(04/14/2000)

James D. Besser - Washington Correspondent

Celebrating Dr. King

A black-Jewish event on Capitol Hill marking the 32nd anniversary of the murder of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. may have opened up more doors between the two communities than its planners expected.

Last week’s event, sponsored by the Foundation for Ethnic Understanding, attracted some 20 members of Congress. Honored for their contributions to black-Jewish understanding were Rep. Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-Texas).

At the end of the program, a cell phone rang that belongs to Israel Singer, a top official with the World Jewish Congress. On the other end was Avraham Burg, the speaker of the Knesset, who asked to speak to Rep. Jackson-Lee.

In a bit of political theater worthy of the Rayburn House Office Building, Burg then invited the black lawmaker to come to Israel and meet with Knesset members to discuss ways to enhance black-Jewish relations.

Rabbi Marc Schneier, the founder and president of the Foundation for Ethnic Understanding, and the author of a recent book about Martin Luther King and the Jews, insisted the call was unexpected, but said that it neatly underscored the theme of last week’s event.

“It is very significant that black and Jewish members chose to commemorate Dr. King’s advocacy together,” he said. “We remember his involvement in the plight of Soviet Jews, his rejection of anti-Semitism. It’s a bond between the two communities that’s important to note and to celebrate.”

The commemoration, he said, recalled Dr. King’s legacy “not just for the civil rights of blacks, but the human rights of Jews.”

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