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The Charlotte Jewish News - March, 1996 - Page 2 ^^Anti4)efamaion Ethiopian Controversy In Israel: It’s Not Racism by Harry Wall XVc eports that Israel was se- kCretly disposing blood donated by Ethiopian immigrants out of concern it may be AIDS-con- taminated elicited accusations of ethnic discrimination and even rac ism. Some observers seized on the blood controversy to depict Israel—^ a country that took great risk to res cue the renmants of Ethiopian Jewry — as just another race-torn society. Whatever Israel’s mistakes towards its Ethiopian Jewish com munity, the cause is not racism. Support for the African immigrants, as measured by public opinion and government investment, is strong. Government assistance is much greater than for other immigrant groups. And reports of social dis crimination are rare in a country with little experience in black-white relations. What causes the distress is bureaucratic ineptitude and a cul tural gap between a traditional com munity and a modem, technologi cally-advanced, highly-competitive nation. Much of Israel’s Ethiopian population, about 50,000 today, was brought to the country in two dra matic airlifts. The first was in 1984, when thousands were secretly flown from refugee camps on the Sudanese border, literally plucked from a fate of starvation and disease. The second operation, in 1991, was from Addis Abba, as rebel troops were closing in on the Ethiopian capital during its civil war. When the inmiigrants arrived in Israel, it was a moment of jubilation for Is raelis, who showered the newcom ers with voluntary support. The euphoria of seeing a community reunited with the Jew ish mainstream was not sustainable after 2,000 years. The task of inte gration into Israeli society, never an easy one in this rough and tumble country, was fraught with difficulty for the Ethiopians. In trying to make up for a generation gap of a millen nia, mistakes were made and cer tain sensitivities were ignored. Many of the immigrants were placed in temporary housing, often in peripheral areas and usually with other Ethiopian neighbors. Today, most of the immigrants are now liv ing in rented or purchased apart ments, thanks to generous govern ment loans or low-interest mort gages. Parents were encouraged to send their children to boarding schools in youth villages, a custom ary practice for new immigrants. There, the youths had a better chance to get a good education, unencumbered by the burdens of large families in small quarters. The result, however, was to loosen the tight family ethos of Ethiopian Jews. The question of religious sta tus, a long-standing controversy, added to their difficulties. A ritual conversion was required by the Is raeli rabbinical establishment in seeking a formula for accepting a community whose practices were at variance with traditional Judaism and with a high rate of intermar riage. The Ethiopians, who tend to be observant Jews, resented the doubt placed on their faith. What brought their anger to a boil was the blood scandal. The Ethiopian community — with re portedly about 50 times the inci dence of AIDS as other Israelis — was regarded by medical authori ties as a high-risk group (a concern, it should be noted, which did not deter the effort to bring Ethiopians to Israel). Not wanting to stigmatize the Ethiopians by banning their dona tions, the blood bank officials de cided to dump the blood. This only added insult to injury. A wiser policy would have been to consult with the community’s leadership to* determine how best to deal with this problem. The Charlotte Jewish News 5007 Providence Road - Chariot!*, NO 28226 (704)366-5007 Fax (704) 365-4507 A Publication of the Jewish Federation of Greater Charlotte Richard J. Osbome-President Harvey Cohen-Editor Advertising Coordinator. Rita Mend, 366-6632 Advertising Reps: Larry Levy, 366-2104 Cheryl Spangenthal, 364-5959 CJN Executive Board Co-Chairs—Bob Abel, Bob Davis, Rosalind Taranto Evelyn Berger • Ann Langnfian • Urxla Levy • Dr. Selwyn Sparigenltiai The CJN does not aMume rMponsSiiMy tor th* quality or kaanitfi of any product or •ervio* advertMd. PuM^Mng of a paid poMical advertiaemeni doas not corwtilula an arxtoraamant of any candidaH, poMical party or poaiinn by ttiis nawepaper. tw Fadaiationor any amptoyeaa. Published tnontftiy except for July Copy deadline Is ttie 10th of the month preceding month of Issus “Stupid, irresponsible and woeful,” was how Prime Minister Shimon Peres described the blood dumping. But not racist. The blood bank officials have a responsibility for reducing the risk of AIDS-con taminated blood. They should have been more sensitive to the Ethiopi ans, who regard blood donations as a matter of great honor. The head of the blood ser vices has taken tempor^ leave of his position in the wake of the con troversy. The government has ap pointed a high-level panel, headed by a former president, to examine the broad range of Ethiopian griev ances. And the Israeli public, which had little knowledge of the immigrant’s situation, is now much better informed about the community’s needs and sensitivi ties. Whatever its mistakes, Israel has invested heavily in its immigra tion programs. Where other West ern countries display indifference or hostility toward newcomers, Israel sees their integration as a national priority. Israel has learned from this experience. It cannot, nor should it assume that it knows what is best for each of its diverse conmiunities. This kind of approach caused blun ders in the past with other immi grant groups — Moroccans, Yemenites — that continue to fes ter today. The Ethiopiai)s, who vigor ously took their protest to the street, the corridors of the Knesset and the media, have also come out ahead. They have redeemed their pride and their dignity. They also have learned that they need sharper elbows and louder voices to improve their sta tus. In this regard, they have taken a long step toward integration, Is- raeli-style. Harry Wall is the Director of the Anti-Defamation League office in Israel. A Reminder! Deadline for the April Issue is March 10. In Keeping With Policy Set By The Edi torial Board of the CJN, When the 10th of the Month Falls On a Weekend Day, The Deadline is The Friday Before the 10th. Federation Connection Rich Osbome- President Jewish Federation of Greater Cliariotte The annual Federation cam paign is drawing to a close It has been a great success. As of February 13, our card for card totals are running 8.75 percent over 1995, so we remain within striking distance of our goal of a 10 percent increase. We have had some inno vations, too. The Lion’s Divi sion, under the leadership of co- chairs Bobbi Bernstein and Lee Blumenthal, initiated a new recognition level at $1 800- Lion Cubs. Sixteen women al ready have received this rec ognition. Other communities have heard of the successful introduction of the Lion Cubs and are asking about it. Under the leadership of Bill Gorelick and Jill Newman, co-chairs, and Phyllis PERSPFCTrVFS by Harvey Cohen This column will retLirn next month 1996 Summer Singles Missions We are excited to get started for this summer’s missions! Brochures are forthcoming; please note the following for your information: DATES; Singles 1 -July 7-18, 1996 Singles II - July 28 - August 8, 1 996 PR1CES;S2673 includes subsidy of $167 based on $500 minimum gift. Land- only cost is $1557. Single supplement is $616. AI£i Price includes round trip El A1 airfare from New York-Tcl Aviv. Gil Travel, our in-house travel agency, will be available to assist with domestic tickets. If you fly El A1 only, a stop over in London is free. LOCAL CHARLOTTE CONTACT; Cary Bernstein, Campaign Associate; Jewish Federation of Greater Charlotte. 366-5007, ext. 209 UJA CONTACT; Singles I: Elizabeth Schack 212-880-1407 Singles II: Emily Heller 212-880-1352 Gil Travel - Carol Messier 800-880-1369 or 212-880-1300 Please feel free to call with any questions. We look forward to a successful and productive summer! Schiffman, president of Women’s Division, our cam paign now solicits gifts from 4,000 Charlotteans. If you have not been solicited, we apolo gize. Don’t wait, however; just call the Federation office at 366- 5007 and make your pledge. To those of you who have pledged in the 1996 campaign; to those who have worked to tell the needs of our conununity, of less fortunate Jews in the Diaspora and of Israel; and to each of you still considering participaing through a gift this year; on be half of the Board of Federation and all of the recipient agen cies and their beneficiaries in Charlotte and throughout the global Jewish community, I wish to extend heartfelt thanks.
The Charlotte Jewish News (Charlotte, N.C.)
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March 1, 1996, edition 1
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