Arab Discrimination Againt Jews May Hinder P.B.H. Project Jarba

Phillips Brooks House is awaiting the report of a CARE representative now in Jordan before deciding whether Project Jarba will go on if Jews are excluded from participation.

Jointly sponsored by PBH and CARE, Project Jarba is a program which will send 20 or 30 students to Jordan this summer to help resettle displaced Bedouins.

Richard Reuter, executive director of CARE, told PBH last week that the Jordanian government "wants our help badly enough to accept Jews," according to Mary R. Taylor '62, PBH president. However, a definite decision by PBH will wait until more is known about Jordan's policy on admitting Jews into the country and protecting them while they are there. The report from the CARE representative is due at the end of this month.

Monro Rejects Discrimination

Dean Monro, a member of the Faculty advisory committee of PBH, said yesterday he "would not be in favor of a project that involves discrimination of any kind."

The Peace Corps expressly forbids discrimination in the selection of its volunteers, Monro noted, and the same principle should be observed here. He also observed that CARE and the United Nations "are working where there is no discrimination," and projects in these areas would "be much more in the spirit of PBH."

Delmar Leighton, chairman of the advisory committee, called it a "sticky situation," and said that his group would have to discuss the project further in the event that no Jewish students would be permitted in Jordan.

"It is a very difficult decision. I am opposed to discrimination, but it is a job that needs to be done," said Leighton.

As with the Faculty committee, the PBH cabinet will have to reconsider and vote on the advisability of continuing the project if Jews are excluded, Miss Taylor said.

She noted, however, that a primary cause of tension between Israel and its Arab neighbors is the chronic refuges problem, which is exactly what Project Jarba will try to alleviate. "Would Phillips Brooks House be practicing discrimination if in striking a blow at one of the major causes of Arab prejudice it recognizes the practical considerations raised by the existence of that prejudice?" Miss Taylor asked.

"Only Workable Area"

Peter A. Flynn '63, director of Project Jarba, said that financial problems, the previous existence of other programs, and safety considerations led PBH to choose Jordan as the only workable area.

Project Jarba will be financed by CARE, the Jordanian government, and the Jordanian Red Crescent. The government had originally asked CARE to supervise the construction of villages for displaced Bedouins; Jarba was to be the first such unit.