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I agree with Edwin Black (Replacing
the U.N.,” April 20, page 8) that the
“anti-Semitic, anti-Israel, undemocrat-
ic and diplomatically dysfunctional”
United Nations should be replaced
with something better.
I am still bitter that on Dec. 23, 2016,
Samantha Power and the U.S. went
along with this tarnished institution
and abstained from its resolution
declaring Israeli settlements illegal
under international law, demanding
that Israel cease construction in the
West Bank and other territories cap-
tured in the 1967 Middle East war. It
was a slap in the face to Israel and to
Jews around the world. But no mat-
ter how much we shake our heads, I,
unfortunately, believe the U.N. is here
to stay.
Instead of dismantling it, we need
courageous people in the U.N. to
stand up for Israel and human rights.
Thankfully, the new U.N. Ambassador,
Nikki Haley, has vehemently spoken
out against the double standards
of the human-rights-violating dic-
tatorships that want to punish and
decimate Israel. She has spotlighted
the constant bias against Israel and
pleaded for human rights everywhere,
focusing instead on the brutality of
countries such as Syria and Iran.
The real hero of the U.N. before
Nikki Haley, and now standing with
her, is Hillel Neuer, the executive direc-
tor of UN Watch, who has been a con-
stant observer and a voice for justice
and human rights for more than 10
years. He is a thoughtful and outspo-
ken critic, calling out double stan-
dards of countries that accuse Israel
of “apartheid,” the same countries
that forced their Jewish citizens into
exile and now are doing the same with
Christians and other minorities.
In March, after PLO, Qatar, Syria,
Sudan, Saudi Arabia and other Arab
regimes accused Israel of “apartheid,”
Neuer took to the U.N. floor and listed
the number of Jews there had been in
Algeria, Egypt, Syria, Iraq and Iran and
how many there are now (zero). He
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cried out these haunting words to the
world, “Where are your Jews?”
Neuer wrote after this memorable
moment: “Despite the Palestinian,
Egyptian and Pakistani attempts to
silence me, we silenced the entire U.N.
Human Rights Council. And now, in
less than two days [March 23], the
video — exposing their terrible lies,
hypocrisy and moral inversion — has
been seen 1.4 million times around
the world and still counting. In a room
of darkness, we must light a candle of
truth.”
Amen.
Arnie Goldman
Farmington Hills
JCRC/AJC Clarification
We thank the Detroit Jewish News for
informing its readers of our commu-
nity’s response to the recent anti-Israel
activity at the University of Michigan-
Dearborn (“Anti-Israel Ploy” April 27,
page 26).
While the distribution of bogus
parking tickets with an anti-Israel
message was both offensive and
shocking, we were pleased to see the
effective response led by the school’s
Jewish students and organized by
Hillel of Metro Detroit’s Miriam
Starkman and Neil Cantor. Hillel
empowers Jewish students by creating
community and marshalling resources
and relationships, such as that with
UM-Dearborn Chancellor Dan Little,
who is a friend of the Jewish commu-
nity and of Israel.
The anti-Israel instigator on that
campus, Students for Justice in
Palestine (SJP), is no partner for com-
munity relations and dialogue. SJP
rejects Israel’s right to exist, opposes a
negotiated peace and is hostile to the
Jewish community. Unfortunately, the
story misstated our position on part-
nering with SJP. JCRC/AJC has not and
will not interface with such a group.
David Kurzmann
Executive Director,
Jewish Community Relations Council/AJC
continued from page 5
meeting, from 6-7:30 p.m. Thursday,
May 4, at the Isaac Agree Downtown
Synagogue, will focus on planning and
sign making. Visit Motor City Freedom
Riders on Facebook to RSVP.
On May 18, the Regional Transit
Authority is hosting its board retreat
to discuss the future of regional tran-
sit. We’ve been continually frustrated
by the RTA Board’s unwillingness
to be public about where individual
voting members stand on putting
the measure back on the ballot, so
this will be a very important fact-
finding opportunity for us to chart our
course moving forward. The retreat
is open to the public to sit in on, and
it will be at 9:30 a.m. Thursday, May
18, at the Lawrence Technological
University in Southfield.
To get involved with Detroit Jews
for Justice’s transit work or to connect
with DJJ leaders attending the May
12 rally, email community organizer
Eleanor at eleanor@
detroitjewsforjustice.org. •
Martin Baum is a Bloomfield Hills attorney.