Regarding the anti-Semitic Easter ad
In the Book of Proverbs we read: “A friend’s love is for all times.”
The Eureka Times-Standard and its predecessors Humboldt Times and Humboldt Standard have been good friends to the Jewish community of Humboldt County for nearly three-quarters of a century. Despite the offensive ad with anti-Semitic innuendo, this long friendship is stronger than ever. I thank publisher John Richmond for taking swift action when he realized there was something very wrong with what the paper printed on Easter Sunday and the two days before. John called me Monday morning to seek my counsel. I was touched by his sincere regret and eagerness to make amends. The same goes for Jim Gleim, Vice President and Group Publisher for the organization that runs the Times-Standard and six other papers. Thanks also to editor Marc Valles for his support.
I understand why our paper and others missed the problem. The advertisement’s cover pages were attractive with a heartfelt Christian message. But the interior pages portrayed Jewish leaders of Jesus’ time as murderers while the Romans appeared benign — a gross distortion! Historians estimate that tens or even hundreds of thousands of people were crucified by the Romans over 500 years.
On Tuesday I took part in a video conference with Governor Newsom. I typed in a question: Was the governor’s office aware of anti-Semitic ads in the Times-Standard, Sacramento Bee and other papers, and what can we do to prevent scapegoating and violence against religious and ethnic minorities in this time of crisis? To my surprise, the Zoom host called on me to deliver the question in person and I found myself speaking directly to the governor! His office had not yet heard about the ads. He expressed his concern and said, “We’ll address that head on.” Right after the conference his staff contacted me.
We’re all living through a time of unprecedented uncertainty and hardship. But let’s count our blessings:
We have intelligent, highly principled management of our longtime local newspaper.
We have a governor who cares deeply about all Californians including minority groups.
We have a free press that operates without government censorship.
We have freedom of religion and protection from religious harassment.
We have freedom of speech, ensuring that dangerous opinions and misinformation can be refuted.
In the spirit of our beautiful spring holidays, let’s be thankful and kind. This week our Muslim friends will begin the month-long sun-up to sun-down fast of Ramadan. Let’s wish them strength and health. Let’s hope that the great danger of the virus will “pass over” by the time our Native friends gather for their summer dances.
At the close of our phone call, publisher John Richmond said to me, “Rabbi, I hope we’ll meet soon in person and I can shake your hand.” I laughed and replied, “The way things are going, it won’t be soon, and we probably won’t be shaking hands, but we’ll certainly meet someday.” It will be a meeting of friends.