Honorable mention
Your recent article regarding emigration of the Soviet Jews unfortunately had a couple of important omissions. Even though the names of Sharansky, Nudel, and Begun are quite familiar — before them there were Jewish dissidents staging demonstrations at the Soviet Presidium demanding the right to emigrate. There were Dymshits/Kuznetsov planned hijacking of the airplane to break out from the Soviet Union.
Equally important — for those of us who were living behind the Iron Curtain, was the knowledge that Rabbi Meir Kahane and his Jewish Defense League fought for our freedom. Before the organized Jewish community took on the issue of free emigration, Rabbi Kahane was picketing and disrupting Soviet artists performing in the United States, harassing Soviet representatives at their consular missions and Aeroflot office in New York. He was physically fighting for our freedom before the slogan “Let my people go” became so popular in front of the Soviet missions.
We owe him eternal gratitude, memory and recognition. Sadly, for political reasons, his name is mostly ignored in the Jewish media.
Arthur Anchipolovsky | San Francisco
Women omitted
Thanks to Dan Pine and j. for your article chronicling the movement to free Soviet Jews (Dec. 7). Chanukah is an appropriate moment to reflect on the movement ‘s achievements. Indeed, “a great miracle happened there,” involving freedom and redemption.
One segment of our community that often led the way and was not included in the article is women.
During Natan Sharansky’s prison interrogation, the KGB derided the Soviet Jewry movement as “students and housewives.” There was some truth in this, students and women DID play a leadership role. In our community Selma Light (z”l), Lillian Foreman, Natasha Kats, Eva Seligman-Kennard, Rose Tamler and Dorothy Rosenthal, among many others, devoted decades of their lives to the cause.
Perhaps none had greater impact than Regina Waldman, herself a Jewish refugee from anti-Semitism in Libya. Regina stepped forward when Harold Light died in 1975 and led Bay Area rescue efforts during a critical period in the 1970s. Many of the photographs in last week’s article were of demonstrations that Regina organized. She set a tone for smart, creative strategies for gaining public attention and support, strategies used to good effect by us and others during the ’80s.
David Waksberg | Executive Director, Bureau of Jewish Education
Rabbi Doug Kahn | Executive Director, Jewish Community Relations Council
Tribute at risk
A quarter century ago, my family was asked by the Union of Reform Judaism to honor the Six Million by building the Jo Naymark Holocaust Memorial Chapel at Camp Swig. Shami Noily, a talented San Francisco architect created a building that echoed the wooden synagogues of Eastern Europe, most of which were destroyed during World War II. The building was then adorned with metal sculpture by Helen Burke and by the hands of a thousand Swig campers.
The URJ is now on the verge of selling Camp Swig and its Holocaust Memorial to the highest bidder. A Christian group has bid 17 percent more than a local Jewish group. The URJ has informed me that its only responsibility is fiduciary, even if that means that the chapel might become a church.
In Israel, I visited the display of models of destroyed synagogues at the Museum of the Diaspora. Unfortunately, one more model of a destroyed synagogue might have to be added — except this will be the only one destroyed by a Jewish organization.
What a ghastly pity! Pleas join me in expressing your concerns to URJ.org.
Sherman Naymark | Los Gatos
Erroneous assumptions
The j. review of the movie “Farewell Israel” (Dec. 7) makes assumptions based on a lack of knowledge. First assumption: no onscreen interview with experts proves that the history of Islam, as presented, is incorrect. Next assumption: “Land for Peace” is a viable negotiating option for Israel. (Ignored is the abject failure of Israel’s complete withdrawal from Gaza in 2005, which has been met with daily barrages of Kassam rockets into Israel). Last: it is not naive for Israel to offer every accommodation (“appeasement”!) to the Palestinians.
Islam divides the world into two parts: “dar-al-Harb” (“territory of war,” where the divine will, meaning Islam, is not yet in control) and “dar-al-Islam” (“territory controlled by Islam”). The goal: Islam’s worldwide dominion. Areas once, but no longer, under control of Islam — Israel and Spain — are a humiliation.
Buried on page 22 of the Dec. 7 issue of j. is one of the most important items of the last several years: “President Abbas reiterated [after the Annapolis summit] the PA refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state”.
So what is Israel to negotiate? The nature of its suicide?
Ignorance and denial are not just folly, they may be lethal to Jews and Americans!
Fred Korr | Oakland
CopyrightJ, the Jewish news weekly of Northern California