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Slain Michigan Civil Rights Director Honored
Michigan Civil Rights Commission honors the memory of Burton Gordin.
I
n April 2013, JN Publisher and
Executive Editor Arthur Horwitz wrote
an investigative piece about Burton
Gordin, Michigan's first director of the
Department of Civil Rights, a Jewish man
who was gunned down as he left his office
on March 20, 1970. His murder remains
unsolved.
Horwitz's story served to rekindle inter-
est in the Gordin case, and last month, the
Michigan Civil Rights Commission issued
a statement on the life and death of Burton
I. Gordin, which was signed by commis-
sion members and issued via Michigan
Gov. Rick Snyder's office.
Said Horwitz, "As the Civil Rights
Commission celebrates its 50th anniver-
sary year, not to remember the work, the
passion and the capability that Burton
Gordin brought as founding executive
director would be a significant over-
sight." Horwitz serves as chairman of the
Michigan Civil Rights Commission.
According to the Commission's state-
ment, public reports of the murder inves-
tigation reflected a wide variety of possible
motives, from a robbery gone awry to
the involvement of angry whites, militant
blacks or disgruntled staff. None of those
motives was ever proven.
The Michigan Chapter of the NAACP
at the time called the killing a "political
assassination of a civil rights leader until
proven otherwise." More than 40 years
later, there remains no firm basis for con-
cluding there was any political motivation
for the killing, but neither has it been
proven there was not.
"While the truth about what may have
happened may never be discovered:'
Horwitz said, "we, as a state and as a
commission, owe much of our civil rights
progress to his pioneering work:'
At its Dec. 9, 2013, meeting, Michigan
JCC Leadership Change
Keri Guten Cohen
Story Development Editor
L
ast week, Mark Lit stepped
aside as executive director of
the Jewish Community Center
of Metropolitan Detroit. He was named
senior philanthropic adviser, a position
he says he will hold at least until the end
of May.
This action came
during an investiga-
tion into the JCC's
financial accounting
after the Center's
controller admitted
early last December
to altering the books.
Mark Lit
She was fired imme-
diately.
At the same time,
the JCC is facing major financial dif-
ficulties. In a cover story Jan. 30, the
JN explained that the Jewish Federation
of Metropolitan Detroit and its bank-
ing arm, the United Jewish Foundation,
aided the JCC with a cash infusion of
$950,000 from the Foundation's General
Fund to keep it operational through Feb.
14.
While a Federation/Foundation Task
Force was dealing with ways to eliminate
the JCC's long-standing legacy debt esti-
mated to be millions, the Center learned
of the controller's actions. The investiga-
tion was begun and Financial One of
Plymouth was hired to handle the JCC's
finances. It is expected the JCC will need
14
February 6 • 2014
JN
Civil Rights Commission Director
Matthew Wesaw indicated that he had
convened meetings with the Michigan
State Police and the Detroit Police
Department to determine next steps to re-
investigate Gordin's murder.
The commissions statement also says,
"We must not allow ourselves to forget the
life of Director Gordin. He gave tirelessly
to the struggle to ensure equal treatment
for all, and he played a vital role in help-
ing Michigan and the nation first to correct
course and then to weather the storms of the
civil rights era ... His accomplishments were
too important, his impact too profound and
his legacy too significant to be forgotten."
According to Horwitz, "The job to pro-
tect the civil rights of Michigan citizens
is far from over, but let's hope that the
ultimate sacrifice that Burton Gordin paid
with his life can continue to fortify us in
the years ahead."
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The cover story of the April 4, 2013, JN
titled "Who Killed Burton Gordin?"
❑
Amid financial woes, Mark Lit steps aside.
significantly more funds after Feb. 14 to
see it through the end of its fiscal year
on May 31.
A search by a group of JCC, Federation
and Foundation leaders is under way
for an interim executive director. A
search committee, again representing all
three groups, will be formed to conduct
a comprehensive search for executive
director candidates.
Lit took the helm of the JCC on June
15, 2005. Before coming to Detroit, he
was the founding CEO at the Jewish
Community Association in Austin and
then headed the JCC in San Antonio.
"I will help with fundraising:' Lit said.
"When I came, there was an accumu-
lated deficit I worked to reduce; this will
be a chance to eliminate it"
Scott Kaufman, Federation CEO, said,
"Without losing sight of the serious-
ness of the financial situation at the
JCC, under Mark's tenure the Center has
become a more exciting and dynamic
place. And this is in no small part to
Mark's creativity, passion and vision."
A multimedia artist with a strong
theater background, Lit was the driv-
ing force in bringing the JCC's Berman
Center for the Performing Arts to real-
ization.
"The Berman gives us a world-class
showplace for quality cultural events.
The Berman has hosted events and pro-
grams for just about every Jewish orga-
nization in town," Kaufman said.
"And with Partners in Torah, he start-
ed the Kindness Project that brought
meaningful Jewish values into the cul-
ture of the Center. It's something not
seen elsewhere around the country."
Current JCC President Florine Mark
said, "Mark was one of the best directors
we've ever had; he did so much. He loves
the JCC and he left us a great legacy."
❑
Super Sunday Efforts Are Separate From JCC Financial Problems
T
his Sunday, Feb. 9, is Super
Sunday, an annual fundraising
phone-a-thon for the Jewish
Federation of Metropolitan Detroit's
Annual Campaign, which provides yearly
allocations to 17 local Jewish agencies
and schools and three global partners.
Calls will be made between 10 a.m.
and 1 p.m., and Federation leaders
have prepared volunteers and staffers
to answer questions that may come
up about the financial situation at the
Jewish Community Center.
"If someone we contact [on Super
Sunday] has any concerns about the JCC
or any other issue in the community,
we will deal with it directly by listen-
ing and giving as much information as
we can to address their concerns:' said
Andrew Echt, Federation's chief financial
resource development officer.
"I think there will be questions; it's
natural to want to know how will my
gift to the Campaign be used or not used
as it relates to the [JCC] issue. Annual
Campaign dollars have not and will not
be used for this particular issue."
All Super Sunday donations, as usual,
go directly into the Annual Campaign to
help fund Jewish organizations under the
Federation umbrella, with each receiving
an annual allocation. Emergency finan-
cial aid to the JCC did not come from
Federation's Annual Campaign, but from
the United Jewish Foundation's General
Fund, designed to help in such cases.
"The Annual Campaign exists to
ensure we have a strong community
across all spectrums, for all needs and all
people Echt said. "To continue to grow
and enrich our community — that's
what Campaign and Super Sunday are
about.
The overall 2014 goal is $30 million
for the Annual Campaign and $4 million
for the William Davidson Foundation
Challenge Fund, plus a stretch goal of
reaching 12,000 donors, Echt said.
Sandy Danto, Campaign co-chair with
Dr. Jeffrey Forman, sees Super Sunday
as a day of "inclusion" that unites volun-
teers from all parts of the community.
"We are all in it together:' she said.
"We all have times in our lives when we
have needs and Federation is there for
that from JBaby to the elderly and every-
one in between:'
To volunteer on Super Sunday, go to
www.jewishdetroit.org/supersunday or
call (248) 203-1474. ❑