The Jewish Council for Public Affairs (formerly the American Jewish Public Affairs Committee), based in New York with offices in Washington, represents the organized American Jewish community, particularly in protecting the rights of Jews everywhere and in supporting a just and pluralistic American democracy.

The Jewish Peace Fellowship is based in Nyack, N.Y. It was begun in 1941 to defend the rights of conscientious objectors.

The American Jewish Committee is an international think tank and advocacy organization that works to identify and fight antisemitism and bigotry, protect human rights and protect Israel and Jewish life everywhere. Its executive director is Ted Deutch. Contact via Jon Schweitzer, managing director of marketing and communications.

The Pave the Way Foundation is a New York-based organization dedicated to fostering interreligious understanding. The foundation’s president, Gary Krupp, organized a January 2005 meeting at the Vatican between 160 Jewish leaders and the pope.

Phyllis Chesler of New York City is a prolific author and lecturer, an emeritus professor of psychology and a longtime human-rights activist. She is active in Jewish causes. She wrote The New Anti-Semitism: The Current Crisis and What We Must Do About It (Jossey-Bass, 2003). Contact through her website.

David Berger is a history professor at Brooklyn College who specializes in medieval Jewish history, Jewish-Christian relations, anti-Semitism, contemporary Orthodox Judaism, and the intellectual history of the Jews. He wrote a May 2004 essay in Commentary magazine titled “Jews, Christians and ‘The Passion.’”

Jack Wertheimer is the Joseph and Martha Mendelson Professor of American Jewish History at the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York City. The seminary is the central educational institution of the Conservative movement in Judaism. Among the dozen books Wertheimer has authored or edited are A People Divided: Judaism in Contemporary America, Jews in the […]

Ethan Felson is vice president and general counsel of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs.

The Anti-Defamation League tracks discrimination based on religion. ADL has 30 regional offices. Check with local ADL officials for a breakdown on the number and type of antisemitic incidents in your area and for leads on interfaith initiatives.