The city’s largest department store, the May Company, was picketed yesterday by more than 200 students protesting its selling of Russian vodka, caviar and furs and its giving floor space to a travel agency selling tours to the Soviet Union. The demonstration was coordinated by the Southern California Council for Soviet Jews and the California Students for Soviet Jews. Zev Yaroslavsky, chairman of the SCCSJ, said the demonstrators had “exposed (May’s) complicity with the Soviets’ oppression of Jews” and “we intend to see to it that Americans stop spending American dollars in the Fascists’ dictatorial Soviet Union.” He added that there was “an excellent possibility that May Company will take all Soviet goods off their shelves and will evict the travel agency involved in selling tours to the USSR.” But he added: “If they don’t make any concessions then we will make hell for May Company.” Si Frumkin, chairman of the CSSJ, declared: “We will be back again not only at May Company but at any other department store or travel agency which deals economically with the Soviet Union.” The two demonstrating groups are affiliated with the Union of Councils for Soviet Jews.
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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.