European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - March 3, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Tuesday March 3, 1992 the stars and stripes a Page 9soviet jews resettle As German immigrants flee growing anti semitism in Cis Hessen Winkel Germany a they Are learning the language Hunting for Homes hoping for jobs. Unlike other refugees they can stay Here forever. But they can never go Home. These Are jews who fled the collapse of the soviet Union. The 8,000 who came Here before nov. 11 have been granted permanent residence in Germany another payment in kind for the holocaust. They have special status in a country awash in refugees. But the rules say that if Thev return Home even once they can never come Back Here to live. Bridges have been burned. Friends and family ask Tamara Malewitsch Why she decided to live on welfare in a Natish with a history of anti semitism and a growing Public resentment of jobless Eastern immigrants. A a it a better Here than there a said Malewitsch 34, a former russian schoolteacher. A it has become very dangerous in the soviet  refugee status is granted to people who Are threatened by persecution in their homelands. Refugees lose that status if they voluntarily return to the place they initially fled. Jews coming to Germany cite growing anti semitism in the former soviet Union. Malewitsch her husband and their 11-year-old daughter Are among the 250 jews who live on an abandoned military base in this Dusty Hamlet Southeast of Berlin. The sprawling Cavern once housed the brutal military Wing of the East German secret police. Today this windswept Garrison is the promised land. The refugees get eight months of language courses room Board and welfare benefits. A family of four gets about 1,000 Marks per month or $625. If the adults pass a language competency test they Geh bless benefits. Germany last year said any soviet jews living in the nation before nov. 11 could remain. But up to 3,000 have arrived since then and their status remains Uncertain. A if someone comes Here now we have to ship them Back a said Ingeborg Baier refugee Home director. A your biggest problem now is the fact that families were split up by the nov. 11 cutoff aate a Baier said. A you had some members who were Here and some still in the soviet  most of the soviet jews Are professionals. The Hessen Winkel Camp is Home to architects artists a classical pianist physicians teachers and scientists. Baier said 30 percent have found work. Mane Witschy a husband was a soviet computer Programmer assigned in 1987 to East Germany a massive nuclear reactor Complex in the City of Greif Swald. The family had a Nice apartment and a decent wage. But when the Plant was closed last year after Western experts declared it too dangerous Malewitsch lost his Job and his residency. The family travelled to Berlin applied for refugee status and were put up in Hessen Winkel. A a it a not like we decided to stay in Germany a Tamara Malewitsch said. A a it a that we decided not to go Home. I Hope my daughter will have a future  her daughter Maria Speaks fluent German and has German friends. She is a cold War Waif who has lived in two nations that no longer exist. A i would like to go Back to Moscow but Only for a visit a she said with a laugh As she skipped rope outside the Gray bunkhouse where she lives. The family spends some of its welfare Money to ship cheese sausage and powdered milk to hungry relatives in Russia. Last month Tamara manc Witschy a father who swore he would never even visit Germany showed up in Berlin. He like other refugees is hoping to win residency. Although Germany is taking a harder line with immigrants Many expect the government will Grant another exemption. A a that a what everyone is hoping for a said Tamara Malewitsch. Manewitz Schlacks fight to save Beach As slice of history Maynee Betsch strolls with Little Akeem Washington across the Lawn of a House built High on american Beach. American Beach Fla. A this mile Long strip of Sand flourished during the Jim Crow Era when Blacks weren to Welcome at the ritzy resorts for White patrons along Florida a Atlantic coastline. It has gone into decline since the end of segregation but the few remaining residents Are fighting to preserve its history and keep it Safe from the hungry Eye of developers. A they deserted this place a said William Watson a retired teacher who bought a lot in american Beach for $2,400 in 1976 and now numbers among the 30 people who live Here year round. A i Wasny to really interested but at that time All the Blacks had gone to Jacksonville  now he worries about the towns future. A taxes Are going up and the people who were Here years ago done to have the income to keep up with it a he said. A a they la be property Rich a poor people with  the land has become a prime target for developers. But residents Are hoping to hang on by having it included in the National Register of historic places. Last summer american Beach was listed on the states Black heritage Trail and residents Hope to attract tourist dollars with jazz and heritage festivals. Leading the fight to preserve american Beach 15 Miles North of Jacksonville is Maynee Betsch granddaughter of the Man who helped found the Community nearly 70 years ago. . Lewis Jacksonville based afro american life insurance co. Was one of several Black owned insurance companies that a were like our own Little Banks a Betsch said. It also offered social activities and free medical exams. A Black people did their own thing a Betsch said. A we did no to have to ask White folks for  the company now defunct purchased much of the acreage on which american Beach sits. The rest came from a land Grant gained with the assistance of Eleanor Roosevelt. The town was known during its heyday in the 1940s and �?T50s for attracting a mix of working class Blacks and professionals she said. A they had cottages along Here and even the working people could stay Here a Betsch said. A a that a Why we fight so to keep  not far away sits the exclusive Amelia Island Plantation a luxury resort for anyone a Black or White a who can afford to pay up to hundreds of dollars for a single nights stay. One Black family from Philadelphia frequents both places. Carol Alexander and her husband Al Fonzo Washington discovered american Beach while staying at the fancy hotel. A we were just driving around and i said a Al there a Black people Here a a Alexander said. Alexander who has since become friends with Betsch said the Community is so quiet she feels Safe letting her 2-year-old son wander off to collect shells and Sand spurs. Watson whose Cedar panelled hideaway has a Balcony that looks out on the sea marvels at his Good Fortune. As he showed off the View to a visitor he pointed out the Ritz Carlton in the near distance. A six Hundred dollars for a commanding View of the Ocean Quot he noted. Added Betsch a and we got it for  a amps