Yes, overwhelmingly.
In the past months, the response from Jewish-Americans has been overwhelmingly positive. In particular, members of the New England ADL have recently spoken out in support of the recognition of the Armenian Genocide. Jewish historians, elected officials, rabbis, and individual Jews, as well as a number of Jewish organizations, such as the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) and the Zionist Organization of America, have long been supportive of acknowledgment of the Armenian genocide and Congressional resolutions on that genocide. On October 10, seven out of eight Jewish-American Congressmen on the House Foreign Affairs Committee voted in favor of H.Res.106.
Helen Epstein, author of Children of the Holocaust, made the following statement to the Lexington, Massachusetts Board of Selectmen on October 15, 2007:
“As the daughter of Czech Jews whose families were murdered during the Holocaust, [I understand] not only the facts of destruction of life, culture and community, but the long-term psychological ramifications of genocide and the healing power of validation.
. . . ‘ It is very tempting to take the side of the perpetrator,’ writes Judith Lewis Herman. The perpetrator asks nothing of us but to be silent. The victim, on the contrary, asks the bystander to share the burden of pain. The victim demands action, engagement and remembering.
The head of the ADL has chosen not to do this. As a Jew who understands what this means, [I urge] that No Place for Hate sever ties with the ADL.”
Please refer to Appendix 3 for more statements by Jewish-Americans supporting the recognition of the Armenian Genocide and criticizing the ADL’s opposition to it.
