soul
of blessed memory
Fighting Hate
And Teaching
Tolerance
RABBI JASON MILLER CONTRIBUTING WRITER
T
Richard Lobenthal
hroughout his 36-year career at
the Anti-Defamation League,
Richard Lobenthal was consid-
ered by many to be a living legend, both
locally and nationally. On the front lines
battling anti-Semitism, Lobenthal made
a name for himself while trying to eradi-
cate hatred, intolerance and bigotry.
The stories he amassed were legendary
as well — and anything but boring.
While infiltrating the Michigan
Ku Klux Klan, Lobenthal found him-
self traveling home one night with a
Klansman in a car loaded with dyna-
mite. He stood in a black Baptist church
in the South as it was being firebombed.
He also told of the time he had to wait
for the local sheriff to arrive at his burn-
ing home to save him from gun-toting
Klansmen.
“His passion for human rights and
social justice inspired many great
leaders who are still pillars of our
community today.”
— HEIDI BUDAJ, ADL MICHIGAN REGION DIRECTOR
It was not unusual for Lobenthal
to have threats against his life, forc-
ing him to carry a loaded weapon for
personal protection. Even with all his
many exciting stories, it was his work
teaching tolerance to young students at
area schools that brought Lobenthal the
most pride.
Richard Lobenthal, 83, died peacefully
Sept. 26, 2017, after courageously bat-
tling a long illness.
A New York native, Lobenthal trained
as a psychologist at the University of
Chicago, Long Island University and
New York University. Early in his career,
he served as the consultant regarding
intergroup relations to the Department
of Labor and to the governors of
Oklahoma and North Carolina. Before
coming to Detroit in 1964 to become the
director of the Michigan ADL region, he
served as director of the Virginia-North
Carolina ADL regional office.
Lobenthal was committed to fight-
ing for social justice and defending
constitutional rights for all people and
protecting the rights of minorities. As
the Michigan ADL director until his
retirement in 1996, he brought national
acclaim to the regional office through
such notable projects as A World of
Difference, an anti-bias education edu-
cational initiative. Lobenthal also served
as the Mid-West ADL regional director
and the interim director of the Michigan
chapter of the American Civil Liberties
Union (ACLU) after his retirement.
He also served as the interim
director and board president of the
Ecumenical Council of Detroit. He
served on the boards of the National
Association of Independent Artists
and the Michigan Psychological
Association Foundation. Additionally,
he was a sociology professor at Wayne
State University and had a weekly
radio broadcast for more than 20 years
on Detroit Public Radio (WDET).
Abraham Foxman, national direc-
tor emeritus of the Anti-Defamation
League, said, “Dick Lobenthal was a
consummate Jewish professional who
tirelessly combatted anti-Semitism and
hate and was not afraid to break down
barriers between people to promote
mutual respect. He changed many
people’s lives for the better and leaves a
lasting legacy to be emulated by those
who seek to make a better world.”
Heidi Budaj, current Michigan Region
ADL director, said, “The work we do
today at the Michigan ADL is pos-
sible due to the foundation that Dick
Lobenthal and his leadership built. Dick
was a legend not only in our region but
also across the ADL world. His passion
for human rights and social justice
inspired many great leaders who are still
pillars of our community today.”
Rabbi Arnie Sleutelberg of Temple
Shir Tikvah, who officiated at the
funeral, remembered Lobenthal as
“a great man and champion who was
monumental. A giant who changed
the world.” Sleutelberg came to know
Lobenthal several years ago when
they were part of a group that formed
Mosaic, a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic,
interfaith organization in Detroit .
“He was always surprised at the
esteem with which he was held. He
had no ego. He was larger than life,
but only because we venerated him
so,” Sleutelberg said. “His devotion to
social justice, his fight against bigotry
in any kind was manifest in many ways.
He had an understanding of America
that was keen and sharp.”
I wanted to write Dick Lobenthal’s
obituary because he was an important
mentor of mine from the time I served
an internship at the Michigan ADL
office as a college student in the mid-
1990s. At the funeral, I told of how, as
college students, whenever there was
an anti-Semitic incident on campus or
a Holocaust denier was coming to give
a lecture, our first phone call was to
Dick Lobenthal at the ADL. He made
us feel safe. And, in doing so, he made
us feel proud to be Jews. He made gen-
erations of young Jewish students feel
safe and proud of their Judaism.
Bill Brukoff, a longtime friend of
Lobenthal’s, spoke at the funeral, say-
ing, “Richard’s career wasn’t his whole
life. If you asked him, he would have
told you that Judith [his wife of 40
years] was his whole life. But that was
only partially true. It was sharing his
life with her and with his children and
his friends that gave him the most joy.”
Daughter Lisabeth Lobenthal said,
“Judith was the love of his life and he
was the love of ours. There is a hole
in our hearts. But, he kept his pledge
to live until he died and he did it with
courage and dignity. He told us not to
grieve; that he had a blessed life. We
will grieve anyway.”
His legacy will live on in the Richard
Lobenthal Human Rights and Social
Justice Award that has been established
in his memory by past presidents of the
Anti-Defamation League.
Richard Lobenthal is survived by
his wife of 40 years, Judith Kovach;
son and daughter-in-law, Adam and
Jackie Lobenthal; daughter and son-
in-law, Lisabeth Lobenthal and Patrick
Thomi; grandchildren, Jamie Colecchia,
Michaela and Joey Lobenthal, Aaron
Ellern, Sarah Lobenthal and Michael
Yanez, Ruth Lobenthal and her fiance,
Chris McBride, and James Lobenthal;
great-grandchildren, Cassidy Colecchia,
Owin and Parker Reams, Orianna,
Okira and Obadyah Yanez, and Layla
Lobenthal; brother and sister-in-law,
Joseph Lobenthal and Anna Green. He
is also survived by his loving and faith-
ful dog, Brandon. Mr. Lobenthal was
the cherished father of the late Joshua
Lobenthal and the late Debbie Kovach,
and the loving brother of the late Lila
Gordon and the late Stanley White.
Contributions may be directed
to Anti-Defamation League (ADL),
Richard Lobenthal Human Rights
and Social Justice Award, c/o 6600
W. Maple Road, West Bloomfield, MI
48322, michigan.adl.org/tag/detroit;
or American Civil Liberties Union,
ACLU Michigan, 2966 Woodward
Ave., Detroit, MI 48201, aclumich.org.
Arrangements by the Ira Kaufman
Chapel. •
continued on page 56
jn
October 5 • 2017
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