The Southern Jewish weekly. [volume], December 17, 1948, Image 1

About The Southern Jewish weekly. [volume] (Jacksonville, Fla.) 1939-1992

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INDEPENDENT WEEKLY SERVING AMERICAN CITIZENS OF JEWISH FAITH
_ THE OLDEST AND MOST WIDELY CIRCULATED JEWISH PUBLICATION IN THIS TERRITORY
VOL. 24 NO. 47
Truman Wants
D. P. Law Changed
by CHARLOTTE WEBER
(Copyright, 1948. Jewish Telegraphic
Agency, Inc.)
WASHINGTON—
President Truman will ask
Congress for a complete over
hauling of the displaced persons
law when he reads his State of
the Union message to Congress on
January 3.
That is the prediction of Cap
ital observers close to the displac
ed persons scene. Amending the
present law will be much better
strategically, they point out, than
attempting to write and push
through an entirely new bill.
And the revisions to be asked, if
passed, will, they say, amount to
almost a new piece of legislation.
Harry Rosenfield, member of
the three-man Displaced Persons
Commission, said he had "had
assurances" that the new Con
gress would act to eliminate the
bad features of the present law,
when we asked him for a status
report on the program. He was
hopeful, he said, that the Con
gress would act "soon enough"
and would "make the law appli
cable to all displaced persons re
gardless of race, religion, or na
tional origin."
He predicted that Congress
would probably be asked to
change the law in the following
manner: to raise the present fig
ure from 205,000 eligible to 400,-
000 eligible for admission; to
change the present “cut-off date
of Dec. 22, 1945, which discrimin
ates against Jewish DP’s, to April
21, 1947”; to repeal the clause
that “mortgages” quota numbers
used under the program against
future quotas; and to eliminate
the requirements that 40 percent
of the visas issued must go to
Balts and 30 percent to “agricul
turists.” Also, he said, Congress
will probably eliminate from the
bill the section providing for en
try of ethnic Germans.
These steps have been requested
by the Commission and by the
State and Justice Departments in
routine reports listing legislative
requirements that all federal
agencies have been asked to sub
mit to President Truman, Rosen
field said.
The greatest problem faced by
the Commission at the moment,
aside from the complexity of the
law, is the serious shortage of
funds. The original appropriation
for the first year’s operation was
$2,000,000. Later the Bureau of
the Budget granted them permis
sion to spend the sum in nine
months instead.of a year, indicat
ing tacit permission to ask Con
gress for a deficiency appropria
tion. It may be some time before
Congress can vote the funds,
however, and in the meantime
the program must limp along on
curtailed operations.
•
Thou shalt not take vengeance
nor bear any grudge against the
children of thy people, but thou
shalt love thy neighbor as thy
self.
Fannie Hurst Stresses Role
Os Women in Jewish Life
★ ★ *
jgfcjlg
Women have a major responsibility in helping to shape a better
democracy in the United States, Fannie Hurst, distinguished author,
declared at a “Food for Thought” luncheon recently sponsored by
the New York Chapter of the American Jewish Committee. Left
to right are Mrs. Richman Proskauer, secretary of the chapter;
Miss Hurst, and Mrs. Joseph M. Proskauer, wife of the president
of the American Jewish Committee. There are American Jewish
Committee chapters in thirty-five cities throughout the country.
Southeast Synagogue Conference
Elects Steinberg oi Charleston, Pres.
Leon H. Steinberg, of Charleston, S. C., was elected President of
the Southeast Region of the Friends of The Jewish Theological Sem
inary of America at a conference held on Dceember sth, in Savannah,
Georgia. Mr. Steinberg is a prominent leader of his community and
comes from a family which has long been known for its active par
ticipation in Jewish life. He. his father, and grandfather, were
Presidents of a Synagogue in Charleston and now his son is follow
ing in the family tradition and is President of the Junior Congre-
gation of Synagogue Emanu-El.
At the Conference, Mr. Stein
berg called for a strong combin
ed effort on behalf of all com
munities in the Southeast to help
maintain the activities of The
Jewish Theological Seminary of
America. He announced that an
intensive cultural and education
al program will be conducted to
bring a better understanding of
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 17, 1948
the Seminary to each of the sou
thern communities.
Rabbi Bernard Segal was the
guest speaker at the Conference
and gave a very graphic and
comprehensive description of the
Seminary Schools, Institutes, and
associated groups. He informed
the audience that in addition to
(Continued on Page Four)
Florida Conference Held To
Fight Group-Hatred
A call to safeguard the liberties of all religious groups was
sounded by leaders of Florida's Jewish communities at the First
Florida Conference of the Joint Defense Appeal (JDA). last Sunday
in the Roney Plaza Hotel. Miami Beach.
The JDA is the fund-raising
arm of the American Jewish
Committee and the Anti-Defa
mation League of B’nai B’rith,
two national agencies devoted to
combatting bigotry and promot
ing inter-group harmony.
Marking the first state-wide
review of intolerance ever held
here, more than 200 delegates
from all sections of Florida ex-
Wotitzky To Seek
Speaker Pro Tern's
Post in 'sl House
PUNTA GORDA—State Rep
elect Leo Wotitzky, of Charlotte
County, a member of the low
er branch of the State Legislature
for the past five sessions, an
nounces his candidacy for speak
er pro tern of the 1951 session.
Wotitzky graduated from the
University of Florida with a de
gree of Bachelor of Science of
Education. He is a past presi
dent of the Punta Gorda Rotary
Club, a member of the Punta
Gorda Chamber of Commerce,
and is associated in the publish
ing of the Punta Gorda Herald,
a weekly newspaper.
During his 10 years in the Leg
islature, he has served on a num
ber of important committees. This
is the first time he has offered
himself for speaker pro tem.
Moe Cooper, Jacksonville, Fla.:
“I’ve found some exceptionally
interesting material in your
paper, which I could not get from
any other source.”
plored the steps local commun
ities can take to gear their cam
paigns for democratic liberties
with the coordinated program of
the American Jewish Committee
and the Anti-Defamation League.
Declaring that intolerance “en
dangers the foundations of our
democracy”, the conference is
sued a statement calling upon
“all freedom-loving citizens and
agencies” to join in a “determin
ed effort to uproot from Ameri
can life those manifestations of
bigotry and hate destructive of
the freedoms and liberties en
joyed by all Americans.
“The activity of hate cliques
constitute a challenge to the
foundation of freedom and to the
various groups which, together,
constitute our national fabric,”
the parley declared.
Conference co-chairman were
JDA Executive Committee mem
bers Leonard L. Abess of Miami
Beach and Harry W. Reinstine of
Jacksonville.
Max N. Kroloff, Atlanta civic
leader and chairman of the Anti-
Defamation League for B’nai
B’rith District No. 5, in a feature
address declared:
“This period of intensifying
world conflict with totalitarian
ism makes it more urgent than
ever that our democratic free
doms in the United States be not
only safeguarded but extended.
The liberties of Americans can
not be forgotten or over-looked
and attention withdrawn from
them, despite the involvement of
Americans with world problems,”
he said. “In fact the very solu
tion of these international prob
lems - the triumph of demo
cratic ideals and principles in all
the world - cannot in any way
be separated from the very real
issue of the traditional democratic
rights of all Americans. Our re
cord at home is our record a
broad.”
Religious intolerance was flay
ed as a threat to democratic lib
erties by Mr. Abess, who said:
“Every American must look
with concern on this evil in our
society, because it is an attack
on the freedom of every Ameri
can. It is an attack on every
basic idea, principle and tradition
in our American democratic way
of life.”
He warned that the current ef
fort to rehabilitate European
Jewry and to help rebuild Jew
ish life in Israel may be jeopar
dized unless American Jewry
safeguards itself against the anti
democratic forces in this country.
A highlight of the parley’s pro
ceedings was a question and ans
wer period in which conference
delegates discussed local prob
lems and exchanged experiences
of their home communities.
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