looking back

On Sunday, May 16, 1948, just two days after Israel was declared a state, an estimated 22,000 gathered at Central High School in Detroit to celebrate the new nation. •

Courtesy Leonard N. Simons Jewish Community Archives.

From the DJN

Davidson Digital Archive

T

here is really only one topic for my column this week,
isn’t there? I would be remiss if I did not look back into
the William Davidson Archives to see just what was hap-
pening in Detroit after David Ben-Gurion read the Declaration
of Israel’s Independence on May 14, 1948, thereby establishing
the modern state of Israel. Indeed, I found lots of stories in
April that year about the events that led to Israel’s birthday, and
stories that covered the aftermath of inde-
pendence in May issues of the JN and Detroit
Jewish Chronicle.
In the May 14 issue of the JN, the headline
for the front page article read: “Detroit To
Salute Jewish State At Demonstration This
Sunday,” followed by “Community Summoned
to Meet at Central High School (Detroit)
Field.” Moreover, the article stated that it “is
Mike Smith
imperative that every Detroit Jew should be
Detroit Jewish News
present.
” That Sunday, May 16, was declared
Foundation Archivist
“Palestine Liberation Day,” a celebration for

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May 17 • 2018

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Jews around the world.
It seems that Detroit Jews heeded the call to assemble. The
May 21 issues of both the JN and the Chronicle had extensive
reports on the celebration. An estimated 22,000 gathered at
3:30 p.m. that Sunday to rejoice over the establishment of Eretz
Israel. This is an impressive number. While there were certainly
non-Jewish friends in attendance, if almost all the crowd were
indeed Jews, that would mean that about 25-30 percent of the
Jewish population of Metro Detroit turned out for the celebra-
tion.
By all reports, it was a joyous affair. The shofar was sounded
and the blue-and-white flag of Israel with its star of David
flew alongside the Stars and Stripes. After a 2,000-year sojourn
for Jews around the world, and for those from Detroit and
Michigan, it was a once-in-a-lifetime event. And, the JN was
there. •

Want to learn more? Go to the DJN Foundation archives,
available for free at www.djnfoundation.org.