Ohio Jewish Chronicle, 1989-08-10

              ^J[\\y^Serving Columbus and Central Ohio Jewish Community for Over 60 Years     VutAVJ
VOL.67   NO. 32
AUGUST 10, 1989-AV 9
Devoted to American
and Jewish Ideals.
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Zionist Movement
Revived In USSR
JERUSALEM (JTA) -
For the first time since the
Russian Revolution of 1917, a
Zionist, group is being
allowed to operate in the
Soviet Union in broad daylight, Israel Radio reported
last week.
Some 40 people, from 20
different cities, attended
ceremonies in Moscow last
week marking the group's
founding.
Aryeh (Lev) Gorodetsky,
chairman of the Hebrew
Teachers Association, told
Israel Radio in a telephone
interview.that the time was
right to renew the political
Zionist movement there.
Gorodetsky said the prime
functions of the new organization would be to teach
Hebrew and otherwise prepare people for aliyah, fight
anti-Semitism and ensure
the personal protection of
Jews arid Jewish groups.
Only two weeks ago, it was
learned that a branch of
Hashbmpr Hatzair,' the
Socialist Zionist youth movement, hacj been founded in,
Moscow. But even at that
repent time, leaders felt it
prudent, not to be-public
about the matter.
The Zionist revival has
encountered some unpleasant reactions in the local
press, but "only a few of us
have been alarmed by those
articles." Gorodetsky said.
Jewish Aid Organizations Hoping
To Increase Soviet Jewish Aliyah
Irving Barkan (left) Heritage Village president, and his
wife Ruth accept a souvenir hardhat from residents Sam
Rosenthal and Lillian Cohen prior tojenjoying a tour of the
completed Phase 2 of the Wexner Heritage House.
Heritage House Major Contributors
Thanked At Appreciation Dinner
Over 100 major contributors to the Heritage House
"We Are Their Children"
Expansion Campaign were
thanked for their support at
an Appreciation Dinner on
July 18.
The dinner was the first
major event to be held in the
new' Wexner Heritage
House; which recently completed Phase II of the three-
phase construction program.
"I truly believe in this
cause and what this beautiful facility will mean to the
future of our community,"
Stated  Mel  Schottenstein,
PBS To Air Program To Offset
Criticism Of'Days Of Rage'
NEW YORK (JTA) -
Despite a storm of protests
and criticism, plans to air
the Public Broadcasting Service's controversial documentary "Days of Rage:
The Young Palestinians"
continue, and programming
that will frame the film is
now under production.
The PBS affiliate in New
York that is sponsoring the
film, WNET-TV, last week
taped a panel discussion,
which will be edited and presented after "Days of
Rage." Crews from WNET
are also currently in Israel,
shooting footage for additional programming to be
shown both before and after
the film.
WNET executives believe
this programming will bal-
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ance  the  pro-Palestinian
slant of "Days of Rage."
The estimated cost of the
"wraparound" programming is $150,000, while the
90-minute documentary
itself cost only $180,000 to
produce.    •
Preparations for the airing
of the film, scheduled for
Sept. 6, follow claims by
numerous Jewish organizations that the documentary
is an anti-Israel propaganda.
piece. "      -x ■<■":>' ■■ '.
Numerous, letters of protest have been sent to both
PBS and WNET, asking that
they reconsider their decision to show "Days of
Rage." Some WNET members, who make yearly contributions to the station,
have threatened to cancel
their memberships if the
documentary is shown.
The participants in the
taped panel discussion were
Seymour Reich, chairman of
the Conference of Presidents
of Major American Jewish
Organizations; James Zog-
by, director of the Arab
American Institute; Richard
Murphy, former U,S. assistant secretary of state for
(CONTINUED ON PAOE »1
master of ceremonies, as he
welcomed donors, trustees
and residents to the three
Resident Dining Rooms of
the Wexner Heritage House.
Following an Invocation
by Rabbi Alan Ciner, Agudas
Achim Synagogue, diners
were welcomed by Irving
Barkan, president, who
noted that "your continued
support of Heritage Village
is essential if we are to meet
the ever increasing need for
residency at Heritage House
and to complete and endow
this remarkable facility."
"Both my mother (of
blessed memory) and I, as
well as hundreds of other
Jewish elderly have
benefitted from a gift of life
as ; Heritage House residents," stated Min Brenner,
president of the Heritage
House  Residents   Council.
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 4)
LADISPOLI (JTA) —
Faced with a tightened U.S.
immigration policy while
massive numbers of Jews
continue to pour out of the
Soviet Union, Jewish aid
organizations are making a
new, concerted effort to get
the Soviets to go to Israel.
The new policy includes
educating the Soviets about
Israel and the drastic step of
cutting off funds to Soviet
Jews deemed unlikely ever
to receive refugee visas to
the United States.
Separate delegations from
U.S. Jewish organizations
were in Rome last week, and
both left convinced of the
importance of promoting
Soviet Jewish aliyah.
"It|s a serious dilemma,"
said one member of the
United Jewish Appeal'?
Prime Minister's Mission.
The mission included donors
who had committed an
annual gift of $100,000 or
more to the UJA.
"People say, 'I worked for
40 years to support a haven
for Jews — Israel. I don't
want to "create another such
haven for Jews; in the
United States," he said.
"There are big problems,"
agreed Sylvia, Hassenfeld,
president of the American
Jewish Joint Distribution
Committee, visiting here
with JDC Executive Vice
President Michael
Schneider.
"For all their lives these
people wanted to go to the
United States — it's their
life's dream. " They have
absolutely no knowledge of
Israel. Any knowledge is
negative through the propaganda that's been fed to
them," Hassenfeld said.
About 20 percent of exiting
Soviet Jews go directly from
Moscow to Israel via Bucharest. The rest are determined to go to the United
States and end up in temporary accommodations- at
seaside towns near Rome,
where they must wait weeks
for U.S. refugee visas.
Under tightened U.S.
immigration procedures,
about 17 percent of applicants are being rejected for
visas, unable to prove "a
well-founded fear of persecution."
Today, about 13,000 Soviet
transmigrants are living in
crowded conditions in Ladispoli, Santa Marinella and a
handful of other towns.
JDC, which provides the
emigres with medical, social
and educational services
while in Italy, is leading the
effort to get many of the Soviets to change their minds
and head for Israel.
At the JDG-operated
schools in Ladispoli, educa-,
tiona] programs run in conjunction with the Jewish
Agency put the emphasis on
Israel. The JDC also tries to
explain why not all applicants will get visas. But
beyond what Hassenfeld
calls "indoctrination," there
is frank, and unavoidable,
financial coercion.
Tight funds are squeezing
JDC operations in Ladispoli,
staff members say. Last
year, JDC's costs for trans
migrants amounted to
between $14 million and $15
million.
This year, costs will run at
about $54 million. Daily stipends given by JDC to each
transmigrant have already
been slashed from $8 to $6
per person — about the price
of four cans of tuna fish here
— and further cuts are not
ruled out, depending on
funds.
More dramatically, the
organization has decided to
cut off funds completely to
Soviet Jews who are rejected
twice for refugee visas by
the U.S. Immigration Service.
According to JDC figures,
about 3,000 Soviet.Jews have
been denied a refugee visa
once and about 400 have also
had a second appeal application rejected. „,,
The changes have hot been
met without protests from
the rejected emigres. Loath
to go tp Israel, unlikely to be
allowed into the United
States as refugees,.- some
emigrants have begun to
stage protests.
According to Hassenfeld,
one group of emigrants
demonstrated at the U.S.
Embassy in Rome several
weeks ago. JDC met with the
American ambassador to
Italy, Peter Secchia, who
seemed "very disturbed by
'the picketing, first as an
American and also as a U.S.'
ambassador to Rome wanting good relations here."
During the UJA delegation's visit to Ladispoli, the
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 4)
Leadership Announced For 1990 Jewish Community Campaign
"This year's Campaign
leadership team is comprised of seasoned veterans
who are dedicated to meeting our community needs
and goals and motivated by
their commitment to making
a difference in the tomorrows of our global Jewish
community," said Alan Wasserstrom, 1990 General Campaign chairman of the
Columbus Jewish ; Federation's annual Jewish Community Campaign, as he announced the members of his
Campaign Management
Team,
In a departure from previous years, the management team, responsible for
overseeing and coordinating
various aspects of the total
Campaign, consists of ten
Campaign vice-chairpersons. They include: Gary
Cheses, Mark Ellman, Herbert Glimcher, Tobi Gold,
Sandy Goldston, Marcy
Gross; David Milenthal, Neil
Moss, Ina Sue Rosenthal and
Rodney Wasserstrom.
Cheses, chaired last year's
Men's Division. An active
Federation committee member, Cheses has extensive
campaign involvement with
the Men's Division and advanced gifts. This year's assignment is the new venture
of planning and coordinating
key Campaign programs.
Ellman, a leader and
worker in Young Men's
Division for several years,
assumes the Young Men's
chairmanship for this year's
Campaign. He participated
in the UJA Young Leadership Cabinet and was a
board member of the B'nai:
B'rith Hillel Foundation.
Glimcher, whose leadership aided in the development of Shalom House and
who is a member of the
Federation Board of Trustees, is co-chairman of ''The
Passage To Freedom" Campaign aiding the resettle
ment of Soviet Jews. This
will be his second year as
chairman of Major Gifts.
Gold has been very active
in the Campaign, working
during past years in the
Young Women's Division.
This year she will qpee again
chair the Young Women's
Division. She serves on the
r United Jewish Appeal Young
Leadership Cabinet and recently returned from a UJA
Young Women's Retreat.
Goldston, a member of
many Federation committees and a previous board
member, will chair- the
Men's Division. He has
extensive campaign experience having held numerous
campaign leadership positions.
Gross chaired the Community Phase of the 1989 Jewish
Community Campaign, an
outreach and involvement
program for the Jewish com-
munity-at-large. Active in
the Women's Division in past
campaigns, including the
vice chairperson position
two-years ago, Gross will assume the challenge of
Women's Division Chairperson in this year's endeavor.
Milenthal, chairman of
Ha mer off/Milenthal/
Spence, will once again
direct the Campaign's marketing and communications
effort by heading up Communications and Development. Milenthal has been
active in past campaigns,
served as president of the
Leo Yassenoff Jewish Center
and is a board member of the
Federation and former
board member of the Columbus Jewish Foundation and
Heritage House.;
Moss, president Of Capital
Acquisitions and Investment
Corporation, is serving a
multi-functional role providing management assistance
in key programs such as the
Campaign's opening week
(CONTINUED ON PAOE 4}