Newspaper Page Text
The Southern Israe
A Weekly Newspaper for Southern Jewry — Esf
Vol. XL
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 1965
. MO. »
Jewish Facilities Hit In Miami;
ML Sinai Shelters Victims
Betsy's Own Mardi Gras
N. Orleans Synagogue Loses Roof;
Jews Escapelnjury-NotBusiness Loss
By ADOLPH ROSENBERG
Though no survey of what happened to the Jewish commun
ity of New Orleans has been made as such, the following account
developed from a long distance interview with an executive of
the New Orleans community.
and in some instances wiped out
MIAMI (JTA) — Jewish com
munity facilities in Miami, Mi
ami Beach and the surrounding
area suffered heavy damage to
various buildings, and at the
same time aided other victims of
the disaster when Miami was
struck by Hurricane Betsy, Leo
Mindlin, editor of the Jewish
Floridian, reported here in a
special dispatch to the Jewish
Telegraphic Agency. Many prop
erties owned by Jews suffered
very heavy losses from the high
winds and torrential rains that
swept this area. Estimates of the
total damages, however, were not
available.
Mount Sinai Hospital, at Mi
ami Beach, began issuing instruc
tions to expectant mothers to
ocsne to the hospital. Persons in
homes considered unsafe also
were invited to take refuge in the
hospital. The institution suffered
extensive plate glass damage in
the lobby and water flooding.
The YM-YWHA of Greater Mi
ami reported extensive plate glass
damage to its Miami Beach fa
cilities, as well as to its new
$750,000 building, the former
Westbrooks Country Club. Doors
Light Vigil for Soviet Jewry.
The group includes Harry Har
rison, Meyer Abgott, Alfred
Schwartz, Mac Frankel, Louis
Gerson, John Gilner, Abe Ger-
aon, Murray Kandel, Jacques
Storch, Isaac Wise and Leo
Neuhaus. The latter seven afe
members of a delegation of
Farband-Labor Zionist members.
The Atlkntans, representing the
Jewish Community Council
which has backed the Vigil, will
converge in the nation’s capitol
from several routes. One group
will be returning from the na
tional convention of the Jewish
War Veterans. They will remain
in Washington for the opening
of the Vigil.
Others will travel expressly to
Washington for the event, either
making the trip in private cars,
busses or perhaps a chartered bus
if enough persons respond quick
ly enough to details printed else
where in this issue through spon
sorship of Atlanta Farband
branches.
The Georgians will be among
thousands of Jewish lay and
rabbinic leaders from more than
one hundred communities par
ticipating in the program spon
sored by tlie American Jewish
Conference on Soviet Jewry.
The Conference, founded in
April of 1964, planned coordinat
ed action to alleviate the re
ligious and cultural persecution
imposed upon three million Jews
in the Soviet Union.
Jewish leaders said that the
Washington Vigil will be the first
public action demonstration ever
held in the nation’s capital un
der the auspices of all of the
Jewish bodies.
The Vigil will launch a more
direct involvement of national
Catholic, Protestant, Labor, Busi
ness and other groups in dealing
with the Soviet Jewish question.
"Interfaith teams” will repre
sent various religious laymen
and clergymen at the Vigil
Climax of the demonstration
will be a dramatic ceremony
and windows were extensively
damaged. Considerable flooding
of the two “Y” facilities and
damage to their roofs also were
reported.
Water flooded in from high
tides blocks away, and damaged
Temple Beth Sholom. The Jew-
' ish Home for the Aged in Mi
ami reported it had suffered lit
tle damage, and that it had not
lost power or telephone facilities
at the height of the storm. Sec
tions of the distinctive copper
dome of Temple Emanuel, one of
the largest Conservative synagog
ues in the United States, were
ripped out. Offices and cellar fa
cilities of the synagogue were
flooded. Windows and floors
in the Greater Miami Jewish
Federation building were smash
ed and ripped out, and water
damage was considerable. The
storm knocked to the ground
Temple Beth Am’s huge sculp
tured Torah scroll outside the
building. The Wolfson Auditor
ium and the Joseph H. Kaplan
Chapel of Temple Israel of Mi
ami were flooded when huge
plate glass windows were smash
ed by the storm.
kindling the Eternal Light Flame
by a young boy and girl from
Washington to symbolize the
future generation of Jews and
the continuity of Jewish cultural
and religious life in the USSR.
The Eternal Light will remain
standing at LaFayette Park for
the entire week protected by an
honor guard. On Friday. Septem
ber 24, a religious ceremony will
conclude the week-long Vigil and
then the Eternal Light will be
sent to communities throughout
the country for local protest meet
ings.
At the conclusion of the
Washington ceremony the Shofar
(a ram’s horn), heard at the
Jewish Holy Days of Rosh
Hashonah and Yom Kippur (be
ginning sundown, September
26th) will sound the “call to
conscience.” Then the thousands
of community representatives
will have to walk 500 feet oppo
site the embassy to comply with
Washington, D.C. demonstration
regulations.
Rabbi Cohen said that “we
choose to hold this Vigil a week
before the most sacred period in
Jewish calendar because, “dur
ing the High Holy Days Jews
everywhere experience a height
ened sense of spiritual re
awakening and continuity.”
He said that the Vigil “will be
a sober and responsible cere-'
mony reflecting our earnest de
sire for an abatement of cold
war tension, but also our deter
mined commitment to protest
the policy of forced assimilation
of Soviet Jewry.”
A specially chartered “Vigil
train” will leave from New
York’s Penn Station on Sunday
morning at 8:30 a. m. making
stops in Newark, Trenton, and
Philadelphia. Jewish organiza
tions have taken complete rail
road cars for their constituents.
A number of synagogues in the
greater New York area are
travelling down by car pools.
Chicago, Cincinnati, Springfield,
Massachusetts and Hartford
NEW ORLEANS—The Jewish
community here suffered great
inconvenience and considerable
business loss as a result of
“Hurricane Betsy” but on the
whole major catastrophe was
avoided.
The storm blew off the roof of
the “Conservative Synagogue”
and presumably considerable
damage resulted from the heavy
downpour of rain to the synago
gue facilities.
Another synagogue, T o u r o
Synagogue, sustained a broken
window, blown out by the hur
ricane blast.
Services at all synagogues were
canceled during the duration of
the storm emergency.
In the main, most Jewish resi
dents of New Orleans live in the
have chartered planes. Philadel
phia, Baltimore, Cleveland, Nor
folk and Newport News, Virginia,
New Haven, Bridgeport, West
chester and Long Island are
chartering buses.
On Monday, September 20th,
about 250 invited representatives
from communities will meet at
the State Department for a
special briefing on the Soviet
Jewish problem.
Goldberg Says Not
Brainwashed’Out
Of Zionist Status
UNITED NATIONS, N. Y.
(JTA)—Asserting that he has
not “brainwashed” himself from
his known status as a Zionist,
Ambassador Arthur J. Goldberg,
chairman of the United States
delegation to the United Nations,
asserted here that, as Washing
ton’s representative, he will
concern himself more, on Arab-
Israeli issues, with his Govern
ment’s position rather than with
his own “private” views.
The question arose at a lunch
eon in his honor by the United
Nations Correspondents Associa
tion, where, among other subjects,
he was asked: “You have been
characterized as a Zionist. Is it
accurate? How would this affect
your work here at the United
Nations?
“I have not brainwashed my
self." he replied. “At the United
Nations, my views on the Arab-
Israel question will be the views
of my Government. The question
is an irrelevancy. The real ques
tion is: What is the United States
position? I have expressed myself
on many issues in my personal
life. I am still the same man
I was before. The American pos
ition is friendship with all coun
tries in the Middle East to help
them work out their destiny.
What I said privately does not
conflict with this position of the
United States. I have never said
anything different in my private
capacity.”
uptown or University section,
which was least affected by the
storm and the subsequent flood
ing conditions.
Several windows were blown
out of residences and residents
spent a sleepless night while the
storm wind raged outside in
frightening intensity, but on the
whole serious injury and whole
sale damage were averted.
Less fortunate were several
dozen businesses in the mid
town and outlying areas. Some
of these were heavily damaged
UNITED NATIONS (WUP) —
For the first time since Justice
Arthur J. Goldberg assumed his
post here—during which period
he had met with the press corps
on several occasions—the issue
revolving around his “Zionism”
was raised recently by a bold AP
correspondent, the Veteran UN
reporter Bill Oaths. The occasion
was a UN Correspondents Associ
ation luncheon in honor of the
new Ambassador.
Following an inspiring address
on the virtues of the world or
ganization, in which he touched
upon the current problems facing
the UN, Goldberg found himself
confronted with a number of
tough questions on the conflict in
Kashmir, in Vietnam, on finances,
on Communist China, the Dom
inican Republic, Cyprus and the
question of nuclear weapons. All
his replies were to the point.
Correspondents were very much
impressed with the manner in
which he so judiciously handled
himself.
Then, close to the end of ques
tion period. Bill Oatis’ query
came up.
“You have been described in
the newspapers as a Zionist. Is
that description accurate?” Oatis
asked, ‘AVhat consideration will
determine your position on the
Palestine question at the United
Nations.”
There was a momentary pause.
Correspondents gasped, wonder
ing how Goldberg would reply
to the unexpected question.
In unmistakable and clear
language and in a spirit of ab
solute self-assurance, the former
Supreme Court Justice declared:
”1 have expressed views about
many issues in my personal life.
I have not brainwashed myself. I
am still the same man that I was
when I accepted this appoint
ment. In discharging the duties
of my office I represent my Gov
ernment, and my views in the
area of Arab-Israeli relations will
obvtously be the views of the
Government. So the question, In
my opinion, is an irrelevancy.
“The real question," Goldberg
added, “is the question of what
is the United States position in
this area, and that position is
well known. It is a position of
friendship to all countries in the
Middle East.”
altogether.
Residents of the Jewish Home
went through the storm very
well, since no major flooding or
damage took place in the area
of the facilities.
The Jewish communal agen
cies have offered their services
to the city and the emergency
agencies which are assuming
charge of the rescue and rehabili
tation efforts, but so far these
have not been called upon.
A communal Jewish Hebrew
nursery began its new season
Tuesday morning, probably the
first school to go into operation
in the New Orleans area. The
public school has not opened so
far.
Goldberg then made this foot
note: “By the way, I don’t think
in any remark I ever made as a
private person I ever said any
thing otherwise.”
Indeed, the reporters present
at the luncheon were fully aware
of the fact that Goldberg had ad
dressed many Jewish organiza
tional functions, Zionist and oth
ers, through a period o< many
years. But they were also not ig-
Stevenson had likewise address
ed such gatherings, as did Harry
S. Truman, Dwight Elsenhower,
John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B.
Johnson.
Thus Goldberg let every one
know that he was “still the same
man” who on previous occasions
had spoken out so strongly on
behalf of Israel as a sovereign en
tity to be reckoned with tn the
Middle East.
As for his speech and replies
to the general questions, it be
came evident that the new U. S
Ambassador stands for a strong
UN and for full U. S. support of
the world organization. He based
this stand on two central
thoughts. First, if the UN were
to disappear over-night, it would
be necessary to recreate it the
next morning for the simple rea
son that the problems facing the
world would have not disappear
ed. Second, because “there is no
alternative except a pa in.staking
march towards understanding and
adherence to inte rnational
treaties and obligations; where
there is no other alternative ex
cept doom and disaster, then the
common sense and the realism
of people and nations ultimately
will prevail,” he said.
One of the Interesting points
that emerged from the luncheon
speech was that the new Ambas
sador was not satisfied merely
with the taking of a simple pro-
UN posture. He circumscribed for
himself a field of action which
amounted to a personal crusade
on behalf of the world organiza
tion. He revealed that he is hold
ing continuous talks with lead
ing U. S. citizens, members of
Congress and others in a person
al educational endeavor to enlist
support for the one body in the
world which holds the only hope
OMttisfd m page 4
Georgians To Join Vigil In
Washington For Soviet Jewry
Perhaps as many as a dozen Georgians will be in Wash
ington Sunday as representatives of their community and
organizations to help launch a week-long National Eternal
BEiyND UN SCENES By David Horowitz
Issue of Zionism Raised