02/13/2015
ADL's Foxman to Discuss Anti-Semitism
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Published with permission from the Cleveland Jewish News
By Ed Wittenberg, CJN Staff Reporter
Abraham H. Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League, will discuss “Global Anti-Semitism” when he delivers the Sidney Z. Vincent Memorial Lecture at the 68th annual meeting of the Jewish Federation of Cleveland’s community relations committee at 7 p.m. Feb. 17 at Anshe Chesed Fairmount Temple in Beachwood.
It will be one of the final professional speaking engagements for Foxman, who will retire as national director July 20 after a 50-year career with the ADL.
In a recent interview in Cleveland, Foxman said anti-Semitism is on the rise globally.
“I think in this country, it’s leveled off,” he said. “Globally, it’s increased. I guess till we find a vaccine or the DNA which causes people to hate, anti-Semitism is the mother of all prejudices, and it’s still there.”
Foxman, 74, is known throughout the world as a leader in the fight against anti-Semitism, hatred, prejudice, bigotry and discrimination. He has spent nearly five decades working to ensure the safety and security of the Jewish people.
“We are honored that Abe Foxman will keynote the 68th annual meeting of the CRC,” said Cheryl Davis, CRC chair. “At a time when anti-Semitism poses a very present danger to Jews around the world, there is nobody with more knowledge and first-hand accounts about this scourge than Abe Foxman. I cannot think of a more timely and important topic to discuss at our meeting.”
Foxman, who lives in Bergen County, New Jersey, regularly confers with elected officials and community leaders from around the world. He has written four books, most recently the co-authored “Viral Hate: Containing its Spread on the Internet,” published by Palgrave Macmillan in 2013.
Foxman frequently appears on national news programs and is quoted often in The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal.
A Holocaust survivor, Foxman was born in Poland and came to the United States with his parents in 1950. They settled in New York, where he grew up.
The meeting will also review the community relations committee’s achievements, and an election of new officers will take place.
WHAT: 68th annual meeting of the Jewish Federation of Cleveland’s community relations committee
WHO: Abraham H. Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League, will be featured speaker
WHEN: 7 p.m. Feb. 17
WHERE: Brickner Auditorium at Anshe Chesed Fairmount Temple, 23737 Fairmount Blvd., Beachwood
COST: Free and open to the public
INFO: Coffee, tea and desserts will be available, with kosher dietary laws observed. Space is limited, and registration is encouraged. For more information or to RSVP, visit jewishcleveland.org, email crc@jcfcleve.org or call 216-593-2858.
