Image of Jews As Economically Successful Contrasted with Their Stark Poverty

Evelyn Peters, Chief Consultant on Day Care for the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, speaking today said on the WNYC “New York Tomorrow” program, the image of Jews as all being economically successful clashed with reality. “There are still many thousands of Jews overseas where the father earns no more than one dollar a day,” she declared. As a result, she continued, in many areas of the world Jewish philanthropic agencies must continue and enlarge their programs, especially in child care. In North Africa, she observed, there are still 55,000 Jews in Tunisia and Morocco, with 1,000 children in JDC Day Care centers. She explained that adult Jews in North Africa see no future for themselves in these countries and most look forward to emigration to Israel. Miss Peters described the adjustment problems faced by North African Jews who had migrate to France, explaining that some difficulties have been encountered because of the ultra-traditional attitudes of some of these people. She was interviewed on the program by Irving M. Levine. Director of Urban Projects of the American Jewish Committee.