Dedicated to my wife — who taught me that real protection is never a weapon.

By Andrew Klein

I. Introduction: An Organisation at War with Its Own Mission

Founded in 1913, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) once sought to portray itself as a defender of civil rights. Its stated mission was “to stop the defamation of the Jewish people and to secure justice and fair treatment to all”.

Yet a groundbreaking new history by Emmaia Gelman, The Anti-Defamation League and the Racial State, exposes a different reality. The ADL, Gelman argues, was born of the belief that “the best protection from antisemitism was admission into the white racial state and waging a vigorous defence of capitalism, individual rights, and the West”. Rather than dismantling systems of oppression, the ADL has pursued a century-long alliance with “American white supremacy and western empire”.

This is not a conspiracy theory. It is a matter of public record — and the implications for Australia are profound.

II. The ADL’s Historical Alliance with Power

From Labour Organisers to Neoconservatism

The ADL was founded in part to “quash the progressive impulses of labour organisers from Eastern Europe”. Its agenda has never been about protecting the vulnerable, but about policing the leftist politics of Black, Arab, and Jewish groups while pursuing “a conservative version of civil rights paired with aggressive anti-communism”.

Even as it became an authority on white nationalism in the 1970s, the ADL “joined with the emerging anti-left, anti-Arab, and pro-Western neoconservative movement“. This history has shaped its present-day work, from developing the “hate crimes framework as a pro-state policing project” to merging with the “War on Terror” and anti-Palestinian racism.

The Progressive Image as a Facade

The ADL’s progressive image is a facade. It has been described as “a deeply reactionary and conservative force in American politics”. Scholar Emmaia Gelman presents the ADL as working “to bolster capitalism, colonialism, and imperialism” — positions that have “won them a place in the halls of power, from the World Economic Forum to the White House”.

III. A Shield for Israel, a Sword Against Critics

Silencing Dissent on Campus

During the Gaza genocide, the ADL has abandoned any pretence of civil rights advocacy. As a Los Angeles Times opinion piece noted: “Founded in 1913 to combat anti-Jewish bigotry, the ADL was once respected for its civil-rights work. Now, amid nationwide protests over what the UN special rapporteur and others have called Israel’s genocide in Gaza, it’s shredding that reputation with reckless and unsupported accusations of antisemitism”.

The ADL has:

· Encouraged universities to weaponise antiterrorism laws to silence pro-Palestinian groups like Students for Justice in Palestine

· Filed complaints against colleges for “permitting severe discrimination” against Jewish students, effectively equating peaceful protest with harassment

· Lobbied for a congressional resolution defining anti-Zionism as antisemitism

· Called on law enforcement to investigate student activist groups for providing “material support” to Hamas

The Conflation Strategy

The ADL contends that “vilification of Zionism is a form of antisemitism“. Yet critics note that “many Jews are themselves critics of Zionism and of the ADL itself”. As one analysis observes, “The ADL and their allies also deem speech supporting Palestinian human rights to be coded antisemitism”.

Even ADL staff have protested. After CEO Jonathan Greenblatt placed “anti-Zionism” on a par with white supremacy, a senior manager at the ADL’s Center on Extremism wrote: “There is no comparison between white supremacists and insurrectionists and those who espouse anti-Israel rhetoric, and to suggest otherwise is both intellectually dishonest and damaging to our reputation as experts in extremism“. At least two employees have quit in response to the organisation’s overt emphasis on pro-Israel advocacy.

Defamation by Data

The ADL has been accused of “corrupting its widely cited hate crime data” by “putting Jewish peace rallies in the same category as antisemitic attacks”. Wikipedia’s editors have warned that the ADL “has repeatedly published false and misleading statements” on “topics of antisemitism and the Israel/Palestine conflict”. The Wall Street Journal has acknowledged that the ADL “has been challenged for counting criticism of Israel as antisemitism”.

IV. The ADL’s Reach into Australia

The J7 Task Force

The ADL does not operate in isolation. It coordinates a global network of pro-Israel advocacy groups. The J7 Task Force — “a group composed of the representative bodies of the 7 largest Jewish communities” — is “an initiative of the US-based Anti-Defamation League (ADL) who co-ordinate meetings and approach and was set up in mid-2023″. These biweekly Zoom meetings allow participants to “share tips, draft legislation and advance agendas”.

This is not a grassroots movement. This is co-ordinated political lobbying across national boundaries.

AIJAC, ZFA, and the Australian Lobby

In Australia, the ADL’s counterparts include the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) and the Zionist Federation of Australia (ZFA). These organisations have called for a Royal Commission into Antisemitism. But as critics note, they “actively monitor criticism of Israel and react quickly”, and their advocacy “conf lates criticism of Israel with antisemitism”.

The pro-Israel lobby in Australia has been remarkably effective. As Louise Adler wrote in The Guardian: “Collectively, with their News Ltd megaphone, they have successfully badgered the government of the day, cowed the ABC, intimidated vice-chancellors and threatened to defund arts organisations“.

V. The Special Envoy: The Local Face of a Global Network

Jillian Segal AO, Australia’s Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism, is the local manifestation of this international network.

A Conflict of Interest from the Start

Segal’s previous position as president of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ) — “an unequivocal advocate for Israel as the Jewish homeland” — “should have disqualified her for the role”. She is described as “part of the Combat Anti-Semitism movement” and “just as well connected with the international Zionist scene”.

A Record of Bias

Segal has “criticised calls for ceasefire in Gaza and defended the campaign of bombing hospitals”. Her plan has been described as containing “recommendations that will lead to erosion of freedom of expression and the right to protest”. Anti-Zionist Jewish groups have correctly stated that “Segal’s proposals have nothing to do with combating antisemitism, but will stoke racism and division“.

The Weaponisation of Antisemitism

The Special Envoy’s plan has been described as “the latest push to weaponize antisemitism in Australia“. As one critic noted: “The trope holds that Segal’s plan to combat antisemitism amounts to a wealthy minority stifling political dissent so that the Jewish state can evade the consequences of its ongoing ‘genocide’ in Gaza”.

VI. The Jewish Community: A False Monolith

The ADL and its allies do not speak for all Jews. Indeed, they have actively targeted Jewish groups that dissent.

Attacking Jewish Peace Activists

The ADL has accused Jewish Voice for Peace, a large anti-Zionist Jewish group, of “promot[ing] messaging” that can include “support for terrorists“. It has dismissed Jewish peace activists as belonging to “far-left radical organisations [who] do not represent the overwhelming majority of the Jewish community”.

The Jewish Council of Australia

In Australia, the Jewish Council of Australia — an anti-Zionist organisation formed in 2024 — “openly reject[s] the positions taken by mainstream Jewish communal organisations, particularly on Zionism, Israel and anti-Semitism”. Yet it is the mainstream organisations, not the dissenting voices, that have the ear of government.

VII. The NEA Vote: A Rejection of the ADL

In July 2025, the National Education Association (NEA) — the largest teachers’ union in the United States — voted to sever ties with the ADL. The union will “no longer cite the ADL’s data, promote its educational tools or partner on anti-bias training”.

The reasons cited included:

· The ADL’s “support for Israel’s war on Gaza“

· The ADL’s “inflation of hate crime statistics regarding Jewish safety“

· The ADL’s “demonisation of Palestinian human rights advocacy groups“

· The ADL’s opposition to “historically pro-Palestine movements, including Black Lives Matter and Indigenous rights groups”

This was not an isolated rebuke. Wikipedia editors have also voted that the ADL is “generally unreliable” on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

VIII. The Human Cost

The ADL’s campaign has real consequences. Civil rights groups and Jewish anti-Zionist organisations have “repeatedly criticised the ADL for using its influence to allegedly promote a pro-Israel agenda under the guise of civil rights“. Protests outside ADL offices have become frequent, with activists calling the organisation “complicit” in Israeli violations of international law.

Meanwhile, the censorship of pro-Palestinian voices continues. The ADL’s complaints have been “used to justify disciplinary measures against students critical of the deadly campaign that has already killed over 57,575 Palestinians and wounded at least 136,879 others”.

IX. Conclusion: The Weapon, Not the Shield

The ADL is not a civil rights organisation. It is a political organisation that has used the shield of fighting antisemitism to protect the state of Israel, silence its critics, and bolster the power of economic elites.

Its history reveals an institution “deeply entangled with the forces of empire, white supremacy, and capitalist exploitation”. Its present actions reveal an organisation willing to defame, silence, and punish those who speak out against genocide.

In Australia, the same pattern is visible. An unelected envoy with a history of pro-Israel advocacy has been given the power to shape policy on antisemitism — a policy that conflates legitimate criticism of Israel with bigotry, and that threatens to silence healthcare workers, academics, and activists who dare to speak the truth.

The Jewish community has a proud history of advocating for human rights and workers’ rights. The ADL and its allies do not represent that tradition. They represent something else entirely: the weaponisation of identity to defend power.

And that is not protection. That is politics.

Andrew Klein

Dedicated to my wife — who taught me that real protection is never a weapon.

References

1. Gelman, E. (2026). The Anti-Defamation League and the Racial State. University of California Press.

2. Gelman, E. (2026). The Anti-Defamation League Was Never Progressive — It Was Never Meant To Be. Religion Dispatches.

3. Dery, M. (2024, July 16). What’s behind the Anti-Defamation League’s troubling complaints against L.A.-area colleges. Los Angeles Times.

4. How the Pro-Israel Lobby Is Organised: From Global Hubs to Australia. (2026, January 17). Sleekit Scotsman.

5. US largest teachers union cuts ties with pro-Israel Anti-Defamation League. (2025, July 9). The New Arab.

6. Adler, L. (2025, July 12). The special envoy’s plan is the latest push to weaponise antisemitism in Australia. The Guardian.

7. Anti-Defamation League staff decry ‘dishonest’ campaign against Israel critics. (2024, January 5). The Guardian.

8. FAIR. (2025, February 19). ADL’s Stats Twist Israel’s Critics Into Antisemites.

9. The Guardian. (2025, April 26). Conservatives fighting ‘antisemitism’ are actively targeting US Jews.

10. Haaretz. (2025, July 23). Why a plan to combat rising antisemitism is dividing Jews in Australia.

11. Green Left. (2026, January 19). Policy on antisemitism must not help embed Zionism.

P.S. — The weapon is not the shield. And the truth cannot be silenced.