‘Unsung Death’ of Alex Odeh

Geyelin’s column was a refreshing contribution toward sanity and fairness, especially in the light (or, better, the dark) of current hatred and violence connected with the Israeli/U.S. Administration/Palestinian struggle.

Bigotry against Jews is odious. Bigotry against Semitic Arabs is equally odious. In our day such bigotry is translated into--indeed, virtually becomes the justification for--the bombing of scores of Palestinians and Tunisians in early October, the U.S. battleship New Jersey shelling of hundreds of Lebanese victims a couple years ago, and the ghastly Israeli operation in Lebanon in 1982 that killed thousands of Palestinians and Lebanese, an estimated 85% of which were civilians. Curiously, these actions against relatively defenseless people manage to elude the label “terrorism.”

Alex Odeh fought against such bigotry. He was an intelligent, reasonable, gentle man. He reached out to those with different, even opposing views. He helped caricature-prone Arab-Americans feel proud of their considerably great heritage. He was proud to be an American citizen, and photos of President Reagan, Gov. George Deukmejian, Jesse Jackson and George McGovern lined his office walls. A Christian, he honored and was honored by the Muslim community. And he looked for the day for a free Palestine that would neither threaten nor be threatened by its neighbors.

DARREL MEYERS

Long Beach