American Jews Urged to Oppose ‘religious Coercion’ in Israel

An appeal to American Jews to oppose “religious coercion” in Israel was issued here today by the American Friends of Religious Freedom in Israel. The statement declared that religious coercion places Israel in the position of “emulating our oppressors, of mocking the efforts of Jews everywhere on behalf of human rights, and of reneging on its national and international commitments. “

Friends of Israel in the United States are asked to prevail upon Israel’s public officials to see that “all vestiges of religious coercion must be eradicated from Israel’s laws and institutions. ” Officers of the organization include the Reconstructionist leader, Rabbi Ira Eisenstein; Prof. Horace Kallen, of the New School for Social Research; and Shlomo Kates, editor of “Midstream.”