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name was blazoned across the
street. And upon the walls was a
notice that the people did not wish
to be guided by a Jew.
“Well,” he said, after a pause, “if
there is still Anti-Semitism here
and there, that proves nothing. The
world is still full of defects. Even
under our regime we have not
achieved perfection. Is that any
reason for us to submit and run
away? On the contrary. Just be
cause of that we must fight. And
if we permitted these Jews to run
away — “You Mean emigrate”?
after a pause, “if there is still Anti-
Semitism here and there, that
proves nothing. The world is still
full of defects. Even under our
regime we have not achieved per
fection. Is that any reason for us
to submit and run away? On the
contrary. Just because of that we
must fight. And if we permitted
these Jews to run away — “You
Mean emigrate”?
— Then we would confess our de
feat before the whole world, our
failure to establish a regime of
equality and justice for all. It
would mean that Communism had
failed and could not solve the Jew
ish question, that it had bowed its
head before prejudices and could
not ensure the just due of every
working man. No, you cannot ex
pect that of us. We shall never do
that. We shall keep them.
“All of them,” I asked.
"Not old people. Not invalids or
people incapable of working. Per
haps we can throw in some of the
black marketeers, a few incorrig
ible Zionist leaders. Let them go
if they want to. But working peo
ple we need them ourselves. We
shall not permit the young and the
healthy to go. Especially not the
intelligentzia. We need them above
all. Our working class has not an
intelligentzia of its own. It is still
too young. In the past the more
educated belonged to the bourgoisie
for only they had the money to pay
for their children’s education. We
shall remain bereaved if we permit
the young Jews to go to Palestine.
You cannot expect that from us.
“We do expect it and that will
constitute the true test of Russian
friendship.”
“What business is it of the State
of Israel? — If we tell you that
these Jews are better off where
they are, how does it affect your
state?”
“It does affect us,” I interrupted.
“And if we do not permit that
within our midst, within the peo
ple’s democracies, a mass-move
ment arise against the authorities,
preaching emigration from the
country — in what way does that
alter our attitude towards the State
of Israel?”
— Really he just did not under
stand.
“I will ask you another question,"
1 said. “If an American will tell
you that he loves the Dnieper and
the Urals, that he hates the Russian
regime — would do all in his power
to destroy it — would you call him
a friend or an enemy of Russia?"
“A silly question,” he remarked.
“But that is the question you
asked me. For Israel is like Russia.
We are a State possessed of a cer
tain ideological character. We are
not like Norway or Guatimala or
Italy, whose main purpose is mere
ly to exist. We have founded the
State not as an end in itself but as
a means to a revolution, to over
throw the reign of exile, to amend
history, to put an end to dispersion.
A mighty revolution, which alters
the life and habits of every indi
vidual Jew wherever he may be.
We, like you, during the civil war
fought against both the Arabs and
the British in order to establish a
revolutionary regime in the life of
Israel, to gather in the exiles. We
have established such a regime — it
is the State. That is its essential
significance. Exactly in the same
way as Soviet Russia was estab
lished to realise socialism, the State
of Israel was established to realise
Zionism. You cannot distinguish
between the two and say the State
— yes, but Zionism — no. Whoever
opposes immigration into Israel is
anti-Israeli just as in your eyes
whoever opposes Communism is
anti-Russian.”
“There is no real parallel.”
“There is — like between two
drops of water. Our movement is
no younger than Communism. For
two generations it has struggled,
fought, went underground, strove
to establish a Jewish State only
because we believed that such a
State was the sole means for in
gathering the Exiles. When it was
established its raison d’etre was the
realisation of that aspiration.
My dear sir, I was present on the
14th of May. I remember when the
passage in the proclamation was
read stating that henceforth we
were independent, not a sound of
applause was heard. But when it
was declared that the White Paper
was abrogated and the country was
open to every Jew, then people
burst into tears and cheers until the
hall shook. In moments like these,
as you know, it is difficult to lie.
They knew that not the State was
the goal but its partition among all
Jews in the world. Just as with
you it is not the regime but the
distribution of its property among
the people. I am hardly surprised
if Americans do not understand us
and if they think that the State is
an end in itself. But the Com
munists must understand. For they
have a State whose aspirations are
its soul. They know that a dividing
line cannot be drawn.
We were silent for a moment.
"You argue,” I continued “that
we shall not be able to sit on the
fence. It seems to me that the con
trary is the case. You must declare
yourselves, whether you belong to
our friends or our enemies, for you
will not be able for long to support
Israel and at the same time under
mine it. You can, if you wish, deny
us, among the seventy nations of
the world, the right to territorial
concentration. Many anti-Semites
have done so. But if you do you
cannot claim the right to be friends
of the State of Israel. All the
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