Page 20 Tne.Jeu.sn ^nau.n and Shofar of Greater HoUyu^ Columnist's Writing is Called Irresponsible EDITOR. The Jewish Floridian: I am writing in response to Leo Mindlin's article, "Sadat and ERA: Study in Irony," which appeared in the Feb. 10 issue of The Jewish Floridian and Shofar of Greater Hollywood. Not only are his subject matter and main points contrived and tenuous, but several statements and con- clusions appear to be off the cuff and entirely irresponsible. If not backed up by further evidence they should be retracted. Except for the coincidence that they occurred on the same week- end. Sadat's visit to Jerusalem and the 1WY conference in Hous- ton had nothing more in common than any other two events that happened that weekend. Support Let Thy Words He Uriel' Kohvleth tEcclesiastesI for or opposition to Sadat's sub- sequent peace moves and the progress <>t the Equal Rights Vmendtnent are in no way com- parable. Half a million Orthodox Jews in this country oppose the ERA. Does that make them anti-Israel or right-wing extremists? Non- sense. Likewise, there are mil- lions of decent non-Jewish Amer- icans who oppose the ERA but whose support for and good will toward Israel are gratefully ap- preciated. To link those people with the Nazis is not only para- noid but disrespectful and da- maging to Israel's cause. ALTHOUGH I am personally in favor of passage of the ERA, I have never deemed that a prere- quisite for being a Zionist. In fact, I worried over the possibili- ty that it would be the pro-ERA forces at the Houston convention that would present and pass an anti-Zionism resolution. I am proud that the pro-ERA dele- gates resisted any pressures from within their various factions to do so. As for Mindlin's assertion that the anti-ERA people were push- ing a "Zionism equals racism" resolution, I find that hard to be- lieve as I saw no mention of this fact in any respected publication or in the mass media. I wish he would cite a source for this state- ment and also for his comment that anti-Semitic signs abounded Mayor Joins 'Hunger Strike' For Sharansky Mayor David Keating of Hol- lywood, members of the Commu- nity Relations Committee of the Jewish Federation of South Broward and community leaders were among the more than 500 South Florida residents partici- pating in a "hunger strike" Wednesday. March 15 to comme- morate the first anniversary of the arrest of Anatoly Sharansky. Sharansky is the Russian dis- sident who has been held in pri- son for allegedly conspiring with the CIA. President Carter has stated that Sharansky was not connected with the CIA, yet the Soviets have not released Sha- ransky. The names of all persons parti- cipating in the hunger strike were entered into a book and presented to Mrs. Sharansky with the hopes that some day, she will be able to present it to her husband. at the Houston conference. I do realize that there are ex- treme right-wing elements and Nazis who identify and play a role in the anti-ERA movement. But we must also remember that there are Communists, Trotsky- ists and Maoists who are active in the pro-ERA drive for ratifica- tion and we know what their atti- tude toward Israel and Zionism THEY ONLY use an issue, in this case the ERA. inasmuch as it fits their own sectarian cause I|i BANK OF HALLANDALE AND TRUST COMPANY WITH TWO LOCATIONS TO SERVE YOU -ANDAI F VV/ HALLANDALE 801 East Hallandale Beach Blvd Broward 457-7501 Dade 949-4111 PEMBROKE PLAZA 5906 Pembroke Rd at 441 981-7501 and 981-7502 WE'VE GOT THE WHOLE TREASURY BEHIND US!