Vol. LXXXIII No. 47 Omaha, NE
Celebrating 83 Years of Service to Nebraska and Western Iowa
5 Av, 5764 July 23, 2004
Protecting Freedom Top Priority at Lincoln Rally by GARY JAVITCH and COLBY RINKER An ADL Special Report We drove to the Nebraska state capitol building a little unsure of what to expect. This was the first hate rally we had ever attended. The Minneapolis based National Socialist Movement (NSM), and the National Alliance (NA) had invited all white patriots to this “unity rally” to be held in Lincoln, NE, on Saturday, July 17. The hate groups, according to their website, promised it would be a “big one.” The assembly had multiple purposes. The leaders wanted to protest the recent killing of University of Nebraska-Lincoln soccer player Jenna Cooper who had been shot and killed by “a Negro.” In addition, they wanted to condemn once again the four-year-old Wichita, KS, murder of four whites by the Carr brothers, two African-Americans. The NSM group felt it should have been labeled a hate crime and should have received more attention because blacks killed whites. The rally’s main reason, we thought, was to provide convicted felon Gary “Gerhard” Lauck, the chief publisher of Nazi propaganda in America, with a forum to protest the actions of a Lancaster County prosecutor who had filed charges against him. Even though he had beaten the charge, Lauck maintained that his free speech rights were violated.
As we approached the steps to the capitol building, we saw signs containing information for rally attendees. The message: The capitol building was closed for the day. Speakers were going to talk from the steps of the north side of the capitol. Supporters of the NSM and NA were invited to enter staging areas labeled “PRO”. Protesters were provided an equal space in a section labeled “ANTI”. Anyone entering either area would be required to pass through a metal detector. When we finally reached the front of the capitol, we observed that the entire landing below the capitol steps was set aside for media. The steps below the landing that lead to the street were blocked off. Directly in front of us, we saw three cordoned areas set up in the street. The sections were surrounded by police, metal barriers and a fence. The right section was for the hate-group supporters of the NSM and NA. An equal sized counter-protest area was set up to the left. In between the barriers, a rectangular area 50 feet wide separated the two groups and served as a “no man’s land”. Tension began to fill the air just before the rally’s scheduled start time. The shouting began also as the crowd started to move into their respective staging areas. About 50 people entered the “ANTI” section; this included three people wearing sleeveless, fluorescent jackets emblazoned with “Legal Observer” on their Continued on page 11
Lincolnite David Howard quietly protested against the Nazis and KKKers who held a rally on the steps of the Capitol.
Lines Busy, but Hadassah Pushes Stem Cell Case with White House by MATTHEW E. BERGER first, calling the White WASHINGTON (JTA)-House on a the speakerHadassah members are phone as members listrying to get their mestened on. She began to sage on stem cell make her case to a White research to the White House operator before House--all at once. being transferred to a Members of the comment line. women’s Zionist group Using cell phones, the swamped White House membership then began phone lines last week as to call en masse. Many of their national convention them received busy sigopened in Phoenix, AZ, nals or could not competitioning President plete their calls from the Bush to reverse his posiballroom. tion on stem cell Hadassah sees itself as Hadassah President June Walker research. Hadassah says the premier supporter of calls the White House on a speakexpanding the use of stem cell research, foser-phone to petition President stem cells in medical tered by the work of Bush to reverse his position on research could provide Hadassah hospitals in stem cell research, during the new treatments and cures Israel, which have chamgroup's annual convention in for deadly diseases. pioned research in that Phoenix, July 13. Credit: Hadassah Bush allowed research area and which co-own using existing stem cell lines from 2001, several stem cell lines. but few of those lines are still viable Researchers at Hadassah hospitals today. Stem cells are extracted from recently found that the use of stem cells embryos and can be manipulated to cre- alleviated Parkinson's disease in rats. ate various human blood and tissue cells. The group is rolling out a national eduThe lines are cell groups extracted from cation campaign for its members, embryos, and are capable of reproduc- explaining the religious issues in stem ing themselves. cell research and suggesting tools to No further lines are available for use bring the issue to legislators. under current administration policy. The group also is looking to get sup“What President Bush knew and what port for stem cell research from states, scientists knew in 2001 is a lot different planning a day in March 2005 in which from what we know now,” said Marla Hadassah members will march on all 50 Gilson, Hadassah’s Washington repre- state capitals, urging state legislators to sentative. “It’s time to allow new lines to pass pro-stem cell legislation. be formed and those lines to be formed Jewish groups largely support stem cell with federal funding.” research, and they have been working To make their voices heard, about with like-minded organizations to urge its 1,500 Hadassah members all tried to call expanded use. Jewish ethicists largely have the White House at the same time during concluded that Jewish tradition allows their conference in Phoenix. embryos to be destroyed if the research Hadassah President June Walker went has the potential to benefit society.
Inside
White House spokesman Scott McClellan said Tuesday that Bush is strongly committed to advancing medical research and combating disease. “He also believes strongly that while we should explore the promise of stem cell research, we should do so in a way that doesn't cross a certain moral line,” McClellan said. One administration official said the White House had contacted Hadassah more than a month ago to offer a repre-
UNMC Researcher Responds to NIH Request for Proposals to use Human Embryonic Stem Cell Lines by TOM O'CONNOR UNMC Public Affairs Department A University of Nebraska Medical Center faculty member, Stephen Rennard, M.D., Larson Professor of Pulmonary Medicine, in response to a request from the National Institutes of Health, has applied for a grant to study emphysema that, if funded, would use two of the human embryonic stem cell lines approved by President Bush. Dr. Rennard has spent his career studying lung diseases, such as asthma and emphysema and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). COPD affects 20 million Americans and is the fourth leading cause of death, killing 120,000 people each year. While smoking Dr. Stephen Rennard is a major cause of COPD, non-smokers are also afflicted. His recent application builds on a current grant in which he uses a mouse model to study how lung tissue repairs itself. He has found that the cells responsible for healing appear to be abnormal in lungs with emphysema and COPD. He theorizes that if one could infuse stem cells, those cells could grow new tissue. Before this research may be conducted it must be approved by UNMC’s Institutional Review Board, the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee and an internal scientific review panel as required in the recommendations for Human Stem Cell Research developed by the University of Nebraska Bioethics Advisory Committee. According to Thomas Rosenquist, Ph.D., vice chancellor for research at UNMC, this would be the first time UNMC researchers have proposed using federally approved human embryonic stem cells. “The National Institutes of Health has issued a call to currently funded researchers to submit projects that could utilize the Bush-approved embryonic stem cells lines,” he said. “While we hope that this project is funded, at this time we have not heard that it is.” (Editor’s note: UN Board of Regents member Randy Ferlic has announced his opposition, but a UNMC spokesman has said it will continue to pursue this project.)
This Week: Where Are They Now?: Page 2-3 Jewish Federation’s Community Connection: Page 3
sentative to speak at their conference but was rebuffed. Shelley Klein, Hadassah’s director of advocacy, said she believed the phone campaign was a productive way to get the group’s message across. “There’s nothing more productive than grass-roots efforts,” she said. “As an organization, its important to let President Bush know how many people care about this issue.”
Few Clues, 10 Years After Panana City Bombing: Page 5
Coming Next Month: Simchas Issue on Aug. 6 Friedman Foundation Matches Iowa West Gift to NJHS: Page 7
America Decides 2004-Democratic Convention Opens: Page 12