September 27, 2007
Dear Massachusetts Human Rights and Relations Commissions,
We at the Boston chapter of Jewish Voice for Peace are writing to the Massachusetts human rights organizations to applaud those communities that have severed ties with the Anti-Defamation League in the face of their failure to support US recognition of the Armenian genocide. We encourage all the cities and towns to join the debate. We ally with those in the Jewish community who have acted to hold the ADL accountable--asking whether they are primarily a civil rights/human rights organization or as a columnist characterized them in the Jerusalem Post, a “player on Israel's diplomatic field.” ADL leadership has chosen to prioritize Israel’s strategic alliance with Turkey and demean the lifelong Armenian effort to gain US and world recognition by calling it a “counterproductive diversion.” As the controversy over the Armenian genocide has shown, the ADL cannot both sponsor “No Place for Hate” (NPFH) and represent the Israeli government.
We pose this question to all the cities and towns: Given the national ADL’s cavalier attitude toward the suffering of others, does the ADL have the moral authority to represent the meaning of NPFH, that is, can we trust their commitment to the safety and dignity of all of us? Residents in Watertown (and then in Arlington, Newton and Belmont) have answered that question in the negative, severing their ties with NPFH until the national ADL agrees to support the US resolution recognizing the genocide. We hope other communities will do the same.
This controversy has not only put a spotlight on the Armenian genocide and the ADL, but on the diverse Jewish population, where many have voiced their outrage at the ADL’s position. Jewish Voice for Peace is part of that healthy and vibrant debate which has made clear the ADL has neither the moral authority nor the ability to speak for US Jews.
As human rights groups, you understand the need to build alliances and to recognize the humanity of all the residents in your cities and towns. We ask that the Massachusetts Association of Human Rights and Relations Commissions plays an important role in raising these issues in all the communities your members represent.
Sincerely, 
Dr. Alice Rothchild,
Martin R. Federman
Co-chairs, Boston Chapter,
Jewish Voice for Peace
