New York, NY, August 5, 1998….The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today predicted that public safety considerations will prompt the New York City Police Department not to grant former Nation of Islam spokesman Khallid Muhammad a permit for a "Million Youth March" in Harlem next month.

ADL National Director, Abraham H. Foxman, and New York Regional Office Director, Adam Segall stated, "We have a deep and abiding respect for the freedom of speech guaranteed by the First Amendment. However, that does not mean that a hatemonger with a history of intimidating and threatening Jews and other non-Blacks should be given carte blanche to march through any neighborhood he chooses, any time he chooses. The New York City Police Department has an obligation to respect any citizen’s constitutional rights, but they also have an obligation to ensure public safety and security. The decision regarding whether or not to allow the ‘Million Youth March,’ and under what circumstances, is properly theirs."

Messrs. Foxman and Segall continued, "We recognize that there are serious problems in our society and that many who would participate in a ‘Million Youth March’ would do so with the best of intentions. Nevertheless, when New Yorkers hear what Khallid Muhammad has to say – and we do not question his right to spew his racist and anti-Semitic rhetoric, so long as there are no public safety concerns – we are confident that they will be disgusted and repulsed."

Khallid Muhammad’s record of bigotry is revealed by his own words, on numerous occasions. For example, he has referred to New York as "Jew York City," has denied the existence of the Holocaust, has referred repeatedly to the "so-called Jew" and the "imposter Jew," and has rehashed the old canard about the Jews controlling the Federal Reserve. He has also referred to the "white man" as "the devil," and the "old, no-good Pope" as a "cracker." His most recent appearance in the public spotlight came in Jasper, Texas, where he traveled to stoke the fires of hate in the wake of the heinous racial murder of James Byrd, Jr.

The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.