Merle Thorpe, Jr.

By Grace Halsell

Merle Thorpe, Jr., a successful Washington, D.C., lawyer, says that because of his strict Protestant upbringing, "I always saved money. Since I didn't marry until a year ago, and I didn't have children to put through universities, I saved quite a bit. And back in 1958, I began putting a portion of my savings in a foundation. I hoped that one day I would find some worthy project to make good use of those savings.

"Little did I know then," he continues, "that the project I chose peace for the Middle East would be so encompassing or represent such a challenge." Having chosen his goal, he formed the Foundation For Middle East Peace in 1979.

One of his first projects was the documentary, "Israel and the Palestinians: Will Reason Prevail?" Written, narrated and directed by John Wallach, it was shown on public television stations in January, 1981. While both Palestinians and Zionists found fault with the film, Mr. Thorpe continues to believe it was "a plus," because, he says, it showed Israelis, as well as Palestinians, speaking in favor of a Palestinian state.

The Foundation also publishes books, such as a recent work of former Under Secretary of State George W. Ball, entitled Error and Betrayal in Lebanon. Among the others are Prescription for Confilct: Israel's West Bank Settlement Policy, written by Mr. Thorpe himself, and The West Bank: Hostage of History, a collection of Washington Post articles by reporters William Claiborne and Edward Cody.

Learning from a Distinguished Mentor

A native of Washington, Mr. Thorpe, 67, was graduated with a law degree from Yale and in 1941 joined the Washington firm of Hogan & Hartson, where he has remained ever since.

Mr. Thorpe admits he did not know much about the Middle East until 1975, when he made a trip to the region with Senator William Fulbright, who was then one of the most knowledgeable members of Congress on Middle East affairs. "He became my mentor," says Mr. Thorpe, who four years later made a second trip to the Middle East and his first of many visits to the West Bank and Gaza Strip. It was there, he recalls, that the "tragic" problems facing the Palestinians "really hit me." Now Mr. Thorpe comes face to face with these problems several times a year when he travels to the West Bank on behalf of his Foundation and American Near East Refugee Aid (ANERA), of which he is board chairman.

In 1981, Mr. Thorpe organized what turned out to be a significant trip to the West Bank. One of the participants in the small group was Philip M. Klutznick, a leading American Zionist and the past head of the World Jewish Congress and B'nai B'rith International. After seeing the conflict with fresh eyes, Mr. Klutznick joined the others in affirming that the PLO should be involved in negotiations leading to a resolution of the Palestinian problem.

Mr. Thorpe directs much of the Middle East Peace Foundation's money to aiding Jewish groups in the U.S. and Israel which favor dialogue with, and justice for, the Palestinians. He has made grants to the America Israel Civil Liberties Coalition, B'nai B'rith, Givat Haviva Educational Foundation, the International Center for Peace in the Middle East, Interns for Peace, the Jerusalem Institute for Federal Studies, New Jewish Agenda, Shalom Network Corporation, and to Columbia, Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania to support Israeli scholars.

Getting the Dialogue Going

Says Mr. Thorpe: "Most American Jews know little about the Middle East." To help turn this around, he has sponsored press luncheons for a dozen Israeli writers, professors and officials. Most recently he hosted the appearance in Washington of Mattityahu Peled, a former Israeli Major General and member of the General Staff of the Israeli Defense Forces who now calls for the creation of a Palestinian state. "I do this to get more dialogue going on the Israeli Palestinian conflict, so that Americans will understand it better," says Mr. Thorpe.

He also sponsored appearances in this country by West Bank mayor Muhammed Milhem, deposed from office by the Israelis. "We would sponsor visits here by more Palestinians," he says, "but many of those we would like to bring over cannot secure Israeli permission to travel, or U.S. permission to enter this country." Such was the case in 1979, when Israeli and State Department hurdles prevented certain Palestinians from attending a four day conference in Washington, which was funded substantially by the Foundation and sponsored by New Outlook, an Israeli magazine dedicated to peace.

Merle Thorpe was married just over a year ago to the former Sally Sweetser Castleman, in a simple ceremony held in a small country church near Washington. Last July they moved into the "dream house" which, he says, "I had wanted for a long time, as I thought it was the most beautiful house in Chevy Chase." Like many colonial houses, however, it requires time and effort to keep up. Repairing the roof, he says, provides him a respite from the problems of the Middle East.

Grace Halsell is a former White House staff writer and the author of 12 books, her latest being Journey to Jerusalem.