Febraury 14 • 2019 5 jn A fter a recent visit to my dentist (Hi, Dr. Krawitz!), I was struck by the number of idi- oms I found in our language that employ the reference to teeth or dental items. So, chew on this. A common weed, the dandelion, gets its name from the French dent de lion (tooth of the lion) for the shape of the “petals.” Dent in French is tooth; hence: dental, den- tist, etc. Now you do not have to give your eye teeth to know that etymology. Are you at all aware of the absence of unicorns? They are as scarce as hens’ teeth. When you are adamant about something, you may fight tooth and nail to get your point across. You may have to grit your teeth and remain strong in the face of an argument. You find, however, that once you sink your teeth in, you may win the argument by the skin of your teeth. Brace yourself when you find that you are on the cusp of a discovery. It may require you to bridge the gap caused by ignorance of others; then you may win a crown of superiority. Have you noticed that protestors often come armed to the teeth with everything but reason? That realization can set one’ s teeth on edge. Having to explain yourself many times may make you fed up to the teeth. However, do not fly in the teeth of conven- tion but rather, take time to re-explain. Yes, you may feel like approaching a truly stubborn person with a kick in the teeth; teaching someone can often seem like pulling teeth. One way to engender distrust is to be discovered to be lying through your teeth. Encountering such individuals may encourage you to put some teeth into a decision and to treat others with utmost care. When all is said and done, remember that if you are true to your teeth, they will never be false to you. ■ continued on page 10 views for openers With a Toothy Grin SY MANELLO Editorial Assistant guest column Why Henry Ford Bigotry Story Matters Editor’ s note: This column was printed in the issue of The Dearborn Historian that Mayor John O’ Reilly ordered scrapped because it contained a report on Henry Ford’ s anti-Semitism that O’ Reilly said would hurt the city’ s efforts at inclusion. McGraw wrote the column to explain to readers why the quarterly magazine was addressing the subject. W ith its growing African- American community, a large Middle-Eastern popu- lation and immigrants from a variety of countries, Dearborn is growing increas- ingly diverse. The Dearborn of today is almost unimaginable from, say, the Dearborn of 1980. Such diversity is reflected in the public officials who represent all or large parts of the city: State Sen. Sylvia Santana is an African- American woman. State Rep. Abdullah Hammoud and Wayne County Commissioner Sam Baydoun are Arab Americans. Mayor John O’ Reilly is a white man and U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell is a white woman. It’ s a varied cast of characters, and a reflection of an evolving America in which women and minorities are increasingly visible in public life. The trend is further illustrated by Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, from next door in Detroit, a person well known in Dearborn and one of the first Muslim women elected to Congress. Her 13th Congressional District is next to Dingell’ s 12th District. The emergence of minorities taking their rightful places has come with a price, and part of that price is fear of demographic change among some white Americans and a nationalistic backlash around the world. And a big part of that backlash is a rise in anti-Semitism. The Anti-Defamation League record- ed a 57 percent rise in anti-Semitic inci- dents in the United States in 2017, com- pared to the previous year — including assaults, vandalism, bomb threats and anti-Semitic literature on college cam- puses. In 2017, neo-Nazis marched in Charlottesville, Va., chanting “Jews will not replace us, ” and one anti-Nazi protester died. In October, a gunman killed 11 people in a Pittsburgh syna- gogue. “Growing Anti-Semitism Stuns American Jews, ” read a headline in the New York Times. That brings us to Henry Ford. In this issue, The Dearborn Historian carries a special report on Henry Ford’ s anti-Semitism. I wrote it. It’ s not a happy story. The magazine is running the report because of the current climate of anti-Semitism and because January mark[ed] the 100th anniversary of Ford buying the Dearborn Independent weekly newspaper, the platform for his attacks. We’ re also publishing the report because we believe local history publi- cations should strive to tell the whole truth about our past, no matter how unpleasant, and connect local events to what’ s happening in the greater world. While many people know vaguely that Ford had anti-Semitic beliefs, I think it’ s fair to say most people have no idea that, as the article details, his anti-Semitic publishing effort was so vast in scope and had such a powerful impact, or that his publications from the 1920s are enjoying a renaissance today among extremist websites and online forums. In general, Metro Detroit and its institutions tend to treat Ford gently when it comes to his dark sides. But historians and other experts have BILL MCGRAW For information, contact Tracey Proghovnick (248) 661-1836 jslmi.org All We Need Is Love Living Your Best ... Jewish Senior Life Jewish Senior Life is far more than a place to live. It’s six beautiful residences where older adults can embrace life and community in a secure and supportive environment. JSL is proud to provide inclusive residential communities, programs and services. We welcome all people without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, disability, gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, familial status and marital status. When people spend time with their decrease-even if the relationship isn’t perfect. Being in love is good for your heart. The decrease in blood pressure has to do with familiarity, sense of security and comfort between partners. Couples have lower rates of heart disease than their single counterparts. Being in love boosts your immune system. Everything from hand-holding, massage and frequent sex, leads to a healthier life style. Love can take many forms and is more than romance. The love between a parent and child, friends, siblings, love between humans and their animal companions, or love for oneself that develops after years of self-loathing is healing. We get annoyed by irksome habits of loved ones, but for better or worse, when you are in a relationship, you’re agreeing to put up with people’s schtick. Everyone has schtick. If you can both accept each other’s, you’ve got magic! People in relationships live longer. I’m convinced my father achieved ripe old age, because he was engaged in a senior community with the love of a good woman. He also exercised regularly, ate healthy foods and sipped a dry martini daily. Love is good for your mental health. The love hormone, oxytocin, plays a role in decreasing depression. Sleeping next to someone we love helps bond people to each other, feel safer, resulting in quality stress-reduced sleep. Jewish Senior Life is home to many loving couples who respect each other, support each other and care about quali- ty of life. They tell me it’s easy to laugh off the little things that happen. And with all the little things, they are laughing quite a lot. Laughter heals us body and soul. Love solves everything. Choose Love!