Reflections on Copenhagen

There I was--a middle class, middle aged, Jewish woman from middle America. I was standing at a floor microphone in the front of a large auditorium in Copenhagen. Through my splitting headache, I could hear my husband's parting words echoing in my head. "You're playing in the big leagues. Don't make yourself conspicuous." With my heart in my mouth, I proceeded to challenge the presentation at the PLO press conference. The situation was so horrifying that we found it necessary to organize a Jewish Women's Caucus to attempt to counter some of the attacks. We elected a steering committee, planned strategy and assigned women to attend workshops as a sort of a truth squad prepared to speak when necessary, and when possible, to set the record straight on the meaning of Zionism, the role of Israel and the role of the United States in the contemporary world. As Secretary of the Steering Committee, I worked with Jewish women from Israel, England, Holland, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, Argentina, Canada, France, Italy, Uruguay and Denmark. They, together with some supportive American groups and the wonderful community of Copenhagen, provided us with the emotional support we needed to endure the eighteen days.