LETTERS TO THE EDITOR (09/21/97)

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

AJC board members comment on columns

Dear Editor:

We are participants in a Ukrainian-Jewish dialogue that has flourished in Philadelphia since 1993. We believe that the group has generated important and tangible accomplishments, as well as an extraordinary level of reciprocal friendship and goodwill. We read your excellent publication regularly, which we find an asset for our group's work. Our good feeling about The Ukrainian Weekly is marred, however, by the writings of your columnist Myron Kuropas.

Dr. Kuropas seems to have a problem with Jews. By our count, since late 1994, half of his columns have made strong negative statements or insinuations about individual Jews, the state of Israel or the Jewish people. Many of those columns have addressed entirely Jewish-related topics. In fact, Dr. Kuropas appears to devote at least as much attention to castigating Jews as he does to castigating Russia and the ruthless Soviet regime.

The most scandalous of Dr. Kuropas' columns have included those on October 30, 1994, November 13, 1994, and April 23, 1995, which insinuated that a Jewish cabal (including our organization, the American Jewish Committee) had instigated the CBS "60 Minutes" report on anti-Semitism in Ukraine; and the one on June 8, which vilified Jewish participation in 1960s American radicalism as part of a "Jewish attachment to communism."

We are deeply disturbed by Dr. Kuropas' obsession with these matters. Are there no more important crusades for Dr. Kuropas to fight? And what is the crusade here anyway - to incite Ukrainian American hatred against Jews? Can Dr. Kuropas not acknowledge even once that several Jews in Congress today are among that body's leading supporters of Ukraine? That Jews have been far more numerous representatives of the causes of free enterprise, anti-communism and universal human rights than they have been of extreme left-wing positions? That only a small fraction of Soviet Jews were committed Bolsheviks and Stalinists, and only a small fraction of American Jews have been left-wing radicals? That these persons never acted in the name of the Jewish people, but indeed almost universally rejected their Jewish heritage and identity? That the Ukrainian government views the state of Israel favorably and seeks to expand its relations with that country? That the American Jewish Committee itself undertook extraordinary measures in criticizing CBS and urging it to produce an unbiased sequel to the "60 Minutes" piece?

In sum, whatever his purported goals, Dr. Kuropas does no credit to the Ukrainian people today. He appears to be entirely out of touch with the prevailing views in Ukraine and among Ukrainian Americans of good will - our partners in seeking to write a new and promising chapter in relations between Ukrainians and the Jewish people.

Michael Slotznick
Leonard Grossman
Philadelphia

Michael Slotznick and Leonard Grossman are members of the board of directors of the Philadelphia Chapter of the American Jewish Committee.

Air Ukraine problems not isolated incident

Dear Editor:

Andrea Skrypka's difficulties with Air Ukraine, as described in your August 10 issue, are not an isolated incident.

Upon our arrival at the Air Ukraine counter at New York's JFK Airport on May 17, 1996, we were informed by two of their employees that our names were not on the passenger list because the travel agency that made our arrangements failed to make reservations for us. Hence, according to the same employees, we were confronted with an option of either paying an additional $150 per person to "upgrade" our seating or taking a chance on stand-by basis. This did not seem like a viable choice for three people more than a thousand miles from home, so out came $450, with an understanding on our part that the travel agency would take corrective measures later. We all know that mistakes do happen, of course, as we are equally aware that there is such a thing as good faith in business ethics.

The script for what happened later could have been written by Edgar Allan Poe. The president of the travel agency, a reputable establishment, called me at home on the day she received my written inquiry. According to her verbal and written claims, confirmation of our reservation number NE68C was made on March 22, 1996, by "Ms. Alla," four days sooner than required. This telephone call to me was soon followed by a written inquiry to Air Ukraine on my behalf.

Since this bizarre incident began more than a year ago, Air Ukraine has received no less than seven letters from no less than four sources in regard to this matter. But there has not been a single word of reply to any of them, and telephone calls are equally futile. As a result, a month or so ago I handed this matter over to a U.S. senator and a U.S. representative from Missouri. At this point, however, common decency is the only thing that prevents me from expressing my true feelings in more colorful language.

So my advice for the traveler is to beware, especially if he/she is not from the New York area. Have all your documentation with you, including all dates and numbers, and scream on the spot if anything seems out of the ordinary. I wish someone would have advised me to do that a year ago. Remember, it never bothers a wolf that there are a hundred sheep out there.

Peter Yaremko
Cape Girardeau, Mo.

Note from the editor:

The Ukrainian Weekly welcomes letters to the editor and commentaries on a variety of topics of concern to the Ukrainian American and Ukrainian Canadian communities. Opinions expressed by columnists, commentators and letter-writers are their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of either The Weekly editorial staff or its publisher, the Ukrainian National Association.

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