6 | APRIL 30 • 2020 Views continued from page 5 continued on page 10 No Time to Be Cautious Jill Gutmann deserves credit for taking on a lot in one article (“Jewish Ethics in Medicine, ” April 9, page 6), but I fear that her cautious — even dismissive — tone about chloroquine fol- lowed by a general discussion of Jewish ethics and experimental treatments do not adequately consider patients who want access to chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine during the pandemic. Yes, medical researchers want randomized, prospective, dou- ble-blind clinical trials but, in fact, the overwhelming majority of COVID-19 patients will not be in any clinical trial (and half of those in a study typically receive a sugar pill “placebo”). According to the FDA, most current U.S. trials consider prevention for those exposed, not people who actually have COVID-19. For the seriously ill, there is no approved treatment whatsoever. Should a bioethicist, a physician or the government say, in effect, “No clinical trial? Sorry, you’ re on your own?” The FDA recognized this unacceptable state of affairs, decided “it is reasonable to believe” chloroquine and hydroxy chloroquine “may be effective” and on March 28 issued an Emergency Use Authorization for both drugs. We may not know everything about the two drugs, but we know doctors in the trenches think they may work, and they have nothing else. The pandemic means there’ s no time to waste. Don’ t worry about clinical trials, we’ ll figure out later if they work. — Roger H. Leemis Southfield Feeding Those in Need Since 1973, National Council of Jewish Women, Michigan (NCJW | MI) volunteers have delivered meals to homebound older adults five days a week. During this time of the pan- demic, we have expanded to also provide weekend meals. NCJW | MI is partnering with Jewish Family Service, JHelp of the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit and Area Agency on Aging 1B to reach out to those who have previ- ously not been homebound nor received meals from our program. This partnership has enabled us to reach out to many in need. The phrase “it takes a vil- lage” is true for this program. Together with the efforts of the agencies and our many dedicat- ed volunteers and staff, we have met a need. We are very thank- ful to those who have partnered with us and honored to work together to provide this help. To learn more about our program, visit ncjwmi.org. To obtain meals delivered to your home, call Jhelp at 1-833-44-JHELP (54357). Financial need is not required, but subsidy is available if needed. — Jennifer LoPatin, President Susan Gertner, Executive Director NCJW | MI letters our country, our world. ” That, of course, is what a responsible Jewish newspaper should do amid a crisis such as this. Now, Jews in Canada will be on their own for the remainder of the crisis, without a communal news source to depend upon. Unless we move quickly, Jews in the United States will suffer this same fate, and Jewish newspapers across the country will disappear. The Jewish Week in New York has already issued a special appeal for financial support to its readers. Other local U.S. Jewish newspapers are in dire straits, too. With businesses closed and Jewish events around the country canceled and therefore not advertised, more and more American Jewish newspapers find themselves without the basic funds necessary to sustain the journalistic enterprise. What does it mean when Jewish journalism dies? Since their establishment in the first half of the 19th century, Jewish newspapers in the United States have helped to shape community, tied far-flung Jews together and kept them informed. Newspapers have also preserved the “first draft” of our communal history. Want to know, for example, how America’ s Jews handled past epidemics? There is only one source: the American Jewish press. Without a reliable press, our community’ s past — the records of its achievements and mistakes, its milestones and its missteps — will inevitably disappear. So too will our broad sense of what a Jewish community is. Absent a responsible Jewish press, the multiplicity of interests, views and commitments that characterize vibrant Jewish communities will find no common outlet. Instead, groups of like-thinking Jews will retreat into their own narrow silos, impervious to all who disagree with them. A good Jewish newspaper, print or digital, prevents any of this from happening. It serves an essential function in defining, maintaining, educating and promoting community. It ties organizations and individuals together and keeps members informed about local news, as well as news of broader impact. An effective newspaper seeks to represent all parts of the community, helping to acquaint different neighborhoods, generations, denominations, movements, etc., about one another. When divisive issues arise, the newspaper publishes various responsible points of view. When disasters like the coronavirus strike, the newspaper works to unite the community, providing information, guidance, sympathy and reflection. The demise of the London Jewish Chronicle and the Canadian Jewish News should serve as a wake-up call for Jewish leaders managing the crisis of COVID- 19. In addition to the terrible loss of life, the psychic toll on individuals and families, and the economic hardship befalling those suddenly without work, we also face a basic challenge to Jewish community itself. If Jewish journalism disappears, can the Jewish community as we know it be sustained? Jonathan D. Sarna is university professor and the Joseph H. & Belle R. Braun Professor of American Jewish History at Brandeis University. Reprinted with permission from The Forward.