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ICUJP Friday Forum
July 24th 7:30-9:30 am Pacific

Emmaia Gelman: The Anti-Defamation League and the Racial State

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Event Description: 

The Anti-Defamation League and the Racial State is the first-ever history of the ADL and its determined, century-long alliance with Western empire.

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) is a major US political organization, yet its politics have gone largely unexamined. While the ADL is often portrayed as a defender against antisemitism and racism, its history shows that it is better understood as a proponent of the racial state and US empire.

Emmaia Gelman's book presents the ADL’s history through its conflicts with social justice movements, illuminating the ADL’s outsize role in shaping the ideas about race and rights that have underwritten US empire.

Join the conversation with our speakers:

Emmaia Gelman is the author of The Anti-Defamation League and the Racial State, a critical history of the Anti-Defamation League as a Cold War neoconservative institution (UC Press, 2026) and co-editor of The Anti-Defamation League: A Critical Reader (Pluto Press, 2026). She co-hosts the podcast Unpacking Zionism. Emmaia is co-chair of the American Studies Association Caucus on Academic and Community Activism, and a longtime activist in New York City.

She is the founding director of the Institute for the Critical Study of Zionism, which examines the political and ideological work of Zionist institutions in Palestine and transnational contexts. She researches the history of ideas about race, queerness, safety, and rights, and their production as levers in surveillance, “anti-terror”, and war. Her teaching spans academic and community spaces.

7:30 - 7:35  Log in and socialize
7:35 - 7:45  Welcome and introductions 
7:45 - 7:50  Reflection (5 min. maximum)
7:50 - 9:15  Program and Q&A
9:15 - 9:20  Announcements
9:20 - 9:30  Closing circle and prayer

Start your morning with us! 

Facilitator: Rick Banales
Reflector: Jasmine Hailey

** Meetings begin promptly at 7:30 am Pacific. **

Here's how to join the online meeting:

To join by video conference, you'll need to download the Zoom app on your computer or mobile device. Click on the link to join the meeting and then enter the Meeting ID number and passcode. You'll be able to see slides and video, as well as speakers and other attendees.

If you prefer to join by phone, you'll be prompted to enter the Meeting ID number and passcode. You won't be able to see the visuals or attendees, but you can view them on the meeting video recording afterward. 

If you're new to Zoom and would like to use the video option, we recommend you download the app well ahead of time.

ICUJP Friday Forum 07/24/26
Time: 07:30 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

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*Meeting controls for call-in attendees:
To mute/unmute yourself: *6
To raise hand: *9

(To find a dial-in number closer to you, go here.)

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Please note: Our Friday Forums and other events are open to the public. By attending, you consent to having your voice and likeness recorded, photographed, posted on ICUJP's website and social media, and included in ICUJP materials and publications for noncommercial purposes. If you don't want to be photographed or recorded, please let the facilitator know.

Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace recognizes the Gabrieliño Tongva as the past, present, and future caretakers of the land, water, and cultural resources in the unceded territory of Los Angeles.

In the Akan language of Ghana, Sankofa means literally "go back and get it". It is a powerful symbol that represents the need to reflect on the past to build a successful future.

As Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace celebrates 25 years of action and advocacy for a kinder and more just world, we want to remember those that were on this journey from the start - the people that came together just after the horrors of September 11th, 2001, and saw that the faith and activist communities needed to speak with one voice, and say that Religious Communities Must Stop Blessing War and Violence.

We hope that you will join us on Sunday, September 27th, from 2:00 - 4:00 pm at All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena, as we look back to our founding, look forward to the task ahead, and honor courageous peacemakers who keep our struggle for justice and peace alive.

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Please Join the National ICE Out Day of Action It’s on for Saturday. July 25. In cities and towns across the nation. That’s the day more than 235 communities (and counting) across the United States will hold vigils, protests and demonstrations to demand justice.  We the people will come together. We’ll stand up. Raise our voices. And together we’ll demand: Justice for Lorenzo. Justice for Johan. Justice for everyone murdered by ICE. Stop the killings now.

We need everyone. We need and want you there with us. Here’s how: 1. Find an event you can join here. 2. If you don't find one near you, organize one here. 3. Tell your friends and family. The Administration has not stopped its assaults and violence. Our brothers and sisters are being taken from the streets. Shot in their cars. Shot on sidewalks. Beaten and killed inside secret prisons. The most recent killings happened just this month. On July 7, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a beloved father and worker, was shot and killed by an ICE agent in Houston while driving a work van. On July 13, ICE agents killed Johan Sebastian Guerrero in Biddeford, Maine, in front of his partner and toddler. These are not isolated tragedies. They are not accidents. They are a campaign of chaos and terror, built on hateful lies and fueled by billions of our taxpayer dollars. It is our duty to demand, in the spirit of loving nonviolence, that the killings stop. Who will hold these killers accountable? Not Congress or the courts. Only the people. Thank you. Only the people save the people, and that includes YOU.

Become a Card-Carrying Member of Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace!

This year, Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace is commemorating 25 years of advocacy for the disenfranchised and abused at home and around the world. In the aftermath of September 11th 2001, Los Angeles religious and secular leaders and activists came together to seek an alternative to the fear mongering and vengefulness sweeping much of our nation. ICUJP declared that  “Religious Communities Must Stop Blessing War and Violence.”

We have endured and spread our message through very trying times - five Presidents, four California Governors, and numerous crises and challenges that would shake the resolve of even the most devout and dedicated group of activists. But through it all, we have held true to our mission to be the voice for "the least of these."  We are determined to create the change we want to see in the world, no matter how daunting the opposition can seem. 

Like many nonprofits, the economy, the aftereffects of the Covid pandemic, and the constant attacks on progressive organizations by the Trump administration have affected our fundraising.  We depend on the support of people who believe in justice and peace, who attend our weekly Zoom forums, who go to our events, or who receive the information on our website and social media.

We would be honored if you can donate $25, $50, $100 (or more) to help us keep up with the increasing costs of securing live venues, renting audio and video equipment, printing valuable information for live events, bringing our social media tools up to date, and paying our small but mighty part-time staff.We have several ways for you to support our work:

You can go to the ICUJP donation page on our website to make a one-time donation, or spread your donation out monthly.

You can also visit our ICUJP Threadless Store where you can make a purchase and wear your support for our organization, or give the gift of a tote bag, a mug, or a cute little onesie so your grandkids can be fashionable!

If you make a donation using either of these options, we will also send you a personalized ICUJP membership card for yourself or as a gift to print out:

ICUJP operates as a largely volunteer organization with a small part-time paid staff. We have survived for 25 years through the generosity of individuals like yourselves and organizations such as yours.

Thank you for your ongoing support – we are honoured to be standing shoulder to shoulder with you in the struggle for universal Justice and Peace.

RESOURCES FOR PROTECTING THE RIGHTS OF A PEOPLE UNDER SIEGE

ICUJP Condemns the actions of the current administration to foment unrest in Southern California and other parts of the US. We hope you will find the following information useful in keeping involved and safe.

RSVP Here

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