How ADL Makes a Difference

Demanding Punishment for a Hate Crime

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At the end of a quiet Sabbath, Menachem Vorchheimer, a bearded Jew dressed in traditional fashion, walked to synagogue in Melbourne, Australia, with two of his young children.

A mini-bus full of football players stopped at a nearby light, yelling obscenities about Jews and firing imaginary machine guns at Mr. Vorchheimer and his children. As he got closer to the bus, several riders leaned out the window and punched him in his left eye, opening a cut that bled down his face.

“I remember hearing all the laughter,” Mr. Vorchheimer says. “I also remember hearing my children crying.”

Vowing to hold the perpetrators accountable, he turned to ADL.

The Anti-Defamation League and its Australian affiliate, the B'nai B'rith Anti-Defamation Commission (ADC), submitted a Victim Impact Statement to the court that explained why anti-Semitism and hate crimes have serious implications. The result: the first criminal conviction for an anti-Semitic attack in the State of Victoria.

“When a person brings an action like this by themselves, he can be viewed as strange,” says Mr. Vorchheimer. “But when an organization with credibility like ADL joins in the fight, it brings legitimacy to his pain and suffering and his quest for justice. It is a powerful voice that cannot be ignored.”

With your support, ADL can help more hate crime victims demand justice.