Genocide denial by ADL makes a mockery of organization's mission - Time for Foxman to go
I have been very careful to refrain from political or religious postings in this space. It's my personal blog. I want it to reach people interested in Jewish music, regardless of religion or politics. The current genocide denial by the Anti-Defamation League president Abraham Foxman (not a new position for him) is something of such rank evil hypocrisy, that I can't stay silent. The issue of Foxman's genocide denial caused the Watertown, MA city council to reject the ADL's "No Room for Hate Program." It has most recently resulting in the firing of the local head of the ADL for affirming the historical fact of Armenian genocide, and the subsequent resignation of at least two board members in protest.
In a nutshell, Holocaust denial is evil. Holocaust denial by a Jew is obscene. That a Jewish survivor of the Holocaust should deny the Aremenian genocide—the horror for which another Jew, Henry Morgenthau, then US ambassador to the Ottoman Empire invented the term, is beyond obscene.
It is preposterous and evil that an organization that claims to fight discrimination should so staunchly engage in pilpul to avoid calling what was perpetuated against Armenians by Turks in the waning days of the Ottoman Empire "genocide."
As local Rabbi Bernard Mehlman notes, the term "genocide" was good enough for Hitler: "Look at the Armenian genocide. Who cares about them?" Mehlman goes on to say that Hitler used this as proof that he could get away with active persecution of Jews.
Foxman's position, which is the official ADL position is that, well, yes, 1.5 million people were killed, but it wasn't really genocide, and we can't call it genocide, anyway, because it will put Jewish citizens in Turkey at risk. That is evil folly on so many levels that I refuse to discuss it, other than to note that history has been very clear, from Darfur, through WWII, into the dawn of history, that genocide denial is one of the greatest ways to ensure that it will occur again and worse. If Jewish safety mattered to the ADL (never mind if it took it's name or mission seriously) it would be clear that there is nothing it could do to endanger that safety more that its current policy.
The ADL is about to launch a PR campaign to put ads explaining its position in major newspapers. I call on all Jewish bloggers to explore the facts of this case and to post about it on their blogs. And if anyone is launching a truth campaign to protest the Abe Foxman's confusion between ignorant hysteria and truth; between fighting defamation and the art of hypocritcal self-service; I am your volunteer.
A quick sampling of other blogs/resources on the subject
- Boston Globe: ADL local leader fired on Armenian issue
- No place for genocide denial: ANCEM Letter to the Boston Globe
- Solomonia: ADL and the Armenian Genocide