Democrats and ‘Jewish Patch’

I pondered over the idea of publicly criticizing Hier’s column. Somehow it seemed like parading the family laundry for all to see. But then I decided that I would be doing myself and the rest of the Jewish community who agree with me an injustice if I didn’t set the record straight. I do not want Rabbi Hier to speak for me.

He suggests that “fear grips American Jewry--a fear that Jackson’s forces have become a decisive major group in the Democratic Party. . . .” I have no such fear of Jesse Jackson. Who can fear a man who wants homes for the homeless, food for the hungry, a more equitable tax structure, no first strike, and a state for the Palestinians? Rather than feared, he should be listened to and applauded.

There are many Jews, here and in Israel, who feel that a Palestinian state is the only solution to the crisis in the Middle East. Some accommodation must be made, on both sides. If not, there will be no Israel. Such intransigence is disastrous. So, Rabbi Hier, in the future, when you speak . . . speak for yourself!

MARJORIE L. SCHWARTZ

Los Angeles