As you look for new charities to support, one organization that you may have overlooked is the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), an organization that works to eliminate the defamation of individuals, religious groups, and other minorities.
In association with B’nai B’rith, the oldest Jewish service organization in the world, the ADL was founded by Sigmund Livingston in October of 1913 after incidents regarding the safety and defamation of Jewish Americans. Its ultimate purpose was, and is, to secure justice and fair treatment to all citizens and to put an end to unfair discrimination. With 29 offices in the United States and three offices in other countries, the ADL’s headquarters is located in New York City under the direction of its national director, Jonathan Greenblatt.
The ADL is known for its Jan Karski Courage to Care Award, which is given to men and women who rescued Jews during the Holocaust to honor them for their courageous acts. The ADL encourages Holocaust awareness by sponsoring events and fighting Holocaust denial.
Along with Holocaust awareness, the ADL is best known for its advocacy of religious freedoms and equal rights for all. Its website offers education and resources on fighting discrimination as well as advocacy for equal rights among all citizens.
With education at the forefront of its platform, there are numerous educational resources offered by the ADL to denounce hate and discrimination in just about every setting. No group is left out, they offer resources and support for LGBTQ rights, women’s rights, voter equality, as well as support for all races and immigrants; these include information on how to fight anti-semitism, how to combat hate and protect communities, how to confront discrimination and secure justice, and even ways to handle and prevent bullying.
The ADL is also taking steps to fight the spread of hate and bigotry online. In March, Greenblatt announced the formation of a state-of-the-art command center to be based in Silicon Valley that will combat online hate speech, threats, and bigotry. With the help of expert insights and cutting edge technologies, the ADL’s command center will analyze and mitigate instances of online hate in order to develop reports, advise policy makers, and more.
“Now more than ever as anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, racism, and other hatreds have exploded online, it’s critical that we are bringing best-in-class technology and resources to this fight,” Greenblatt said in a press release.
Taking action and making your voice heard is a belief that the ADL takes pride in. Education on its website includes training on how to be heard in congress, how to report an incident and how to organize a training session with an ADL official in your area. The ADL believes that when you choose to take action, you are choosing to create the change that you believe in.
The ADL offers resources and education for all, under the mission to stop the defamation of Jewish people and to secure justice and fair treatment to all. For more information about the ADL, you can visit its website.