New York, NY, February 12, 1996...The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today commended action taken by the Department of Defense aimed at eliminating the participation of military personnel in extremist group activity.

Following the allegedly racially-motivated murders of two African Americans by soldiers from Fort Bragg near Fayetteville, NC, Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director, urged Defense Secretary William Perry to implement measures to address the problem of extremist activity by military personnel.

Citing reports that one of the soldiers openly displayed a swastika flag in his barracks and wore Skinhead garb, Mr. Foxman questioned the efficacy and clarity of Department guidelines that failed to call for an investigation into such "signals of hate activity."

In a letter to Mr. Foxman, William E. Leftwich III, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, said, "following the Fayetteville incident, we developed prevention strategies through consultation with former DOD officials and outside authorities, and Secretary Perry issued a statement publicly re-emphasizing DOD policy on active participation in supremacist groups."

Mr. Leftwich said, the DOD has developed a task group to review current policies, conduct training concerning involvement in extremist organizations, and implement a system for reporting race based and gender based incidents."

Mr. Foxman said, "this action affirms the DOD's serious commitment to vigorously and responsibly combating hate group activities in the military."

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.