Rabbi Gilbert Klaperman, president of the New York Board of Rabbis, charged in a Yom Kippur message to his congregation in Lawrence, L.I. that some people in important positions were insensitive to the dangers of anti-Semitism. Rabbi Klaperman referred to the case of John F. Hatchett, the controversial Negro teacher appointed director of New York University’s new Martin Luther King Jr. Afro-American Student Center, who has been called an anti-Semite by some Jewish groups because of an article he wrote criticizing Jewish school teachers in the New York public school system.
"For president James Hester of New York University to countenance the appointment of a man who has written so hatefully about Jews and to stand by the appointment after being told the facts about Hatchett, is an affront to the Jewish community that has supported New York University so generously throughout the years," Rabbi Klaperman said. "It also underscores the insensitivity of even important people to the dangers of anti-Semitism," he added.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
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.
