6 | JUNE 17 • 2021 

PURELY COMMENTARY

1942 - 2021

Covering and Connecting 
Jewish Detroit Every Week

To make a donation to the 
DETROIT JEWISH NEWS 
FOUNDATION
go to the website
www.djnfoundation.org

The Detroit Jewish News (USPS 275-520) 

is published every Thursday at 

32255 Northwestern Highway, #205, 

Farmington Hills, Michigan. Periodical 

postage paid at Southfield, Michigan, and 

additional mailing offices. 

Postmaster: send changes to: 

Detroit Jewish News, 

32255 Northwestern Highway, #205, 

Farmington Hills, Michigan 48334

MISSION STATEMENT The Detroit Jewish News will be of service to the Jewish community. The Detroit Jewish 
News will inform and educate the Jewish and general community to preserve, protect and sustain the Jewish 
people of greater Detroit and beyond, and the State of Israel.

VISION STATEMENT The Detroit Jewish News will operate to appeal to the broadest segments of the greater 
Detroit Jewish community, refl
 ecting the diverse views and interests of the Jewish community while advancing the 
morale and spirit of the community and advocating Jewish unity, identity and continuity.

DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
32255 Northwestern Hwy. Suite 205,
Farmington Hills, MI 48334
248-354-6060
thejewishnews.com

Publisher
The Detroit Jewish 
News Foundation

| Board of Directors:
 Chair: Gary Torgow
 Vice President: David Kramer
 Secretary: Robin Axelrod
 Treasurer: Max Berlin
 Board members: Larry Jackier, 
 Jeffrey Schlussel, Mark Zausmer

 Senior Advisor to the Board: 
Mark Davidoff
 Alene and Graham Landau Archivist Chair: 
 Mike Smith
 Founding President & Publisher Emeritus: 
Arthur Horwitz
Founding Publisher 
 Philip Slomovitz, of blessed memory

| Editorial
DIrector of Editorial: 
Jackie Headapohl
jheadapohl@thejewishnews.com
Associate Editor: David Sachs
dsachs@thejewishnews.com
Social Media and Digital Producer:
Nathan Vicar
nvicar@thejewishnews.com
Staff Reporter: Danny Schwartz
dschwartz@thejewishnews.com
Editorial Assistant: Sy Manello
smanello@thejewishnews.com
Senior Columnist: Danny Raskin
dannyraskin2132@gmail.com

Contributing Writers:
Nate Bloom, Rochel Burstyn, Suzanne 
Chessler, Annabel Cohen, Shari S. 
Cohen, Shelli Leibman Dorfman, Louis 
Finkelman, Stacy Gittleman, Esther 
Allweiss Ingber, Barbara Lewis, Jennifer 
Lovy, Rabbi Jason Miller, Alan Muskovitz, 
Robin Schwartz, Mike Smith, Steve Stein, 
Ashley Zlatopolsky

| Advertising Sales 
Director of Advertising: Keith Farber
kfarber@thejewishnews.com
Senior Account Executive: 
Kathy Harvey-Mitton
kmitton@thejewishnews.com

| Business Office
 Director of Operations: Amy Gill
agill@thejewishnews.com
 Operations Manager: Andrea Gusho
 agusho@thejewishnews.com
Operations Assistant: Ashlee Szabo
Circulation: Danielle Smith
 Billing Coordinator: Pamela Turner

| Production By 
Farago & Associates
 Manager: Scott Drzewiecki 
 Designers: Kelly Kosek, Kaitlyn Schoen,
 Michelle Sheridan

Danny Fenster’s 
Imprisonment

We have an international news 
story unfolding in our local 
community. On May 24, local 
journalist Danny Fenster was 
taken into custody in Myanmar, 
where he has been working 
as an editor for the magazine 
Frontier Myanmar. He was on 
his way home to Detroit to visit 
family when this happened 
at the airport. There were no 
charges filed and there has been 
no communication with him 
since. 
 We are now into week two, 
when the Jewish News went 
to print last week, it had been 
10 days and this story was 
picked up by CNN, the AP, 
NPR, national and local news 
stations, yet in our local Jewish 
News, the story was relegated to 
page 37. It is a disappointment 
to many of us in the community 
that it was not a cover story. 
Danny’s mission as a journalist 

is to report free and honest 
journalism. Honor Danny and 
what he stands for and give him 
the press he deserves.
#bringdannyhome

— Davida Robinson, Franklin

Jo Rosen, West Bloomfield

Beth Silver, Huntington Woods

Beth Brandvain, Farmington Hills

Editor’s Note: Print media 
unfortunately lags behind in 
fast-breaking news stories due 
to time required for layout, 
printing and mailing. Our 
continuously updated website, 
thejewishnews.com, featured 
our first story about Danny on 
May 26 and a follow-up story 
on June 2 before the June 3 JN 
could reach subscribers. Under 
our magazine-style format, most 
cover stories are developed weeks 
in advance. We are deeply con-
cerned about the imprisonment 
of this local Jewish journalist 
and will continue to publicize his 
cause and strive for his release.

Horrifi
 c Vandalism
We unequivocally condemn the 
cowardly and despicable act of 
vandalism at the Florida Holo-
caust Museum on May 27. The 
abhorrent graffiti and hateful 
rhetoric that defaced the mu-
seum is an act of antisemitism, 
hatred and violence targeting 
Jews.
We will not be intimidated or 
waver in the mission of each of 
our organizations to educate on 
the dangers of unchecked hate. 
Holocaust education increases 
empathy, improves open-mind-
edness to differing viewpoints, 
and creates a greater sense of 
social responsibility and will-
ingness to stand up to negative 
stereotyping and discrimina-
tion.
The lessons of the Holocaust 
remain relevant today because 
Nazi Germany’s ultimate hatred 
shows how far human beings 
are willing to go to destroy 
those who are different from 

themselves. We need to under-
stand what happens when 
hatred and prejudice is not 
stopped.
Hundreds of thousands of 
people visit our museums each 
year. The most important lesson 
we teach about the Holocaust 
is that history is made through 
a series of choices and that 
every choice has a consequence. 
Choices by individuals have 
power. At a time when hate 
crimes and antisemitism are on 
the rise, we fervently encourage 
everyone to denounce antise-
mitic and all hate speech, hate 
groups and acts of violence.

— Rabbi Eli Mayerfeld, CEO

Holocaust Memorial Center

Farmington Hills

Correction: The story “Better 
Together” (June 3, page 20) was 
written by Dr. Melissa Ser, CJE, 
Director of Education of Adat 
Shalom Synagogue.

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