Jewish Post, Indianapolis, Marion County, 15 January 1960 — Page 7

January 15, I960

The National Jewish POST and OPINION

Fight Over Shehitq Waxes Hot

HUMANE SOCIETY CHAKD

SM liBSK IS. JESS

]By ALFRED K. ALLAN ‘new YORK (P-O) — The Humane Society of the United States denied this week charges that it was seeking to divide the U. S. Jewish community in order to secure support for its humane slaughter laws. (In Canada, the shackling of animals prior to shehita, considered an essential part of the Jewish procedure, has been prohibited b}' a ruling issued this week.) REACHED by phone at his Washington, D. C. office Fred Myers, the director of the society, denied categorically that his organization was trying to cause a division in the Jewish community and said further: *T know many Jews who sup port the idea of state humane slaughter laws. I have conferred privately with many individual Jews and with a number of leaders of Jewish organizations and they have told me that they support the laws but they don’t want to came out publicly in this way because they want the Jewish community to be united on this matter. Therefore, Reform Jews have been giving lip service to those Orthodox who are opposing the laws.”

THE CHARGE against the society was made by Jules Cohen, secretary of the joint advisory committee of the Synagogue Council of America and the National Community Relations Advisory Council, who said that the

society is “attempting to set Reform and Conservative Jews against Orthodox Jews by saying that only a few Orthodox Jews are opposed to humane slaughter laws and by calling for other Jews to come out for the laws.” Cohen’s committee is currently in an extensive research study (P-O, July 31, ’59) to find the most humane slaughter method possible. This study is backed by all segments of Judaism. Asked to name some of the individual Jews and Jewish leaders who have indicated to him that they support state humane slaughter laws, Myers demurred. “I don’t want to violate a confidence by naming them at this time. I hope that they will eventually speak out publicly on this matter on their own and give their true feelings.” COHEN TOLD The POST and OPINION that “organizations representing all segments of Judaism are opposed to enactment of any state humane slaughter laws at the present time, at least until our study is completed and until the federal humane slaughter law has a full chance to be tried.” Five states presently have humane slaughter laws (California, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Wyoming and Wisconsin). The humane society is pressing for iiie adoption of a uniform humane slaughter law in the 10 states that hold legislative sessions this year. AT HEARINGS held recently

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in Trenton N. J., on a humane slaughter law for that state, representatives of a number of Jewish groups urged defeat of the bill. Orthodox rabbis expressed fear that such a law might lead to a banning of Shehita itself, pointing out that in Europe the first attacks on Jews were in the form of humane slaughter, anti-shehita laws. “These rabbis have a phobia about this,” Myers declared. “The laws all state that Shehita i s humane. Thei'e is nothing to fear at all.” At the New Jersey hearings Mrs. Madeleine Thompson, secretary of the Animal Welfare Association of Camden County. N. J., declared that, “there are thousands of us in New Jersey who do not wish to be converted to Judaism and the requirements to eat only kosher meals.” ASSEMBLYMAN Stolowski admonished Mrs Thompson for her remark saying that it was “out of order.” He asserted that those Jews opposing the law “are not interested in having everyone use their method of slaughtering.” A number of Jewish lay people are members and officials of the society’s New Jersey branch. Milton Erlanger, a director at the branch, told this reporter, “As a Jew myself, I. as well as my organization, want to do nothing that will in any way harm Jewish ritual slaughter. We certainly consider shehita as humane and we have said so puolicly many times. It is the shackling and hoisting of the animals before slaughter that we consider inhumane. The Talmud and the Tora both forbid cruelty to animals and shackling and hoisting is cruel and should be stopped. Those Jews who are fighting against these laws just aren’t acting right and are hurting themselves and causing resentment against Jews throughout the country.” JEWISH GROUPS opposing the laws explain that they cannot confirm or deny that shackling and hoisting causes pain and dis-

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