President Carter called last night for unity between American Blacks and Jews to help bring peace in the Middle East. Speaking extemporaneously at a Democratic party fund-raising dinner here, he referred to the “historic progress toward peace” in the Mideast and declared.
“It is imperative that all of us, in these days especially, American Jews and American Blacks must unite in securing peace and justice in that historically troubled land. This is no time for division. It is no time for criticism. It is a time for searching together for a common ground.”
In another development, the Washington chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the American Jewish Committee issued a joint statement that denounced racial and religious bigotry and urged the re-focussing of concern on unemployment and other local and national problems.
“Even though the problems of the Middle East are real and will ultimately affect us all, the basis for peace anywhere must be here in our community,” the statement said. It added, “We are committed to support the existence of the State of Israel within secure and defensible borders. We also believe in the existence of a homeland for the Palestinian Arabs outside the borders of Israel”
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.