Levich. Victor Fiermark. carefully spaced the buzzer rings at the apartment door. alerting the family that a friendly caller was at hand. I was warmly greeted by Tania Levich. the charming and stalwart wife of the internationally respected physicist who was fired from his job as head of the Department of Chemical Hydrodynamics at Moscow University as soon as he filed for an exit visa. In the bookfilled study I met the humble. softspoken. 65yearold scientist. During several hours of conversation. we shared ideas and information about this chilling contemporary chapter in the history of the Jewish people. There are more than 100.000 requests for exit visas pending. although Soviet authorities with whom I met disputed this figure. Each Jewish famliy takes a grave risk in applying for an exit visa: loss of employment. ostracism by coworkers. friends and sometimes even family. imprisonment for many. harassment by the KGB. and the blocking of young Jews from gaining entrance into the university. Prof. Levich reviewed the problems of members of academia who are refused the right to emigrate to the nation of their choice because this would represent a "security risk." despite the fact that their current work does not include a knowledge of sensitive matters. Each member of the Levich family has felt the bruising power of a hostile Soviet government. Levichs oldest son. Alexander. 29. an engineer. was fired shortly after he applied for a visa. Levichs youngest son. Yevgeny. an astrophysicist. is the youngest person in Soviet history to earn a doctorate (at the age of 20).
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