had joined
friend-of-the-court briefs backing the uni-
versity.
"Today's Supreme Court decision reaffirms
longstanding precedents that state and local
governments can and should prohibit the
use of taxpayer-supported public funding
to organizations and groups that restrict
their membership',' the JCPA said in a state-
ment."This is another step forward in end-
ing these practices. As Jews, we believe that
all humans, regardless of race, religion or
sexuality, are created in the divine image."
The Christian Legal Society would not
extend its membership to students in gay
relationships.
Three Orthodox Jewish groups, the
Orthodox Union, the National Council of
Young Israel and Agudath Israel of America,
had filed briefs friendly to the society,
partly out of concerns that a ruling against
the group would inhibit the establishment
of Jewish student societies.
"If the First Amendment guarantees any-
thing, it guarantees the right of people of
faith to associate and join in expressions of
faith without state interference and without
the state placing a burden on their religious
Roundup on page 10

July 8 • 2010

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