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In the 1960s I went to health centers and recreation places every year: twice in Kharkov, twice in a health center in Western Ukraine and a few times in Odessa. I turned 60 in 1968. I was of the retirement age then, but I continued to work.
Alfred had an infarction when he was a third-year student at the Technological College. This happened in 1967. He was not allowed to work at the railroad. I don’t remember the name of this office. He worked there until 1975.
In the 1960s my brother Dodik had to submit a letter of resignation from his position as chairman of the kolkhoz since he didn’t have any agricultural education. His replacement was a young agronomist. Dodik worked as assistant agronomist for some time, but later they sold their house in the village and were going to move to Odessa. They bought a house in Odessa, but Dodik was severely ill already. He died of cancer in 1970. He was buried in the Jewish cemetery in Odessa. As a communist he was buried in a red casket. [Editor’s note: In USSR sometimes people arranged the funeral in such a way.]
In the 1970s many Jews were moving to their historical motherland Israel. I sympathized with them. There was negative attitude towards those who decided to move. There was a common point of view that they received education here and it was not loyal of them to leave. Those who worked in an office or enterprise were fired immediately.
They also demanded to have their apartments repaired before leaving. There were terrible attitudes. I remember my colleagues saying, ‘They got complete education here and now they leave.’ I spoke my mind and said that if they had had a possibility the Russians would have moved as well. Actually, it was what happened. Once I talked with a taxi driver and he said that if they opened the border 90 percent of the Russians would leave the country. And that’s what actually what happened later.
My stepson said seeing a relative leaving at the railway station, ‘Look, Papa, they are Zionists, if it were for me I would shoot them all.’ I argued with him explaining who Zionists were. I knew from my childhood that Zionists wanted all Jews to come to live in Palestine. Zionists were harmless. They didn’t blast trains, and they didn’t do any harm to communists, while the communist propaganda condemned Zionists. Communists said that Zionists were bandits.
Alfred had an infarction when he was a third-year student at the Technological College. This happened in 1967. He was not allowed to work at the railroad. I don’t remember the name of this office. He worked there until 1975.
In the 1960s my brother Dodik had to submit a letter of resignation from his position as chairman of the kolkhoz since he didn’t have any agricultural education. His replacement was a young agronomist. Dodik worked as assistant agronomist for some time, but later they sold their house in the village and were going to move to Odessa. They bought a house in Odessa, but Dodik was severely ill already. He died of cancer in 1970. He was buried in the Jewish cemetery in Odessa. As a communist he was buried in a red casket. [Editor’s note: In USSR sometimes people arranged the funeral in such a way.]
In the 1970s many Jews were moving to their historical motherland Israel. I sympathized with them. There was negative attitude towards those who decided to move. There was a common point of view that they received education here and it was not loyal of them to leave. Those who worked in an office or enterprise were fired immediately.
They also demanded to have their apartments repaired before leaving. There were terrible attitudes. I remember my colleagues saying, ‘They got complete education here and now they leave.’ I spoke my mind and said that if they had had a possibility the Russians would have moved as well. Actually, it was what happened. Once I talked with a taxi driver and he said that if they opened the border 90 percent of the Russians would leave the country. And that’s what actually what happened later.
My stepson said seeing a relative leaving at the railway station, ‘Look, Papa, they are Zionists, if it were for me I would shoot them all.’ I argued with him explaining who Zionists were. I knew from my childhood that Zionists wanted all Jews to come to live in Palestine. Zionists were harmless. They didn’t blast trains, and they didn’t do any harm to communists, while the communist propaganda condemned Zionists. Communists said that Zionists were bandits.
Location
Ukraine
Interview
Isaac Klinger