Close to 2000 Soviet Jewish immigrants were received by NYANA, the New York Association for New Americans, during the first nine months of 1976, it was reported by Dr. Herbert Bernstein, executive director of the agency. “The third quarter of the year saw the heaviest concentration of new arrivals in the entire history of NYANA.” Dr. Bernstein stated. “If our current projection holds up, we will have accepted some 3000 new combers during 1976.”
This would bring the total number of Soviet Jewish immigrants resettled by NYANA, a beneficiary agency of national United Jewish Appeal and the UJA-Federation of Jewish Philanthropies Joint Campaign in New York, to over 8000 individuals by the end of the year.
“The significance of this lies in the fact that NYANA continues to carry on its traditional role entrusted to it by the Jewish community.” Bernstein commented. “NYANA was created in 1949 as a part of the UJA and given an historic mandate: to welcome and give initial assistance to all needy Jewish immigrants settling in the Greater New York area, no matter where they came from.”
REUNIFICATION WITH RELATIVES
NYANA’s first contact with the new immigrants is not overseas, but when they first set foot on U.S. soil. Bernstein emphasized. Their choice as to the country of resettlement–a free choice, made for a variety of reasons–is made prior to their arrival here.
From the beginning, one of the reasons for choosing the U.S. has been reunification with relatives. And, as more and more Soviet Jews now have relatives who settled here, this reason, according to Bernstein, is becoming an ever-increasing factor in making that choice. One indication of the increase has been the proportion of new arrivals whom NYANA has to initially put up in hotels.
Several years ago, when Soviet Jews first began to arrive in this country in significant numbers only about one-third, among those settling in New York, were received by relatives. Two-thirds of the newcomers had no relatives and were therefore temporarily settled in modest-priced hotels with cooking facilities, until the agency could help them locate suitable housing.
During 1976 the proportion has reversed, if not more. At least two-thirds of the newcomers are now received by relatives, so that for those cases, at least the hotel costs are eliminated. The agency is also stressing the principle of increased family responsibility in assuming, within their capabilities, initial maintenance costs for new arrivals. “Nevertheless, the main burden still falls on NYANA,” Bernstein stated.
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