Session: 123456789101112131415161718         Page 133134135136137138139140141142143144145146147148149150151152153154155156157158159160161162163164 of 617

more direct position denouncing these anti-Israel statements made by those who had come before the panel, because he is supportive of Israel but did not take an active role in defending the position of support of Israel, which is normally a Democratic party plank.

I must say that I was very distressed by the fact that the Democratic plank coming out of the convention was not as strong on Israel as it normally was, and it's because the militant activists, mostly black, had seized control of the discussion process in that panel, and very few people were willing to take them on. That's our problem. We all cave in if a guy gets up and he happens to be black, people are very leery about taking them on directly. Let him say something that's anti-Semitic, you say to yourself: “Well, I don't know. Does he really understand what he's saying?” It's a kind of pandering operation.

What else is there that you got involved in so far as civil rights go, since that time?

Well, let me go a little bit back before that time. I enjoy the fact that in 1962 -- I think it was -- Howard Johnson's in the Village at that time did not have an integrated waiter force in the restaurant. The waiters were white or those behind the counter were white -- I can't remember which -- but whatever they considered to be the better jobs were white. The blacks were complaining about it, and I went down and had meetings with