Views
M
y first clinical position
as a young physician
in the 1970s was
working for the clinic’
s Jewish
owner, a doctor in his late 50s.
Knowing I was Jewish, he often
spoke to me in
hushed Yiddish.
For 13 years
I nodded and
smiled knowingly
whenever he took
me aside to tell
me something he
didn’
t want any-
one else to hear. I can now con-
fess that, alav hashalom (peace
be upon him), I understood
maybe one word in 20.
In reading through so many
of the interesting posts on the
Jewish History Facebook page,
the stories, the food, the people
and places of treasured memory,
there is often a common thread,
either spoken or implied, that
bridges generations past and
present to one another. And
that’
s our Mamaloshen, our
mother tongue:
Yiddish. It is
an integral part of our cultural
mosaic, forming the nexus that
bonds us to our unique heritage.
Most of our English words are
Latin derivatives. I took Latin
for two years; it is very technical
and sterile, almost devoid of
emotional depth. But whereas
Latin may be the language of the
brain, Yiddish is the language
of the heart. It seems to ema-
nate from deep within the soul,
embracing us with its nuance
and warmth.
I wish only to pay homage to
this wonderful, rich language
that was spoken frequently by
my father’
s generation (often to
keep secrets from the kinder, or
children). Sadly, Yiddish is now
just a quaint, fading remnant
of its former self, sustained by
descriptive words or phrases and
epithets.
I believe that Yiddish is the
most descriptive of all languages.
Everything else appears anemic
and two-dimensional in com-
parison. It’
s almost like compar-
ing a painting to a sculpture.
“Fat” in English becomes
shmaltz in Yiddish; the word
almost oozes out of our mouths
as it reminds us of the taste
and globby, soft, smooth tex-
ture of our Bubbie’
s knadlach
(matzah balls) with chicken fat.
It was the first thing I asked for
after they pulled out the chest
tubes following my bypass
surgery, but sadly, it wasn’
t on
the heart-friendly menu at
Beaumont.
One of my personal favorites
is shmatte. It makes me smile
whenever I say it. I can sense
its dismissive connotation as
you visualize every detail of the
ragged old garment. The word
also implies a negative critique
of the wearer, as in, “Look at
that woman, wearing such a
shmatte!”
Tchotchke, which has, at last
count, 19 different spellings, is
the catch-all word for anything
of little value, yet the word is
not necessarily demeaning
Fred Gold
essay
Our Mamaloshen: Yiddish
guest column
Peace Through Partnership
T
o some policy makers, numbers in
budgets made in Washington, D.C.
are simply that — numbers. Yet
to the people who receive that funding,
they mean so much more. They mean the
difference between fear of war and hope
for peace.
For Israelis and
Palestinians, foreign aid
directly supports efforts for
a peaceful resolution to the
conflict. Cutting foreign
aid directly impacts orga-
nizations that bring Israelis
and Palestinians together
in people-to-people programs. Without
funding, these organizations are unable
to continue work on behalf of reconcilia-
tion. Congress should restore their aid. It
should also create an International Fund
in support of a two-state solution for the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The Trump administration cut fund-
ing for the Palestinian government and
population when it took office. It has
pressured Palestinians to support the
administration’
s skewed plan for peace.
Given the reaction by both the Palestinian
Authority and the Palestinian population,
its approach has not worked.
Peacebuilding programs are a bet-
ter approach. They change the people
who participate in them. Israelis and
Palestinians actively engage with each
other. In the short term, these programs
force participants to challenge their biases
and prejudices of the “other” and form
relationships. In the long term, they allow
leaders to be willing to make concessions
in negotiations with less concern for the
backlash of their constituents.
These programs can create a movement
of nonviolent activists who support peace.
Such programs are needed because sup-
port for a two-state solution is dropping,
and support for a zero-sum view of the
conflict is increasing. In the short term,
more nonviolent activists give legitima-
cy to peaceful protest. In the long term,
nonviolence may make both sides willing
to negotiate because they do not feel that
concessions will be met with violence.
Some say that neither Israelis nor
Palestinians want to negotiate. That is
exactly why we should invest in peace-
building now, so that negotiations
can have a chance to succeed in the
future. Giving up on young Israelis and
Palestinians will make a two-state solu-
tion more difficult to achieve. Investing in
them gives peacebuilding a chance.
Currently a bill is going through
Congress that explicitly supports peace
building. The Partnership Fund for
Peace Act creates an International Fund
for Israeli-Palestinian peace. The fund
would support peace building and eco-
nomic development. It has bicameral and
bipartisan support, and the support of
Zach Schenk
8 | MARCH 12 • 2020
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