Letters to the Editor
The Wall Street Journal
Now more than ever we need strong hate crime laws to ensure that the punishment for targeting individuals or institutions for violence or vandalism for no other reason than their religious affiliation, skin color or other personal characteristic is appropriate.
Contrary to Myron Magnet’s claims, hate-crime laws punish conduct and not thought (“‘Hate Crime’ Is Only a Step Away From Thoughtcrime,” op-ed, Jan. 2…
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January 06, 2020 Jonathan A. Greenblatt Remarks (as delivered)
To the Solidary March Against Anti-Semitism
New York, NY | January 5, 2020
My name is Jonathan Greenblatt and I am the CEO of the Anti-Defamation League.
I am so moved to look out at this crowd and see so many people: elected officials and children… rabbis and ministers… Jews and non-Jews… all here to make it very clear that New York will not tolerate anti-Semitism... that New York is no place for…
December 30, 2019 A Hanukkah party on December 28, 2019 in Monsey, New York, was shattered when a man entered a local rabbi’s home armed with a large knife and began stabbing people. The attack left five injured, one critically.
The following day, police in Ramapo, New York, charged Grafton Thomas of Greenwood Lake, New York, with five counts of attempted murder and one count of burglary. Thomas pleaded not guilty at his December 29 arraignment.
On Monday, December 30,…
December 13, 2019 THE WEEK'S BIG 3
Two gunmen motivated by anti-Semitism and anti-law enforcement beliefs attacked a Kosher supermarket in Jersey City on Tuesday, killing four people. President Trump signed an executive order that would ensure incidents of anti-Semitism be treated under federal as vigorously as other forms of discrimination. West Virginia fired three state employees and suspended more than 30 others after a photo surfaced showing a recent graduating class of correctional…
Remarks by Hamdi Ulukaya, CEO of Chobani and Recipient of ADL's Courage Against Hate Award November 21, 2019
Thank you, Jonathan.
Thank you Jacqueline, for those incredible words.
One of the fun things about being a parent in America is Halloween.
This year, we told our son that he could be anything he wanted to be. A ghost. A pirate. A soccer player.
He chose to be Captain America.
But he didn't stop wearing the costume when Halloween ended.
He still carries…
November 15, 2019 THE WEEK’S BIG 3
Newly released data from the FBI shows that hate crime murders in 2018 reached an all-time high. Following a sharp increase in anti-Semitic attacks directed at the Orthodox community, ADL announced a doubling of funding for its flagship education program, No Place for Hate, in schools throughout the borough. And officials at George Washington University are investigating after an anti-Semitic video posted on Snapchat was circulated amongst the…
All Americans have a stake in effective response to violent bigotry. Hate crimes merit a priority response because of their special impact on the victim and the victim's community. Failure to address this unique type of crime could cause an isolated incident to explode into widespread community tension. The damage done by hate crimes cannot be measured solely in terms of physical injury or dollars and cents. These crimes may effectively intimidate other members of the victim's community,…
Update:
Just days after Unite the Right’s 2nd anniversary, white supremacist and Charlottesville attendee James Patrick Reardon Jr., of New Middletown, Ohio, was arrested for allegedly making threats to the Youngstown, Ohio, Jewish community center. Reardon was charged with telecommunications harassment and aggravated menacing for allegedly posting an Instagram video of a man shooting a semi-automatic rifle with sirens and screams in the background. The video was captioned, &ldquo…
On Saturday morning, August 3, 2019, a gunman opened fire at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, and at the adjacent Cielo Vista Mall. The death toll is believed to be at least 20, and several dozen people are reportedly injured.
The alleged shooter, 21-year-old Patrick Crusius of Allen, Texas, was taken into custody shortly after the shooting. The FBI has reportedly opened a domestic terrorism investigation into the shooting, while Texas authorities are investigating the…
The following letter was submitted to The Wall Street Journal in response to "Hate Crime Hoaxes Are More Common Than You Think" (June 26, 2019). This appeared in the Journal's print editions on July 11, 2019. To the Editor:
Jason Riley’s suggestion that false hate crimes are being amplified by civil-rights organizations and others who “have a vested interest in exaggerating racial tensions” is deeply offensive and flat-out wrong (“Hate Crime Hoaxes…
March 13, 2019 In a letter to the Governor of Indiana, ADL and a broad coalition of national civil rights advocacy organizations expressed deep concern with Senate Bill 12, which if enacted, would create a weak, vague and unacceptable state bias crime law. March 7, 2019
The Honorable Eric J. Holcomb
Office of the Governor
200 W. Washington Street
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204
Dear Governor Holcomb:
We, the undersigned organizations, are part of a broad-based coalition of…
December 13, 2018 On December 9, a group of eight individuals associated with the racist skinhead movement were arrested in Lynnwood, Washington, for allegedly assaulting and shouting racial slurs at the DJ at the Rec Room Bar. The DJ, a black man, was reportedly punched and stomped on during the altercation. Each of the eight individuals faces malicious harassment hate crime charges for their alleged role in the assault.
Those charged in the assault include Travis David Condor of…
November 15, 2018 In a chilling postscript to Robert Bowers’ murderous October shooting spree at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, authorities in Washington, D.C., arrested Jeffrey Raphiel Clark, Jr., 30, an on-line associate of Bowers. The November 9 arrest came after family members contacted law enforcement out of concern that Clark might become violent.
Clark was charged with illegal transportation of a firearm across state lines, possession of an illegal high-capacity…
November 06, 2018 Robert Bowers appears to have referenced “optics” on social media prior to allegedly opening fire at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh. His comments -- “Screw your optics, I’m going in.” -- and extremists’ reaction to them highlight a division that has dogged the white supremacist movement since August 2017’s violent “Unite the Right” rally.
Following the shooting rampage, Matt Parrott, co-founder of the now…
October 27, 2018 The last post made to the social networking account believed to belong to Robert Bowers, the suspect in Saturday’s deadly shooting spree at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, claimed that “HIAS [Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society] likes to bring invaders in that kill our people. I can’t sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics, I’m going in.” The post, made just a short time before the attack on the…
October 27, 2018 Extremists reacted quickly and vocally to Saturday’s shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue. Some celebrated the killings as “another holiday to add to the calendar,” others blamed the Jewish community for inciting the violence and praising the apparent perpetrator for his decisive action. Still others bemoaned the media coverage of the “false flag” distraction from the incoming “caravan” of Central American immigrants and refugees. …
October 27, 2018 According to police and media reports, Robert Bowers allegedly entered the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh on Saturday morning, yelling, “All Jews Must Die” as he opened fire. As of Saturday evening, the death toll stood at 11, and several people remained hospitalized.
A profile on Gab – a social media site frequented by right-wing extremists – which appears to belong to Bowers, showcases his virulent anti-Semitism. The vast majority of…
By David Weinberg | Washington Representative for International Affairs and Susan Corke | Director of Countering Antisemitism and Extremism at Human Rights First August 15, 2018 The Hill In 2017, when the number of homophobic hate crimes increased in Norway, the Oslo police force marched in the Pride parade as a show of solidarity. When Canadian synagogues were threatened, authorities denounced the threats as antithetical to Canadian values, and police promised to proactively…
by: Jonathan Greenblatt | August 12, 2018 USA Today One year ago, hundreds of torch-wielding white supremacists gathered on the campus of the University of Virginia, chanting “Jews will not replace us!" The following day, the streets of Charlottesville exploded in violence, as neo-Nazis, Klansmen and alt-right agitators clashed with counter-protestors. As the National Guard was being called in, a young counter-protester, Heather Heyer, was killed in a tragedy…
By Melissa Garlick | National Civil Rights Counsel May 22, 2018 Harvard Law & Policy Review Three militia members from southwest Kansas were recently convicted on federal civil rights charges and conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction for targeting Somali Muslim immigrants for a plan of mass murder in 2016. On a recording made available to the jury, one of the defendants said: “The only good Muslim is a dead Muslim.” The convictions sent an important message of…