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Local StoriesAaron
Feuerstein:
It’s a battle he thinks he’s going to win. “It’s 90 percent certain that we can raise the money,” he says. That money — $94 million — must be in hand by the deadline for Feuerstein (pronounced Fewersteen) to maintain his leadership of the firm his grandfather Henry founded in 1906. If he fails, ownership of the company — famous for its Polartec synthetic fleece, used to make popular outerwear — will shift to its creditors. If that happens, production may move overseas. “With me, responsibility to our employees will remain as strong as ever,” says the 77-year-old businessman, who earned national acclaim by continuing to pay his employees after a 1995 fire almost destroyed the factory. “If the other group takes over,” he pauses and shakes his head before continuing: “They will probably move production to the least costly area of the world.” With 1,200 employees on the payroll, Malden Mills is the Lawrence-Methuen area’s largest employer. Loss of the factory would cost those jobs as well as an estimated 3,000 others. “You have all those people who serve the people who work at the plant,” says Curt Belavance, Methuen’s director of planning and community development, who is writing an application for a federal loan to help keep the plant in local hands. “Restaurants, dry cleaners, auto repair shops and the like — they’ll all be affected,” he says. Mayors of the two cities, the state’s congressional delegation, and the state’s Department of Housing and Community Development are all working to help Feuerstein retain company control. Feuerstein told The Journal he now has $19 million “in the bank” and an “anticipated guarantee” of $10 million more from the Massachusetts Business Development Corporation, leaving $65 million that he needs to secure from debt, equity, or a combination of the two over the next five weeks to maintain the company in his own hands. Feuerstein says his feelings of responsibility toward his workers is a direct result of his religious convictions. An Orthodox Jew who sprinkles his speech with Hebrew phrases from the Bible, he grew up in the Coolidge Corner section of Brookline, where he still lives. “Most of my values were incubated in my parents’ home,” he says, “a lot of it at the dinner table.” His father was instrumental in building Young Israel congregation in Brookline, where Aaron still worships; his other grandfather was the shul’s first rabbi. “I learned that treating workers fairly and respectfully is a requirement in our religion,” says Feuerstein, leaning back in an armchair behind a large oak desk strewn with papers and business cards. A smallish man with swept-back hair, neatly dressed with cuff links on his shirt. He speaks slowly and deliberately in a flat New England accent, his pedantic tone suggesting he might be giving dictation. He quotes Leviticus, first in Hebrew then in English: “Thou shalt not oppress the working man, your brethren. Each day you should give him his wages and you can not set on those wages because it supports his soul.” Part
of his reason for fighting to retain control is to maintain what Feuerstein
calls his management philosophy. He explains: Aaron’s grandfather started the business, then called Malden Knitting, a few years after immigrating from Hungary around the turn of the century. It was moved from Malden in 1956. Aaron, one of five children, attended Brookline public schools, Boston Latin School and Yeshiva University in New Yok City. He went into the mill as a quality control officer at the age of 22 in 1948. He became president in 1960. He saw the company through a bankruptcy in the 1980’s and now is coming out of another one. The company was forced into the latest bankruptcy by a softening market for outdoor clothing and a rebuilding program, after the fire, that cost more money than was later received in insurance payments. Now the creditors and lenders have agreed on a reorganization plan and the company is operating with a $20 million line of credit. That loan has enabled it to stay in business, retain its work force — and ride a wave of new popularity for its signature Polartec fleece fabric. In
addition to having major retail customers such as L.L. Bean, Patagonia,
Eddie Bauer, and Lands End, Malden Mills has been favored with a number
of lucrative military contracts in the past couple of years, $30 million
worth in all. Through an innovative research and development effort, some
of it funded by Natick’s’ Army Soldier Systems Center, the company
is now working on a new generation of battle attire that incorporates
sophisticated physiological monitoring electronics. Overall sales this
year are expected to top $175 million. Part of the company’s success in winning government contracts results from the political clout it has gained from Feuerstein’s favorable press and the fact that most of its competitors are non-U.S. companies. At congressional insistence, many contracts include a provision favoring U.S. suppliers. U.S. soldiers in both Afghanistan and Iraq were outfitted with Polartec jackets, and former Army General Tommy Franks, who commanded U.S. forces in Iraq, wore his black Polartec jacket at outdoor press conferences. Now the company is pushing a line of civilian clothing that plays off the success of its military garb. The
major question currently regarding Malden Mills isn’t whether the
company will emerge from bankruptcy. “That’s being wrapped up
now and will be announced on August 14,” says Costello confidently.
Rather, the only question is: Will Aaron Feuerstein wind up on top? If he does come out on top, Feuerstein is brimming with optimism for the future. “We have great potential for growth because we have a business strategy that allows us to stay ahead of lower-priced (foreign) competition,” he says. That strategy calls for continuing to develop innovative products. “Innovation is the key to success,” says the man who will turn 78 years old in December. And
how long will he keep going if he wins? “I will keep going until
the day I perish,” he says. “My idol is Moses. He kept going
until he was 120.” From Russians with Love: ‘Lids’ for Israeli Kids
They meet at the home of Vera Yoffe and in a single afternoon can turn out 93 caps. The caps will be sent to Hadassah Hospital and other Israeli hospitals to warm the heads and hearts of children with cancer. “My hands and heart are itching to get knitting,” said Joffe. “Every hat is the heart of the woman who is knitting it and sending it to Israel.” The group of knitters came into existence for a different reason. Under the guidance of Bernice Kazis and Debra Finkel, chairwomen of the Breast Cancer Education and Outreach Project of the North Shore, the Russian-speaking women first organized to get mammograms and checkups. The Project is part of the Jewish Women’s Endowment Fund of the Jewish Community Foundation of the North Shore. The project has a grant from the American Cancer Society to assist Russian-speaking women with breast health. “In the midst of the mammograms, Mitzvah Day came last April and knitters were needed to go to Woodbridge (Assisted Living).” said Kazis. The social action project of the Women’s Division of the Jewish Federation of the North Shore recruited volunteers to make “Lids for Kids” — hats for children with cancer. On
that day, more than 600 people gathered in eight cities and towns to work
on more than 20 social action projects. “I thought it was a wonderful
opportunity to make the Russian women part of our community,” said
Kazis. Mitzvah Day is a project of the Jewish Federation of the North
Shore, funded by a grant from the Robert I. Lappin Foundations to the
Jewish Continuity Committee of the Federation. With help from Marci Miller, Kazis helped to organize the women, who are now meeting monthly in Neptune Towers in Lynn. Miller is director of Federation’s Women’s Division. “In the Soviet Union, women did not get together like this,” explained Kazis, author of Short Stories of a Long Journey, about Russian resettlement on the North Shore. “Yes, they knit, but not as part of an organization. There was nothing to join there and not more than two or three Jews were allowed to get together.” The knitting project helps the women in many ways. They have the pleasure of each others’ company, and they have a project to fulfill their obligations as Jews to perform acts of loving kindness, as well as to fulfill tikkun olam, repairing the world. “Most women have something in their heart and dreams and that is what kind of hat they design,” said one of the women. Kazis is helping them to make the most of their sessions. They are discussing topics for speakers on Jewish American history and Israeli history for future sessions. Judy Remis, coordinator of the Women’s Division Lids for Kids Project with Amy Pliner, is seeking volunteers going to Israel to transport the caps there. “If anyone is going to Israel and willing to bring some caps, we will hook them up with a contact,” said Remis. In addition, Remis is interested in finding other hospitals that need caps. “Each
time they meet, they might make 93 more caps,” said Kazis, whose
daughter will take the first batch to Israel this summer. Youkilis Joins Long Line of Jewish Ballplayers ANDREW
MARCHESSAULT PORTLAND, ME — Portland Sea Dogs third baseman Kevin Youkilis has two kinds of spiritual presences in his life. On the one hand, as a top prospect for the Boston Red Sox Double-A farm team, he feels obliged to please what he calls the “baseball gods,” the finicky kind that make the ball dance just fair or foul of the chalk, and that can change the outcome of the game with an inch here or an inch there. On the other hand, Youkilis was raised Conservative in Cincinnati, where he learned about the Jewish God in Hebrew school. Fortunately, neither of these higher beings is compromised in Kevin’s world; each has its separate sphere of influence within the many facets of the young ballplayer’s life. Both kinds are important. Youkilis is just one of many talented young athletes trying to distinguish himself in the ranks of professional baseball. Though still a minor leaguer — traveling a circuit that has taken him from Lowell, MA to Augusta, GA to Sarasota, FL to Trenton, NJ to Portland, ME since graduation from the University of Cincinnati in 2001 — there’s a good chance we could see him in a major league uniform within the next year. But due to the Sox’s talent at third base, not necessarily in a Boston uniform. When Youkilis finally does hit the big time, he will join an impressive contingent of established Jewish players quietly breaking stereotypes and creating heroes for young Jewish children not seen since the likes of Hank Greenberg and Sandy Koufax. Growing up in Ohio in the 80s and 90s, the 24-year-old Youkilis did not have any Jewish baseball stars to admire. “There weren’t that many,” he says. Heroes of the past such as Greenberg and Koufax were just that, not relevant to a kid looking for inspiration from current stars. Today, however, Jewish players, some current and former MLB All-Stars, pepper the baseball landscape. Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Shawn Green is one of the more promising power-hitters in the game, while Brad Ausmus and Mike Lieberthal have established themselves as franchise catchers for the Houston Astros and Philadelphia Phillies, respectively. Atlanta Braves pitcher Jason Marquis, Anaheim Angels lefthander Scott Schoeneweis, and outfielder and recent Red Sox acquisition Gabe Kapler round out a solid core of up-and-coming Jewish major leaguers. Although he does not shrug off his association with these other Jewish baseball players, Youkilis downplays the influence that faith has on his game. “I don’t really bring it into baseball,” he says. However, he does credit his faith with making him a disciplined person, which not only helps shape his character, but also his approach to the game. Though raised Jewish, Youkilis’ parents did not push the faith upon him past his bar mitzvah and Hebrew school, and allowed him to choose his own level of involvement. These days, most of the Youkilis family, including Kevin, attend synagogue only on the high holidays, and they do not keep kosher. “We keep the faith,” he says, adding, “we believe in what we believe.” When asked how his faith plays into the clubhouse dynamic, he says that “everyone knows” that he’s Jewish. But it doesn’t seem to be a big deal. Although Youkilis is unique among his teammates, he is able to joke about it with them. In fact, Youkilis says that he hasn’t experienced any form of anti-Semitism among his teammates since his high school days. He recalls anecdotes from his minor league seasons, one of which involves a bright orange t-shirt bequeathed to him by his Portland teammates that reads, JESUS IS MY HOMEBOY. While able to make light of his minority status, Youkilis emphasizes that guys are on the team to play baseball. And just like in any workplace, one’s faith, among other things, should not strongly influence his association with his co-workers. Youkilis is a baseball player first, and a Jewish baseball player second. He and Red Sox General Manager Theo Epstein have half-jokingly suggested meeting for a seder in Portland. But with any luck, Youkilis might soon be pulling up a chair beside Epstein and Gabe Kapler in Boston.
Journal Welcomes Two College Interns
The Journal welcomes two college interns this summer. They are Andrew Marchesseault of Boxford and Shana Kaplan of Peabody. Both are working chiefly in our editorial department, while being introduced to all aspects of publishing the biweekly newspaper. Marchesseault is studying cinema and media studies at the University of Chicago, where he will enter his junior year in September. Kaplan, who enters her junior year at New York University in the fall, is majoring in journalism. A resident of Peabody, Kaplan enjoys art and traveling. She is a major theater enthusiast, both on stage and off. When she returns to New York after the summer, she hopes to continue writing, as well as work in the film and television industry. She has previously freelanced for the Peabody and Lynnfield Weekly News. Marchesseault has lived in the Boston area all his life. He has loved the “culture shock” of living in Chicago for the past two years. An avid audiophile and loyal fan of Boston’s sports teams, he serves as arts editor for the University of Chicago student newspaper. He plans to pursue a career in journalism.
Reading, Writing and Judaism at North Shore Preschools SUSAN
JACOBS North
Shore parents who want to send their youngsters to Jewish preschool have
a variety of options. Here is an overview of what is available. Although
most programs begin in early September, there is still time to register
for the 2003/2004 school year at most of the schools listed below. Jewish
Community Center of the North Shore (JCCNS) North
Suburban Jewish Community Center Temple
Beth El Temple
Beth Shalom Temple
Ner Tamid Truman’s Reputation Takes a Hit PETER EPHROSS NEW YORK (JTA) — All children must come to grips with the news that their parents aren’t infallible. For
many American Jews, something similar may be happening following the recent
revelations that President Truman made anti-Semitic comments in his diaries,
discovered last week at the Truman Library in his home state of Missouri. Before the diary comments were released, Truman was best known in Jewish circles for making the United States the first country to recognize Israel after the Jewish state was declared in 1948 — and for passing refugee acts that allowed many Jews languishing in displaced persons camps to immigrate to the United States. But the diary entries reveal another side to the buck-stops-here Truman, who succeeded Franklin Roosevelt as president in 1945 and served in the White House until 1952. “The Jews, I find, are very, very selfish. They care not how many Estonians, Latvians, Finns, Poles, Yugoslavs or Greeks get murdered or mistreated as” [displaced persons,] “as long as the Jews get special treatment,” Truman wrote in 1947. “I know anti-Semitism when I see it. And that’s anti-Semitism,” said Deborah Lipstadt, the Dorot Professor of Modern Jewish and Holocaust Studies at Emory University in Atlanta. Such comments were not out of character for Truman. In 1946, he reportedly asked his Cabinet, “If Jesus Christ couldn’t satisfy the Jews while on earth, how the hell am I supposed to?” said Warren Bass, author of the book Support Any Friend: Kennedy’s Middle East and the Making of the U.S.-Israel Alliance. Truman was not a particularly dedicated Zionist, Bass said. But he was “someone who was committed to alleviating the plight of refugees.” And that he did: The 1948 and 1950 Displaced Persons Acts that allowed 200,000 additional European refugees, more than 80,000 of them Jews, to enter the United States. Indeed, Abraham Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League, remembers passengers on a ship of fellow displaced persons collecting money to send a cable of thanks to Truman for opening up U.S. shores to them after the war. The entries show “how Truman reacted to being pressured. He would often express anger and exasperation when he was under pressure,” said Mitchell Bard, author of The Water’s Edge and Beyond: Defining the Limits to Domestic Influence on United States Middle East Policy. Right before the United Nations voted to partition Palestine in 1947, Truman received 35,000 letters from Jews supporting the plan, which eventually led to the State of Israel. Truman reportedly said, “If the Jews would just keep quiet, everything will be all right,” Bard said. But Truman still committed the United States to vote for the partition plan, and even named a pro-Israel envoy, James McDonald, as the first U.S. ambassador to Israel. “What’s more important is the substantive decisions that he made. He really is the person who in many ways was responsible for the creation of Israel,” Bard said. But there’s little doubt that even his supporters will cringe at some of the diary statements. “The Jews have no sense of proportion,” Truman wrote after former Treasury Secretary Robert Morgenthau called to lobby him to intervene for 4,500 Jewish refugees aboard the Exodus ship, which had been seized by British soldiers as they were seeking entry into Palestine. “Nor do they have any judgment on world affairs.” Many Jews today might wish that Truman, known for his no-nonsense style, had held his tongue a little more. “Wouldn’t it have been great to remember Harry Truman as the man who helped create the State of Israel and alleviate the plight of Jewish refugees,” Dwork asked. But the reality is different: Truman, a Missouri haberdasher before he entered politics, both imbibed and embodied the anti-Semitism of many Americans at the time. “He was certainly anti-Semitic, he certainly had racist views of all kinds of people — and at the same time, had both personally friendly and commercial relationships with Jews,” Dwork said. New Jersey Abolishes Post of Poet Laureate JOANNE
PALMER TEANECK, NJ, — On Wednesday, July 3, Gov. James E. McGreevey signed a bill that repeals the law that created the office of New Jersey Poet Laureate. By so doing he has unseated Amiri Baraka, only the second person to hold the job. On July 2, by a 69 to 2 vote, the state Assembly cleared the way for McGreevey’s signature by voting to eliminate the position, apparently the only legal way to remove Baraka from it. Baraka, once LeRoi Jones, is the aging militant poet/playwright whose poem Somebody Blew Up America enraged New Jerseyans and lovers of poetry alike. The drama around Baraka’s position began last September, when the newly appointed poet laureate read his poetry at the Geraldine R. Dodge Poetry Festival in Waterloo Village in Stanhope. Backed by hypnotic, increasingly pounding music, Baraka incanted his verse, which demanded to know “who who who” was responsible for various American and world evils. Among the questions that poem poses are “Who do Tom Ass Clarence work for/Who doo doo come out the Colon’s mouth/Who know what kind of Skeeza is a Condoleeza.” He seems to be referring to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, Secretary of State Colin Powell, and National Security Affairs adviser Condoleezza Rice, who are all African American. He also accused Israelis of knowing that the World Trade Center was going to be attacked on Sept. 11, 2001, and that somehow Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was involved in the scheming. Or, as he put it, “Who knew the World Trade Center was gonna get bombed/Who told 4000 Israeli workers at the Twin Towers/To stay home that day/Why did Sharon stay away?” The
Jewish Standard broke the story in October. Baraka has since defended
his accusation against Israel, saying that he found the information on
the Internet. (Slate, the online magazine, was among the reputable
publications that debunked the rumor.) At the end of that month, Shai Goldstein, the New Jersey regional director of the Anti-Defamation League, who had been spearheading the effort to unseat Baraka, asked state groups to join in a letter-writing campaign. He asked that mail be sent to state legislators urging them to pass the bill. Scoring a coup, Goldstein enlisted Nobel peace laureate Elie Wiesel to join him in the effort. Goldstein could not be reached for comment, but legislators and other leaders are jubilant. Assemblywoman Loretta Weinberg of Teaneck, the assembly’s majority conference leader, was a co-sponsor of the bill. “I’m glad the vote has taken place,” she said in a telephone interview on July 9. “I’m glad that the assembly Democratic leadership stood up and made a forceful statement on this particular person, and I’m hoping that when this is all over we can recreate the position of poet laureate and give it to someone who appeals to the better instincts of the people of New Jersey.” She pointed out that it was not only representatives of religious groups who spoke out on the issue, but “members of our African American caucus. It was people who just believe that this should be a society free of racism and anti-Semitism. We do not want to put state approval on someone who creates racist and anti-Semitic feeling.” To oppose Baraka is not to favor censorship, Weinberg added. “I’m not denying this ‘poet’ the right to speak on any street corner, if he so chooses, but he should not speak as a representative of the state of New Jersey.” And, she said, “please be sure to use the quotation marks around the word ‘poet’ when you use it to describe him.” Dr. Ved Chaudhary of Morganville, president of the Hindu International Council Against Defamation, joined with the ADL in working to abolish the position. “I was very much involved,” Chaudhary said in a telephone interview on July 9th. “I was very interested in making sure that Amiri Baraka did not continue to abuse his position and show his prejudice. “I feel very strongly about this because I expect a poet laureate to be someone who creates good will and beauty, the goodness of human beings, and uplifting thoughts. That’s what I would expect from a poet laureate. I was completely amazed at the level of prejudice this individual showed. It was particularly directed to the Jewish community but I think he went to some of the other communities as well, and it’s denigrating. “I am a member of a minority, the Hindu community in the USA, and I feel very strongly that the Jewish people have been subjected to a lot of discrimination and hatred. We should expect that in the 21st century, respectable people should make an effort to reduce bigotry, rather than putting out poetry or prose that is inflammatory and completely false. “I stand shoulder to shoulder with the Jewish community. I will do the same if such discrimination is perpetrated against any community.” Rabbi Ronald Price, director of the Union for Traditional Judaism in Teaneck, took a leading role in the issue. His group, Price said, “organized letter-writing, and I appeared on behalf of the UTJ at a press conference at the state capital, simply to make clear that while it was a very difficult decision for us, we felt it was necessary to ask that the poet laureate position be eliminated.” Joy Kurland, director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of UJA Federation of Bergen County & North Hudson, was involved as well. “There was a coalition of all the Jewish groups throughout Bergen County, from the rabbinic community to the agencies of the federation, to really get the message out about how important it was to advocate that this bill be passed,” she said. “We had the support of the larger Jewish community in all of this. “I think that the legislature is absolutely to be commended for voting as they did, across party lines, as a totally bipartisan issue,” she continued. “Clearly there was support on the part of numerous legislators in the Assembly. “It’s important for us to understand the coalition-building that takes place, the relationships that are nurtured and developed. It crosses party lines, racial lines, all lines, when people know the importance of doing the right thing and recognizing what it means for the community at large. “I’m applauding the leadership of both parties for their support, for making sure this came to a positive conclusion. Hopefully, we can go forward.” Sherry Kirschenbaum, assistant director of the regional ADL, echoed Kurland. “We consider this a sad and ugly chapter in New Jersey history, which has now been brought to a close,” she said. A spokesperson for the governor returned a telephone call from this office, but said that the governor would have no further comment. U.S. to Fund Palestinian Authority MATTHEW
E. BERGER
WASHINGTON (JTA) — The Bush administration’s decision to send aid directly to the Palestinian Authority is getting the thumbs-up from a diverse assortment of pro-Israel activists and lawmakers — the clearest sign of support yet for the White House’s intensified engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The
administration signed off on July 8th on a $20 million payment to the
Palestinian Authority, to be used for humanitarian projects. It also is an attempt to shore up the new P.A. prime minister, Mahmoud Abbas. “It’s a one-time deal and it’s supposed to send a message,” said Malcolm Hoenlein, executive vice chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations. Aid to Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip traditionally has been doled out through the U.S. Agency for International Development and the U.N. Relief and Works Agency. Numerous
laws over the years have blocked direct U.S. aid to the Palestinians,
but Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage on July 8th signed a waiver
in the Foreign Assistance Act that allows for spending of up to $25 million
for “unanticipated contingencies.” Until now, many supporters of Israel had opposed direct aid to the Palestinian Authority, saying it was impossible to ensure that the money wouldn’t be funneled to terrorist organizations. Recently, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee said it would reconsider its opposition if the Palestinian Authority dismantled terrorist groups. Now supporters of the decision on direct aid, including AIPAC, say the shift is a result of events on the ground and confidence in the Bush administration’s engagement in the region. “There
is a clear understanding in this community that Palestinian prosperity
is essential to Israeli security,” said Rebecca Dinar, AIPAC’s
spokeswoman. “Our only concern is that the money is not used to foment
terror.” The final step was Abbas’ resignation on July 8th from the central committee of Fatah, the PLO’s main political party, though efforts were underway the next day in Palestinian circles to patch up the rift. The United States defines a wing of Fatah, the Al-Aksa Brigade, as a terrorist group. Additionally, analysts believe that by directing funds to the Palestinian Authority, the administration will help Abbas to replicate some of the humanitarian programs currently offered by Hamas and other terrorist groups. Those
programs bring the groups both popular support among Palestinians and
financial backing from Europe and the Arab world. While the Bush administration is acting within its discretion in allocating the funds, the decision to give the money without direct congressional approval angered some on Capitol Hill, including many who support the initiative. The
White House did get the blessing of congressional leaders before moving
forward, but rank-and-file legislators were not given the opportunity
to weigh in. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas), an outspoken critic of Bush’s Middle East policy, was consulted, and while he was “somewhat skeptical” of direct aid to the Palestinians, he gave his support after assurances from the administration, his spokesman, Stuart Roy, said. Rep.
Lois Capps (D-Calif.) is considering sending a letter to colleagues soliciting
support for the aid, according to her chief of staff. That is likely to
give many lawmakers an opportunity to go on record about the $20 million
payment to the Palestinian Authority. The list, which JTA obtained, recommends “making clear that Palestinian performance in stopping terror is essential for further progress” and “ensuring that aid to the Palestinians be provided only with iron-clad safeguards so that funds go only for designated purposes.” Arafat
and Abbas Make Up — For Now GIL
SEDAN JERUSALEM
(JTA) — Yasser Arafat and Mahmoud Abbas have pulled back from the
brink of their power struggle, lest it endanger the “road map”
peace plan. Arafat, the Palestinian Authority president, went so far as to call Abbas, the PA prime minister, a traitor. Abbas “betrays the interests of the Palestinian people,” Arafat reportedly said during a recent meeting with U.N. envoy Terje Roed-Larsen. “He behaves like a new recruit who doesn’t know what he is doing.” On July 16, however, the two reached a cease-fire of sorts with the mediation of senior Palestinian and Egyptian officials that led to a formula for dividing power. Abbas promised to raise with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon the question of restrictions on Arafat’s freedom to travel from his Ramallah headquarters. In addition, Arafat succeeded in making Abbas’ security minister, Mohammed Dahlan, who has pledged to take a tough line on terrorist groups, subordinate to a security oversight committee that is packed with Arafat loyalists. Senior Arafat adviser Saeb Erekat said that a Palestinian leadership council, which includes PLO heads and is controlled by Arafat, would continue to have the final say over negotiations with Israel, underscoring that Abbas is not a free agent in his political dealings, Israeli newspaper Ha’aretz reported. Contrary
to the expectations of Israel and the United States, Arafat has been acting
from a position of power. Three weeks after Palestinian terrorist groups declared a temporary cease-fire on attacks against Israel, Abbas still has not convinced the Palestinian public that ending hostilities will serve their interests better than continuing the violence. Worse yet, his relations with Arafat have never been so bad during their four decades of partnership at the helm of the PLO. The good news is that Abbas is putting up a fight. Israeli observers perceive Abbas’ offer last week to resign from the Central Committee of Fatah — Arafat’s mainstream PLO faction — not as a sign of weakness but as a maneuver in the circuitous struggle to replace Arafat as Palestinian leader. Abbas
may not enjoy the full support of his people, but he has the United States,
European Union, Egypt, Jordan and Israel. The ultimate proof that Abbas means business is Arafat’s determination to confront him. Arafat knows a potential threat when he sees one: The man who has been written off so many times is again fighting for his political life, and he will do everything in his power to belittle Abbas. That’s why Sharon, ahead of his visit to Europe the week of July 20, relaunched his campaign against Arafat, saying he was undermining Abbas and sabotaging progress toward peace. The
Bush administration has refused to meet with Arafat, considering him irredeemably
tied to terrorism. The momentum to Abbas’ appointment began in June
2002 when President Bush set the replacement of Arafat as a condition
for eventual Palestinian statehood. On July 15, Sharon was asked at the weekly Cabinet session why he did not exile Arafat and dismantle his Ramallah headquarters. Sharon replied that the issue would not be discussed at the Cabinet — implying that it was not altogether irrelevant. Arafat appointed Abbas, his longtime No. 2, as premier last April, following heavy pressure by the United States and European Union. Since then, however, both Arafat and Abbas have consistently said that Arafat remains the supreme Palestinian leader, and Abbas consults with him on every decision of substance. But tension between the two has increased as the road map progresses. The tension burst into the open when Arafat and his allies accused Abbas of gaining little from Israel in exchange for the terror groups’ cease-fire announcement. Arafat’s
circle spread charges that Abbas and Dahlan were too soft on Israel, particularly
on the issue of releasing Palestinian prisoners. Israel is not required
to release prisoners under the road map, but believes the move might strengthen
Abbas’ popularity at home. Dahlan told Israeli officials that Israel must release many more of the roughly 5,800 prisoners in Israeli jails, regardless of their record or political identity, if it wants to help Abbas and the road map. It’s not just a matter of negotiating tactics: With so many Palestinian families affected, the Palestinian public regards a massive release of prisoners as a precondition of progress with Israel. Many Israelis, however, believe that releasing prisoners who took part in terror attacks would suggest that such tactics are as legitimate as other means of struggle. Still, in an attempt to strengthen Abbas, Israeli government sources leaked to the press that Israel would release an additional 300 prisoners, including some from Hamas and Islamic Jihad. Decisions are likely to be taken before Sharon’s scheduled visit to Washington at the end of the month. Abbas
thus is fighting on two fronts: He fights for more flexibility on the
Israeli front, while on the home front he fights for more power. Dahlan, meanwhile, challenged the very authority of Arafat’s friends, calling for the first elections to the Fatah central committee in 13 years. He is trying to use popular demands for greater democratization of the Palestinian Authority to serve his own ends. Ending Palestinian Incitement a Huge Task MATTHEW
GUTMAN TEL
AVIV (JTA) — One of the central points of the “road map”
peace plan is for the Palestinians to cease anti-Israel incitement and
move to a style of public discourse that favors reconciliation. Some might say that a recent poll of Palestinian refugees, indicating that few would want to implement a “right of return” to their former homes inside Israel, does just that — promoting reconciliation by helping to defuse one of the most controversial issues separating the two sides. But that might have been precisely the problem. About 200 rioters stormed the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research on Sunday as the center was about to publish a poll indicating that the overwhelming majority of refugees preferred to receive monetary compensation or settle in other areas, rather than return to their former homes. In the end, center director Khalil Shikaki — himself a refugee — cancelled the news conference called to discuss the survey results, wiping not just metaphorical but actual egg off his face. “They ran in here, smashing everything. They broke all of our furniture, the windows, throwing eggs and physically attacking us,” one of the center’s researchers told JTA. “It was horrifying.” For advocates of reform, the incident served as a nasty reminder of how difficult — and potentially bloody — it will be to change the Palestinian culture of violence and rejectionism. This is hardly the first such incident that reform-minded Palestinians have encountered: Last October, following his statement that the Palestinians would have to compromise on the right of return, Sari Nusseibeh received death threats. Leaflets attributed to Fatah, the ruling Palestinian political party, circulated in Ramallah condemning to death all those who would compromise on the right of return. Most Israelis see the call for a right of return as a veiled demand to dismantle the Jewish state through demography. Nusseibeh, president of eastern Jerusalem’s Al Quds University and at the time the top P.A. representative in Jerusalem, publicly downplays the threats. In private, however, he acknowledges that a sniper’s bullet could cut him down at any time. Still, since the road map was launched last month, many in the Palestinian media are trying to change the political culture to foster a gentler image of Israel. Even Israeli officials say they see the beginnings of moderation in the Palestinian media, which are heavily influenced by the governing Palestinian Authority. “We
are trying to support the hudna,” Gaza television host Hazem Abu
Shanab told JTA, using an Arabic word for the temporary cease-fire Palestinian
terror groups declared a few weeks ago. “Much of our efforts are
now concentrated in selling the hudna to the people.” Palestinian media officials also are trying to filter out “Israeli statements about violence, possible reinvasions and aggression,” Abu Shanab said. Israeli troops left the Gaza Strip three weeks ago and Bethlehem two weeks ago in the initial stages of the road map. But Israel has refused to withdraw troops from other Palestinian cities in the West Bank until it is confident that the Palestinian Authority will crack down on terrorist groups operating there. In Bethlehem, Nasser Laham, who owns the influential local cable station “Bethlehem TV,” increasingly relies on local Palestinian reporters rather than those of the massive Gulf satellite conglomerates, finding them more sensitive to local issues and generally less prone to incitement. “We are also trying to concentrate on the future and not the past,” he said, presenting viewers with images of “a quieter, more comfortable future.” Most importantly, Laham said, Bethlehem TV is working to counter the clout of local clans and small neighborhood groups, fostering “a greater, unified Palestinian structure, one with a single Palestinian policing force.” Laham, who comes from a family of refugees — his cousin is an administrator of the Dehaishe refugee camp — believes Israel and a future Palestinian state can coexist peacefully. An avid reader of Israeli newspapers, his office is plastered with pictures clipped from the mass circulation dailies, Yediot Achronot and Ma’ariv. Paramount right now is the need to wean Palestinian viewers and readers from what was, until a few weeks ago, a steady diet of “martyrs, gore and Israeli atrocities.” The Palestinians have grown so addicted to the violent images screened nightly that “we have forgotten what it is to live a normal life,” Laham said. Some of the efforts to reduce anti-Israel incitement are not well received. While the whitewashing of some anti-Israel graffiti in Gaza met with great fanfare, the vast majority of the sprawling Palestinian city was left untouched. Few are willing to take on the job, both because the workload is so great — pictures of dead terrorists, Kassam rockets, AK-47s and other Palestinian symbols mark miles of walls in the maze-like refugee camps — and because it is highly unpopular. Likewise, Palestinian journalists and researchers find it increasingly difficult to overcome the anti-Israel sentiment that their own outlets have helped stoke. View
from a Moshav JOSEPH
YUDIN Joseph Yudin is a columnist for the Jewish Standard in Teaneck, New Jersey. A native of Wyckoff, NJ, he graduated from Boston University in 1990. After emigrating to Israel in 1992, he served in the IDF Paratroop Corps and is now a licensed tour guide.
From my front porch to the west, beyond bushels of hay, is a clear view of Tel Megiddo, an important city in King Solomon’s empire. To the north over the sunflower fields looms Mt. Tabor, where Deborah sat in judgment of Israel, and to the northwest is Mt. Carmel, topped off with Elijah’s Cave. To the south is Mount Gilboa, where King Saul and his son Jonathan died in battle against the Philistines. The great mountain seemingly guards the surrounding moshavim. From the Gilboa to the Samarian Mountains are a thick line of trees planted by the Jewish National Fund between 1948 and the Six Day War of 1967. Seen from above, these trees outline the northern stretch of the infamous “Green Line,” the boundary between Israel and the West Bank. Across that line, not 10 kilometers away from our moshav, lies the city of Jenin. When I first moved in, my fiancée — now my wife — was the proud owner of a German Shepherd named Lucky. I was terrified of the dog. Lucky was chained between our garage and the pomegranate orchard, a length of about 30 meters. To keep him company, I adopted a small dog from the local shelter. Slowly, Lucky and I became friends. I figured that since I was biking in the border area between Palestinian areas and our moshav, it might be a good idea to have Lucky along for the ride. For several years Lucky and I would bike the Jezre’el Valley — I pedaled and he ran alongside —and we came to know every nook and cranny of the Biblical land of the northern tribal Judges. I was reassured to think that if by some slim chance a terrorist had breached the IDF defenses or bypassed a border patrol, Lucky would warn me by his incessant bark. He would attack a perpetrator if I had given the word. But it was not to be: One day as we were biking the valley, Lucky, by then 13 years old, had a heart attack and died. After the new wave of violence broke out after Camp David II, and a terrorist infiltration of our neighboring moshav left one civilian dead, I decided to carry a handgun instead of relying on a dog for protection. I did however get another dog, a little mutt that I also saved from the shelter. My two small dogs are loud. They too bark at almost everything that moves. They move freely around the house barking at people and animals alike. These days, when I awake at night to the sound of barking dogs, I load a cartridge into my 9-mm semiautomatic pistol, crouch down by my front door as my family sleeps, and wait until the barking stops. Only then do I go back to sleep. I am optimistic about three things. First, in hopes of curbing the violence, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and the IDF have stepped up attacks on terrorist leaders, killing many and scaring the pants off others. These offensive tactics plus pressure on the Palestinians by the Bush Administration have led to the present hunda, a temporary and tactical cease-fire, while giving the Palestinians one last chance to stop the terror. Secondly, the security fence is finally being built along the northern stretch of the Green Line. I can see it going up. The fence around the Gaza Strip has proven how effective an electronic fence can be. I hope to see it close hand as a reservist before long. The only terrorists from Gaza to successfully murder civilians inside Israel were two British subjects who used the pro-Palestinian “International Solidarity Movement” as cover and their British passports to cross into Israel. Lastly, the Palestinian people themselves are finally speaking out about the uselessness of the “armed struggle.” Now that they have regained some freedom of movement and some are allowed to enter Israel to work, many seem to see the usefulness in calling for an end to the attacks against Israel. One thing is for sure: We are sleeping better these nights, even with barking dogs.
JTA News Briefs Lieberman’s
Fund-Raisers Depart Falash
Mura Committee Formed Iraqi Jews
Get Help German
Parliament Approves Pact Survivors
Have Tea with Haider Russian
Israelis to Vote in Russia Stamp Honors
Rescuer of Jews Weapons
Ship Sold for Scrap Metal Sharon
to Visit U.S. Israel
Lights Up Camels New
England Scrip Offers Organizations a Painless Way to Raise Money SUSAN
JACOBS
purchase New England Scrip gift cards from her at a discount, sell them at full face value, and pocket the difference. This, she says, can really add up over time. Here’s how the program works: Taglieri offers gift cards in various denominations ($5 -$100) from more than 45 local and national merchants. Organizations can purchase them at discounts ranging from 2 to 15 percent. The organizations, in turn, sell the gift cards to members and supporters at full face value and get to keep the difference. It’s a win-win situation for everyone, maintains Taglieri, including the individuals who use the gift cards for purchases they would ordinarily make anyway. Participating merchants include Stop & Shop, Starbucks, Borders, Loews Cineplex, Friendly’s, KB Toys and Old Navy; and new businesses
are always being added. New England Scrip is unique in that it offers
gift cards from local merchants such as Bob’s Stores, Picadilly Pub
and the Ninety-Nine Restaurant. Parents pre-ordered the gift cards they wanted, which were delivered a short time later. Solomon believes convenience is a big benefit of the program, especially during the winter holiday season when the weather is bad and time is at a premium. “During the holidays, people buy gift cards as presents. Parents didn’t have to travel to the stores to get the certificates,” she says. Barbara Goldman, Director of Development at Cohen Hillel Academy in Marblehead, says scrip has helped her organization raise a significant amount of money over the past year. According to Goldman, Cohen Hillel earned $5,600 from last October through this June on gross purchases of over $80,000 in scrip sold. Volume drives the program. Her organization takes pre-orders for gift cards every few weeks, and currently has about 40 families participating in the program. “It’s a very painless way of benefitting our school,” she says. “Participants buy gift cards for things they would normally purchase anyway, and we get a kickback for being the middleman.” Some of the most popular merchants in the Cohen Hillel program are Marshalls, CVS and The Gap. Taglieri notes that scrip is a good way for people to support organizations without feeling obligated to buy things they don’t need or want. “If a family buys a $100 gift card to Borders, they in essence ‘donate’ $5 to the school. She points out that if a family buys $400 worth of scrip in a month (for groceries, clothing, gifts, restaurants, etc.) at an average 5 percent discount for their organization, they have contributed $20 that month. If they do it every month for a year, they contribute $240. If 50 members of the organization do it, the organization can raise $12,000 in a year. Taglieri,
who has a background in computer programming and sales, founded her business
six months ago. She patterned it after a handful of other scrip centers
in existence in California and Illinois. She runs the business with Daphna
Shemesh, whose children attend Cohen Hillel Academy with Taglieri’s
two children. Taglieri and Shemesh are seeking to add new participants
to the program. Berlin Jewish Museum Bridges Gap Between Jews and Germans SHANA
KAPLAN BERLIN— Confined at the bottom of a narrow, underground, harshly angular, cold concrete room soaring several stories high, you stare up at an unreachable ceiling painted black as night. At the top of the narrowest corner, a slit of a window dimly illuminates the whole room, yet engulfs everything with cruel shadows. From above come street sounds; they seem miles away. If you speak, your voice resonates, creating a sensation of utter loneliness. If more than one person talks, their voices echo in chaos. Fear and doom press down. This is not a prison. It is the Holocaust Tower inside the new Jewish Museum here. In a city where a half century ago it was catastrophic to be a Jew, now stands one of the most comprehensive tributes to Jewish life in the world. It takes visitors on a journey through 2000 years of Jewish history. A
plaque just outside the heavy door leading into the tower reads, “Inside
this place we are cut off from the everyday life of the city. We cannot
reach the outside world. So it was for those confined before and during
deportation and in the camps themselves.” The other hallway is marked with the name of cities to which Jews emigrated or were exiled. At the end of the passage is a doorway leading outside to the “Garden of Exile.” Here stand 49 pillars six meters tall, a willow oak tree at the top of each. Forty-eight are filled with soil from Berlin, representing 1948, when Israel became a state, and the 49th contains soil from Israel. The floor of the garden is tilted at such an angle that walking amongst the pillars disorients the visitor. Libeskind’s design intentionally simulates seasickness and a sense of losing the ground under one’s feet to symbolize the loneliness and distress of exile. “Exile is a huge deal,” 21-year old German business student Oleg Popovsky said. “We Jews are spread out everywhere on earth. People don’t realize it, but Libeskind makes it clear here.” Visitors walk up a steep flight of stairs to begin the exhibition. Two thousand years of history are presented here chronologically in 14 sections through works of art, biographies, artifacts, music and video whose sheer volume is overwhelming. Visitors can spend hours learning about historical figures and current events: fashion, children’s toys, hardships, and business strategies. Some make return visits. “I enjoyed it better this time,” said one man on his second visit. “I noticed things I didn’t see before, and took more time in areas that interested me.” The first section, appropriately named “beginnings,” presents visitors with the first known existence of Judaism in Germany. The section also deals with the writings of the Torah. Visitors can learn about the Hebrew language, and even learn how to write their names in Hebrew. In another section, the customs like Havdalah and traditions within Jewish weddings are explained. Other sections tell of the lives of inventors and influential politicians and scientists. One display explains the roots of prevalent negative Jewish stereotypes. The thirteenth section depicts life during the Holocaust. The final section depicts the present— the rebuilding of the Jewish community since the war, and the reconstruction of relationships between Jews and Germans. Libeskind called his project, “Between the Lines.” He designed the museum’s striking lightning bolt-like edifice in a way that symbolically connects Germans and Jews. Both the interior and exterior of the zinc-coated building seem slashed with lines cut out of walls and beams jutting across hallways at extreme angles. Libeskind plotted addresses of persecuted Jews as well as important non-Jewish figures living in Berlin around the time of the Holocaust on a map of the city. He then connected the dots to yield the zigzagging fragmented Star of David shape after which the museum is modeled. According
to spokesperson Eva Söderman, the museum has seen over one million
visitors since its opening in 2001. She said 25 percent of visitors reside
in Berlin; 50 percent are German citizens living outside of Berlin, and
25 percent are international. There are only about 100,000 Jews living
in Germany— 25,000 of them in Berlin. Therefore, the museum is designed
for a non-Jewish audience. Others
come out of curiosity, to have questions answered about Jewish tradition
and culture, Söderman said, because very few visitors know any Jews
personally. “It’s been very, very informative,” said Chicago
Attorney Thomas Soseman. “I am not Jewish, and this is very educational
about Jewish culture. Now I have an understanding of a lot of Jewish traditions,
like why people keep kosher. It was more than I was expecting.” structure without exhibitions in 1999. Two years later, with exhibitions installed, it reopened as it is today, financed by the federal government because the German-Jewish community was too small to support it on its own. Building costs have been estimated at $40 million. The museum is an absolute must-see for those visiting the Berlin area. Those who think they know everything about Judaism are in for an intense learning experience. Those seeking to gain new knowledge will assuredly get more than they bargain for. People in the News
Arts & EntertainmentWhy Didn’t U.S. Help WWII Jews?SHELDON
S. BROWN A Race Against Death: Peter Bergson, America, and the Holocaust, by David S. Wyman and Rafael Medoff, hardcover, 269 pages $26.95, The New Press, 2002. Many Americans who didn’t live through World War II may be shocked to learn that the United States turned a deaf ear to European Jewry when news came of the fate that awaited them in Hitler’s death camps. Even now, almost 60 years later, people still ask, Why? An answer to the question is found in the research conducted by the authors and a 12-hour interview conducted by author David Wyman with Peter Bergson in 1973. Bergson, the catalyst behind efforts to rescue World War II Jews from Europe, was the name adopted by Hillel Kook, whose family moved to Palestine from Lithuania when he was a child. In 1939, he aided the emigration of Polish Jews to Palestine despite Britain’s White Paper that closed the doors to Jewish refugees at a time when European Jews were desperately seeking a safe haven. He changed his name to Peter Bergson to prevent repercussions to his family from his work. He became leader of what became known as the Bergson group. At first, the group established a Committee for a Jewish Army, recruiting Jewish fighters against the Nazis. The British, who did not want to arouse anti-American feeling in Arab countries, opposed the effort. More opposition came from Jewish leaders and organizations, who felt that the Bergson group could take away their leadership role in representing American Jews, and from the press which was burying news about Hitler’s Final Solution on the back pages of newspapers. Despite those impediments, the Committee laid the foundation for the Jewish Brigade, which saw action in 1944 in Italy and was the only unit to fight under the Jewish flag in WWII. The Brigade later played a key role in helping Holocaust survivors immigrate to Palestine. By 1942, the news of the annihilation of two million Jews reached the Allies. The group refocused its attention away from the campaign to recruit Jewish fighters and onto the rescue of the remaining Jews in Europe. Rescue of Jews, however, was not the policy of the Roosevelt administration. Instead, it sought to defeat the Nazis and thereby save the Jewish remnant. By ingenious means, the Bergson group alerted the American public to the ongoing Jewish catastrophe and the dire need for rescue. Their rescue work went by the name of the Emergency Committee to Save the Jewish People of Europe. They mobilized 400 rabbis to march on Washington; they organized rallies to confront the Holocaust; they lobbied Congress. Their newspaper ads sounded an alarm they hoped would rouse the nation: “Help Prevent 4 million People from Becoming Ghosts;” “They Are Driven to Death Daily, But They Can Be Saved,” and “For Sale to Humanity 70,000 Jews Guaranteed Human Beings at $50 a Piece.” The ads were written by Ben Hecht, the noted playwright, screenwriter and journalist. By 1943, the Bergson group had become a powerful voice, with many Congressmen and celebrities as supporters. Polls showed that about one-third of the American public was anti-Semitic: Jews were viewed as more of a threat to the US than Blacks, Catholics, even Germans and Japanese. There were more than 100 anti-Semitic organizations. On the recommendation of Treasury Secretary Henry Morgenthau, Roosevelt established a War Refugee Board in 1944. Subsequently, the Board played a crucial role in saving 200,000 European Jews. And the driving force behind those efforts was Bergson, who made it hot enough that the Administration could no longer do nothing. Throughout his courageous endeavors, Bergson was beset by in-fighting among Jewish organizations. The State Department wanted to deport him, the FBI spied on him, the British tried to silence him and Zionist leader and Rabbi Stephen Wise threatened him. Bergson complained that too much of his time was spent defending himself and fund-raising instead of rescue efforts. Bergson
was considered a master of public relations with a touch of genius. No
one else in America did more to sensitize the public to the imminent danger
to European Jewry. No one in the US worked harder to rescue Jews than
Peter Bergson. He died in 2001 in Israel. Sheldon Brown, Ph.D. is a professor of the psychology and literature of the Holocaust at North Shore Community College. He lives in Marblehead. Sprouting a History Buff: Jewish Children’s Authors Look at America PENNY
SCHWARTZ Young kids will set their sails and pick up the beat of a rollicking, fictional tale told by a mustached, banjo-strumming storyteller in The Erie Canal Pirates, by award-winning folklorist Eric A. Kimmel. best known to Jewish Journal readers as the author of Herschel and the Hanukkah Goblins (Holiday House), The Chanukkah Guest (Holiday House), and last year’s Zigazak (Random House). But Kimmel likes to spin yarns from all cultural corners of the world, and in The Erie Canal Pirates he comes home with his own version of the Erie Canal song, one of his childhood favorites. Kids beware as the (not too menacing) pirate Bill McGrew, the Terror of Buffalo, challenges Captain Flynn, his rag-tag crew and one hee-hawing mule, Old Frank. Andrew Glass’ vibrant, comic paintings enliven each two-page spread, offering as much entertainment as the rhyming adventure. (Learn more about Kimmel’s other tales and Jewish titles on ericakimmel.com.) Highly acclaimed children’s author David A. Adler never met Sacagewea, Rosa Parks, Thomas Alva Edison or Jesse Owens. But as a prolific writer of biographies, he knows their lives well. Adler has written 32 children’s biographies, in Holiday House’s Picture Book Biography series. Kids may be most familiar with his popular Cam Jansen series for young and older readers. Adler is also the author of numerous biographies of Jewish figures, including Anne Frank and Golda Meir, and several books on the Holocaust. The Number on My Grandfather’s Arm (UAHC Press) is a critically acclaimed, poignantly told story often recommended by children’s librarians as an introductory şbook for young children about the Holocaust. A Hero and the Holocaust, The Story of Janusz Korczak and His Children, (Holiday House) an illustrated biography for older readers, was published last year. In recent correspondence, I asked Adler about the influence of Judaism on his work. “In doing research for biographies I try to follow the Jewish tradition in finding information, the closer to the source the more trusted the information,” Adler answered. “Therefore, in researching for the biographies I write, I first look for the subject’s letters. Hopefully the subject wrote an autobiography. I also look for books published close to the time he/she lived.” Adler has the diligence and a knack for dusting off the records, and plucks just the right historical morsels for his attractive and straightforward biographies. His crisp writing and genuine style go to the heart of the story and captivate young kids’ curiosity. Adler places kids right into the action as they hit the trail with this season’s A Picture Book of Lewis and Clark, (illustrated by Ronald Himler), published to coincide with the 200th anniversary of the Louisiana Purchase. Adler doesn’t shy away from tough topics — he makes a point of noting that Lewis and Clark’s team included Clark’s slave, York. Relations with the different American Indian tribes are described realistically, eschewing the all-too-common misguided stereotypes. Adler’s deft use of original material flows naturally with his narrative in another newly published biography on Harriet Beecher Stowe. Again, Adler draws kids in at the outset. “In 1862 President Abraham Lincoln met Harriet Beecher Stowe. He shook her hand, it was reported, and said, “So this is the little lady who made this big war.” The intensity of the moment is captured in Colin Bootman’s accompanying painting. Beecher’s views against slavery and her motivation for writing the influential Uncle Tom’s Cabin are explained in human, understandable terms, and the text is interspersed with newspaper accounts and passages from Uncle Tom’s Cabin. “The books I write, for the most part, reflect my interests, not necessarily what I think children should be reading,” Adler says. “It is for the editors to decide if what I want to write children will want to read.” This
understated self-appraisal belies Adler’s intuition into what kids
like to read, but judging on the success of his works, offers promise
of more to come. Looking back with historical fiction it is August, 1910
and 13-year-old Hadassah (Dossi) Rabinowitz composes her first letter
to the Meade family, thanking them for her two-week summer stay at their
Vermont farmhouse under the auspices of the Fresh Air Fund. Through Dossi’s eyes, in impeccably composed letters written to her Vermont friend, Emma, Hurwitz offers a fictionalized look back at the immigrant life of an orphaned Jewish girl. Dossi first entered this world in Hurwitz’s Faraway Summer, which de-scribes her stay with the Meade family. In the pages of the sequel, Dossi struggles with algebra, meets the real-life Lillian Wald, the revered founder of the Visting Nurse Service of New York, and witness |