Editor’s note: Hours after this article was published, its author was disinvited from the panel discussion. The organizer and moderator of the event, David Lehrer, said this was because he was afraid the issues raised in the OpEd might distract from the conversation.
As president of the Muslim Public Affairs Council, I am headlining a panel Tuesday afternoon alongside Jonathan Greenblatt, chief executive of the Anti-Defamation League. The event is titled “After four years of bigotry and hatred — now what?” and the speakers also include the heads of the NAACP and the League of United Latin American Citizens.
I agreed to be on the panel, which was organized by Jews United for Democracy & Justice and Community Advocates Inc. (and is co-sponsored by The Forward), despite the fact that dozens of groups have, since the summer, been calling on progressives to #DropTheADL. In an open letter, the groups object to what they call the ADL’s “harmful practices,” including “a history and ongoing pattern of attacking social-justice movements led by communities of color, queer people, immigrants, Muslims, Arabs and other marginalized groups.”