46 | NOVEMBER 5 • 2020
T
wenty-five years ago, on Nov. 4,
1995, Jews in Detroit experienced a
huge shock. The prime minister of
Israel, Yitzhak Rabin, had been assassinat-
ed. The death of Rabin at the hands of a
deranged Israeli university student rever-
berated around the world.
Locally, the Jewish commu-
nity had not witnessed such
an outpouring of grief since
the beloved Rabbi Morris
Adler was gunned down on
the bimah of Shaarey Zedek
during Shabbat services by
a mentally ill young man
in 1966, or perhaps, three
years earlier, after the assassi-
nation of President John F. Kennedy.
Rabin’
s death was felt personally by
many Detroit Jews. He had longstanding
relationships with local community lead-
ers and, over the years, thousands of local
Jews had traveled to Israel where they were
warmly welcomed by Rabin. Regardless of
whether one agreed with his policies or not,
Rabin was the prime minister of Israel. He
was a sabra, a soldier and a war hero, who
became a statesman and, in 1995, was a vic-
tim of extremely divisive politics in Israel.
One only needs to visit the William
Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit
History and read the Nov. 10, 1995, issue
of the JN to see the impact of Rabin’
s death
on the local Jewish community. It has 25
pages of stories from local, national and
international reporters about the effects of
the assassination. Only one other person
received the same amount of ink in an
issue of the JN: the legendary Detroiter Max
Fisher on March 3, 2005, upon his passing.
The JN’
s coverage of Rabin’
s assassination
is breathtaking. It began with reactions
from local Jews: Where were they when
they heard the news? Larry Wolfe had just
come home and decided to check on the
Michigan-Michigan State football game
on TV. Anna Friedman was on her
way to a wedding when she heard a
report on the radio, and Wayne State
University student Julie Galazan had
just settled in to watch a movie.
Other stories covered the reac-
tions of Americans and Detroiters,
as well as the feelings and sense of
loss among Israelis themselves. There
were numerous quotes from promi-
nent Americans. Jennifer Finer wrote
an article, “Hillel Students Discuss
Their Emotions, Loss.” A story report-
ed that former Ambassador to Norway
and Detroit Jewish leader David
Hermelin visited Israel shortly after the
event and found the entire nation walk-
ing around in a dream-like state.
The issue also has images that show
the interactions between Rabin and local
Jews. Jane Sherman and Larry Jackier
appear in a photograph breaking bread
with Rabin in Israel. In another photo,
JN staff writer Ruth Littmann, who had
reported on the Miracle Mission II in
Israel, is shown with Rabin.
Twenty-five years after Yitzhak Rabin’
s
assassination, the Nov. 10, 1995, issue of
the JN remains an outstanding, in-depth
package of local, national and international
reporting about a historic — and horrif-
ic — event. It is a compelling read that
still stands as a fitting
memorial to one of
Israel’
s great leaders,
and as a testimony to the
tragic results when divi-
sive politics foster extreme
acts of violence.
Want to learn more? Go to the
DJN Foundation archives,
available for free at
www.djnfoundation.org.
Looking Back
From the William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History
accessible at www.djnfoundation.org
The Shocking
Loss of Rabin
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