Anti-Semitic upsurge reported

The Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith says the US is seeing a "revitalization" of anti-Semitism that has been dormant for decades. A task force convened by the league blamed the economic downturn, higher oil prices, US foreign policy, and Arab propaganda for the surge in violence against Jews and Jewish institutions.

"There's a significant amount of anti-Semitism buried in American culture -- this represents only the tip of the iceberg," said Melvin Tumin, the task force chairman. "Some of it is breaking out into the open now."

The 25-member task force of educators, law-enforcement officials, and government representatives convened a week after a national audit by the league which reported that anti-Semitic incidents in 1979 almost tripled over 1978. Mr. Tumin said the task force hopes to form a national coalition with blacks and Hispanics to educate communities to the dang ers of intolerance.