20 New York Congressmen Condemn Soviet Discrimination Against Jews

Twenty New York Democratic members of Congress adopted a resolution today condemning discrimination by the Soviet Union against Jews in USSR. The resolution, introduced by Democratic Congressman John J. Rooney, also urged favorable reporting to the House on it by the Committee on Foreign Affairs.

In an extension of remarks appearing in the Congressional Record, representative Seymour Halpern, Republican of New York, once again asked Congress to take note of “the subtle, yet monstrous, discrimination against the Jewish people in the Soviet Union.”

“The Soviet Government is cloaking its anti-Jewish policy by allowing academic groups to promote discrimination in its stead,” Rep. Halpern stated. “The Kremlin does not want the West to believe that it is anti-Jewish. The rulers subtly permit so-called private organizations and groups to apply the pressure so officialdom will not be labelled with the fact.

“Our Government must seek to secure equality of treatment for the Jewish people of Russia,” the New York congressman continued. “We must seek to end the discrimination against them. We cannot succeed by remaining oblivious to the manifold evidence of ill-treatment which is accumulating. We should utilize all the diplomatic instrumentalities at our command, and work actively through the United Nations to obtain reversal of the ominous trends of Soviet anti-Semitism.”

A call for the U.S. Government to take the lead in exposing Russia’s campaign of anti-Semitism to “world condemnation” was made last night by Sen. Kenneth B. Keating in New York, in a speech before 1, 000 at the annual Purim Festival of the Council of the Religious Zionists of America. The Senator also criticized the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for not holding hearings on a resolution condemning the Soviet drive against those of Jewish faith.