Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.3 4.3bsd-beta 6/6/85; site decwrl.DEC.COM Path: utzoo!lsuc!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!bellcore!decvax!decwrl!dec-rhea!dec-elwood!simon From: simon@elwood.DEC (Product Safety 237-3521) Newsgroups: net.religion.jewish Subject: Re: Soviet Jews Message-ID: <565@decwrl.DEC.COM> Date: Sun, 19-Jan-86 14:16:15 EST Article-I.D.: decwrl.565 Posted: Sun Jan 19 14:16:15 1986 Date-Received: Tue, 21-Jan-86 19:46:30 EST Sender: daemon@decwrl.DEC.COM Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation Lines: 89 I also watched the show but there was nothing new for me. I was a refusnik myself for a few years. I grew up in the Soviet Union and left it for the US about five years ago. On the show I saw familiar places, like Moscow synagogue (the only synagogue for about 200 - 300k Jews in Moscow, the exact number is kept secret), even some faces were familiar. Like they said in the show, the Six Day war gave a push to awakening of national self-awareness. Many Jews in Moscow realized that we are no longer the people who were always beaten, abused and killed, but a great nation! From that moment on emigration started. But the process had a drawback. The more Jews were leaving, the worst the government attitude became. "Positive feedback". Foe Jewish kids it became increasingly more difficult to get admitted to colleges, for engineers -- more difficult to find a job, etc. But the crowd at the synagogue at high holidays grew larger and larger every year. The majority of the Jews are non-believers, but they still wanted to come to the only place in the city where they could express their feelings open (for some reasons the police didn't interfere), among thousands who got together. Still there was always some tension because of the police around, both uniformed and plainclothed. The street where the synagogue is located is very narrow, without traffic. I remember one holiday when the traffic police re-routed all the traffic from a major road to this little street to make the crowd disperse. They succeeded, but the presence of Western camera crews forced the police not to do it again -- there was a lot of publicity to this fact on the Voice of America and BBC. The cantor in the synagogue happen to be from the same village as my father. But even without him everybody in Moscow knows that the rabbi cooperates with KGB. The so-called Religious Council -- the governmental agency dealing with religion -- controls by KGB. That's why many Hebrew teachers got jailed -- the study groups always have KGB insiders. The guy whom you saw in the show, standing at the shelf with "4000 books no longer needed" is one of these guy, from the Council, from the KGB. One of the worst things in the USSR regarding anti-Semitism, are these "anti-zionist committees". Except the Jews, nobody there knows what Zionism is. Since there is no other sources of information besides governmental, people truly believe that Zionism is a kind of racism and fascism. They are brainwashed to believe that Israel and Soviet Jews together have a common purpose: To destroy the USSR! In order to reinforce this belief the authority created those committees. You should though keep in mind that people there are not necessarily anti-Semites. I'd like to know what you will do when you are told: "That's your speech, read it in front of the TV cameras. If you refuse, forget about a good job. Forget also about a job at all. And tell your family to do the same". I wonder who have guts to refuse after that. As I said, I also was a refusnik for more then two years. At the time (in 1981) it seemed very long. They fired me from my job the day I applied for exit visas, and not to work there is crime punishable by law, I believe to five years in prison and a few years in exile. I had to work under the table to survive, always under the thread of prosecution, but fortunately I was not caught. Last September my friend left Russia and joined me here in Boston. We applied for emigration the same day. It took him seven years to get out of there. My other friend, who also applied with us, is still there. I can talk for hours about this, and I did it before. Not any more, as a rule. The reason is that mostly people here say that since I hate the Soviet regime, I am biased and my story is not completely true. To try to change that point of view is useless. I don't even try. There are too many "useful idiots" at America's universities who believe and teach others that the Soviet system is not that bad. And when such a talk comes from Harvard or UCLA, there are people who listen to them. There is a lot of talk about South Africa, which is necessary, of course, but there is not much being done about the country where ALL the people are slaves, and the Jews are even worse then that. But for you guys reading this net.group I can answer any question since YOU know what we are talking about. Leo Simon --- Leo B. Simon UUCP ...decvax!decwrl!dec-rhea!dec-elwood!simon Digital Equipment Corp. ARPA simon%elwood.DEC@decwrl.ARPA 333 South St. Shrewsbury MA, 01545 Mail Stop SHR-4/D26 You realize of course that this opinion has nothing to do with that of my employer's.