2025-07-05 11:15 <br/> Tags: #organization #KeyOrganizations #AmericanJewry #Lobby ![[image-136.png|698x151]] # American Jewish Committee (AJC) - The American Jewish Committee (AJC) is a highly influential center-left pro-Israel American Jewish organization. - The AJC is an establishment Jewish organization. - The AJC is the "quiet diplomat" of the Jewish lobby. It is highly involved in guiding American government policy. - The AJC has consistently held left wing positions regarding immigration, LGBT, civil rights, "voting rights," etc. - The AJC is left wing politically. Domestic left wing politics are usually ancillary to its Jewish lobbying and coalition building. #### Early History (1906-1948) - The AJC was founded in 1906 by a small group of elite (mostly German) Jewish Americans. - [[Louis Marshall]] was the primary founder of the AJC. - The AJC was founded after news of antisemitic pogroms came out of Russia. *The Jews of America had an innate affinity for the Jews of Russia. The implications are more notable when recognizing the AJC was founded by American German Jews, not Russian immigrant Jews.* - The AJC was formed as a committee of 50 with an executive committee of 13. - Many of the most prominent American Jews of the time were involved in the founding and early history of the AJC including: - [[Mayer Sulzberger]] - First AJC president (1906-1912) - [[Louis Marshall]] - Second AJC president (1912-1929) - Cyrus Adler - Third AJC president (1929-1940) - [[Sol Stroock]] - Fourth AJC president (1941) - [[Maurice Wertheim]] - Fifth AJC president (1941-1943) - [[Joseph Proskauer]] - Sixth AJC president (1943-1949) - [[Adolf Kraus]] - Leader of [[B'nai B'rith]] - [[Julian Mack]] - Chicago judge, AJC vice-president - [[Julius Rosenwald]] - Owner of Sears - [[Adolph Lewisohn]] - Banker - [[Emil G. Hirsch]] - [[Jacob Schiff]] - Financier - [[Oscar Straus]] - U.S Secretary of Commerce and Labor (Commerce Secretary) - The AJC was involved with the [[American Jewish Congress]] from its beginnings in 1918. - The AJC strongly endorsed the [[Balfour Declaration]] in April of 1918. - The AJC was among the first iterations of Jewish lobbying in the United States. - AJC leaders [[Louis Marshall]] and [[Isaac Hourwich]] spent the early 1920s lobbying congress against strict immigration laws. - Their efforts had little effect on the passing of the Immigration Act of 1924. *The 1924 legislation applied strict ethnic/national quotas to immigration. 41 years later the 1965 Hart-Cellar Act largely repealed the Immigration Act of 1924.* - The AJC had relations with Woodrow Wilson and lobbied him to support Jews in Eastern Europe during WWI. - The AJC lobbied Calvin Coolidge and FDR regarding antisemitism and immigration. - The AJC engaged in mass Jewish lobbying efforts on President Truman and the United Nations from 1945-1948 regarding the [[UN Partition Plan]] and the future of world Jewry after WWII. >[!info] Henry Ford - Enemy Number One - In from 1924-1927 the AJC and the [[ADL]] fought a vicious legal battle against renowned industrialist Henry Ford over his criticisms of organized world Jewry. - The Jewish organizations and their allies organized a libel suit and boycotts of Ford's businesses. - Organized Jewry led by [[Louis Marshall]] and the ADL launched a smear campaign of Ford's person and his publication the *Dearborn Independent*. - Ford eventually capitulated. - Ford's apology/retraction letter was dictated by AJC leader Louis Marshall. - Ford's *Dearborn Independent* was shut down. - This is one of the first major instances of organized American Jewry deploying a now all too familiar tactic of public shaming and boycotting. - Ford was a nationally beloved figure, his capitulation is a testament to the early power of organized Jewry. --- - The AJC was founded on a principle of "quiet diplomacy." - They aimed to effect change through pinpointed lobbying efforts. - The AJC flourished in small elite circles. - The AJC took a cautious approach to the Zionist project at first. - The AJC did not begin to favor Zionism until after WWII and particularly after the foundation of Israel in 1948. *My going definition of early Zionism and use of the EarlyZionism tag is based on the year 1948. I don't consider the AJC "early Zionist" since it did not adopt Zionism until Israel was created.* - In 1945 the AJC founded the magazine *[[Commentary]]*. - [[Elliot Cohen (editor)]] was hired by the AJC to be the first editor of *Commentary*. - [[Norman Podhoretz]] was editor of *Commentary* from 1960-1995. - Podhoretz is a crucial founding father of American [[Neoconservatism]]. - *Commentary* became independent of the AJC in 2007. - *Commentary* was one of the most influential [[Neoconservatism|neocon]] publications. - *Commentary* was hugely influential in the Jewish shift towards the right wing in the latter half of the 20th century. - *Commentary* was on the front lines pushing the [[Iraq War]] in 2003 while it was still under the AJC umbrella. #### AJC in the United States (Post 1948) - The AJC is registered as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in the United States, though it operates globally. - The AJC is headquartered in New York. - The AJC is structured with a board of governors, an executive council, regional offices, and a number of specialized institutes. - The AJC initially only gave membership by invite. - This changed in the mid 20th century when the AJC began a paid mass membership program, offering tiers of membership with varying exclusivity. --- - AJC president [[Jacob Blaustein]] (1949-1954) led the AJC towards Zionism and support for the new state of Israel. - Blaustein is noted for his agreement with [[David Ben-Gurion]] regarding the role of American Jewry in Israeli politics. - Blaustein was involved in lobbying the State Department in the 1950s on behalf of Israel. - AJC president [[Morris Abram]] (1963-68) led the AJC's expansion into the civil rights movement. - The AJC under Abram became a strong anti-segregationist activist organization. - The AJC had bolstered the *Brown v. Board of Education* case by commissioning studies on segregation's impact on black kids. - The AJC was part of the committee sponsoring the 1963 March on Washington. - The AJC was involved in numerous civil rights era events and coordinated with the [[NAACP]]. - Morris Abram later chaired the United Negro College Fund, which gives scholarships to blacks and funds dozens of HBCUs. - In 1990 [[David Harris]] became AJC CEO. - Harris was president until 2022, making his 32 years the longest of any AJC leader. - The AJC under Harris joined the [[Conference of Presidents]] in 1991. - In 2022 former Democrat Jewish Congressman [[Ted Deutch]] became AJC president. - Deutch is the current AJC CEO. ![[image-137.png|496x331]] *[[Ted Deutch]], current CEO of the AJC.* #### AJC Today - The AJC has partnered with the Jewish fundraising body the [[Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA)]] and its precursor [[United Jewish Appeal (UJA)]]. - The AJC is commonly involved with the [[World Jewish Congress]]. - The AJC operates a young leadership program called ACCESS. - The AJC runs a number of podcasts including: - *People of the Pod* - *Architects of Peace: The Abraham Accords Story* - *The Forgotten Exodus* - *Passport* (formerly) - The AJC has a digital content curation platform called Advocacy Anywhere. *Advocate for what?* >[!info] AJC - Immigration Policy >- The AJC continues to advocate for increased immigration to the United States, both legal and illegal. *The following is abridged directly from the 2023 AJC immigration policy.* >- The AJC supports making it easier for "asylum seekers" to enter the United States and attain permanent residence. > - The AJC calls for all illegal immigrants to be granted a pathway to citizenship. > - The AJC calls for the ~800,000 Dreamers *(illegal childhood arrivals)* to be given security from deportation. > - The AJC praises the mass-use of temporary protected status (TPS) for migrants from third world countries including Somalia, Venezuela, Haiti, Ethiopia, Syria, Honduras, Sudan, Yemen, etc. > - The AJC immigration policy states "The capacity of refugee processing programs should be increased urgently." > - The AJC also states that detention of illegal aliens should occur "only where a serious threat is determined to exist, not as a default procedure." *In other words, don't detain illegals upon entry.* > - #RedPill *Mass non-white immigration to the United States and Jewish organizations have a long history.* - AJC runs an online glossary of antisemitic tropes and terms called #TranslateHate - The glossary includes entries such as: - The Goyim know - Greed - Globalist - Great replacement - Jewish communist - Jewish capitalist - Jewish lobby - Jewish power - Pepe the frog - The Groypers - Laughing merchant - ZOG - The AJC releases an annual report on the State of Antisemitism in America. - The 2024 report features the results of a long 21 question survey presented to both Jews and non-Jews with their results contrasted. *Here is the link to the 2024 survey results, I find the nature of the questions and the subtle implications of the results to be worth taking a look at.* https://www.ajc.org/AntisemitismReport2024/Comparison - The AJC organizes diplomatic delegations of US government officials to Israel. - Likewise, the AJC brings Israeli diplomats to the US. - The AJC is involved in significant lobbying activity in Washington, D.C. - The AJC hosts meetings with members of the State Department, Congress, ambassadors, etc., and organizes public pressure campaigns. - The AJC produces policy guidelines on issues regarding Israel, Israel's enemies, and antisemitism. - The AJC lobbies for all the typical demands: - Adoption of the [[International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA)]] definition of antisemitism - More aid for Israel - Opposition to boycotts of Israel - Oppositions to all of Israel's enemies - Opposition to Palestinian statehood - Demanding crackdowns on "rising antisemitism" - Demanding colleges police antisemitism - A month after [[October 7th]], the AJC joined a coalition of Jewish organizations calling for big tech companies to censor antisemitism. - The coalition included: the AJC, the [[World Jewish Congress]], the [[Conference of Presidents]], the [[ADL]], the [[Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA)]], [[Mercaz USA]], [[B'nai B'rith]], the [[JCC Association of North America]], the [[Combat Antisemitism Movement]], [[Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS)]], the [[Maccabee Task Force]], [[Hadassah]], and the [[American Zionist Movement (AZM)]] among a number of others. - In July of 2025 France announced its intention to recognize a Palestinian state at the upcoming UN General Assembly in September 2025. - The AJC joined the [[ADL]], [[AIPAC]], [[B'nai B'rith]], the [[Conference of Presidents]], the [[UJA-Federation of New York]], and the [[World Jewish Congress]] in a coalition condemning the French decision. - In their joint statement the Jewish organizations declared that France was "rewarding Hamas," "risking the security of Jewish people around the globe," and "dishonoring the victims of [[October 7th]]." - The statement concludes with praise for [[Donald Trump]]'s opposition to the French proposal. - The AJC produces propaganda reports and [[Hasbara]] webpages such as: - "What Every American Should Know About U.S. Aid to Israel" - "Everything You Need to Know About Antisemitism" - "What Does 'Free Palestine' Really Mean?" - "Why Israel Had No Choice: Inside the Defensive Strike That Shook Iran’s Nuclear Program" #### Activities in Israel/Abroad - AJC has a presence in ~36 countries/regions. - The AJC has major global presences in Israel, Brazil, Japan, Germany, France, and Abu Dhabi. - The AJC center in Abu Dhabi was the first of its kind for Jewish organizations in the Persian Gulf. - The AJC offices act as hubs for AJC diplomatic activity; somewhat like an embassy. - [[Project Interchange]] was founded in 1982 and became an AJC program in 1992. - Project Interchange brings figures from academia, journalism, religion, government, and military from around the world on annual trips to Israel for curated propaganda tours. - The Project Interchange trips are heavily focused on spreading Israeli [[Hasbara]] (propaganda). #### Donors and Funding - The AJC reported $88 million in revenue in 2023. - That same year the AJC reported $298 million in assets. - The AJC is not required to disclose the names of its donors, so a complete list cannot be achieved. - The AJC, like all of the Jewish organizations, benefits from the contributions of Jewish megadonors. - We know that in 2020 over $24 million came from just three donors. - In 2021 over $9 million came from just two donors. - Verified donors include: - The Chicago Community Trust - $10,053,250 in 2023 supporting [[Project Interchange]] - The Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program - $4,466,576 in 2024 - [[Jewish Communal Fund]] - $2.24 million in grants for 2025 - [[Sidney Lerner]] - undisclosed amount supporting the AJC's Abu Dhabi center - The Ford Foundation - $2.7 million between 2009 and 2020 - [[Barry Sternlicht]] - $2 million in 2023 through his family foundation - [[Paul Singer]] via the [[Paul E. Singer Foundation]] - $157,600 from 2014-2024 [^1] #### References - “American Jewish Committee.” _Wikipedia._ [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Jewish_Committee](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Jewish_Committee) - “American Jewish Committee (AJC).” _Jewish Virtual Library._ [https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/american-jewish-committee-ajc](https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/american-jewish-committee-ajc) - Schachner, Nathan. _The Price of Liberty: A History of the American Jewish Committee._ New York: American Jewish Committee, 1948. PDF, Berman Jewish Policy Archive. https://www.bjpa.org/content/upload/bjpa/the_/THE%20PRICE%20OF%20LIBERTY%20A%20HISTORY%20OF%20THE%20AMERICAN%20JEWISH%20COMMITTEE%201948.pdf - Ben-Gurion, David, and Jacob Blaustein. “Exchange Between AJC President Jacob Blaustein and Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion (August 23, 1950).” PDF, Shalom Hartman Institute. [https://shi-webfiles.s3.amazonaws.com/Background_Reading_iEngage-Values_Lecture_six_Exchange_between_Blaustein_and_BenGurion.pdf](https://shi-webfiles.s3.amazonaws.com/Background_Reading_iEngage-Values_Lecture_six_Exchange_between_Blaustein_and_BenGurion.pdf) - Gruen, George E., ed. _In Vigilant Brotherhood._ New York: American Jewish Committee, 1964. PDF, Berman Jewish Policy Archive. [https://www.bjpa.org/content/upload/bjpa/in_v/IN%20VIGILANT%20BROTHERHOOD.pdf](https://www.bjpa.org/content/upload/bjpa/in_v/IN%20VIGILANT%20BROTHERHOOD.pdf) - American Jewish Committee (AJC). “What Every American Should Know About U.S. Aid to Israel.” November 24, 2025. [https://www.ajc.org/news/what-every-american-should-know-about-us-aid-to-israel](https://www.ajc.org/news/what-every-american-should-know-about-us-aid-to-israel) - AJC. _“What Does ‘Free Palestine’ Really Mean.”_ AJC. [https://www.ajc.org/news/what-does-free-palestine-really-mean](https://www.ajc.org/news/what-does-free-palestine-really-mean) - AJC. _“Why Israel Had No Choice: Inside the Defensive Strike That Shook Iran’s Nuclear Program.”_ AJC. [https://www.ajc.org/news/why-israel-had-no-choice-inside-the-defensive-strike-that-shook-irans-nuclear-program](https://www.ajc.org/news/why-israel-had-no-choice-inside-the-defensive-strike-that-shook-irans-nuclear-program) - American Jewish Committee (AJC). “10 Great Moments of # BlackJewishUnity.” September 10, 2020. [https://www.ajc.org/news/10-great-moments-of-blackjewishunity](https://www.ajc.org/news/10-great-moments-of-blackjewishunity) - American Jewish Committee (AJC). “Major American Jewish Organizations Decline Meeting with French Foreign Minister Over Premature Palestinian State Recognition.” Press release, July 25, 2025. [https://www.ajc.org/news/major-american-jewish-organizations-decline-meeting-with-french-foreign-minister](https://www.ajc.org/news/major-american-jewish-organizations-decline-meeting-with-french-foreign-minister) - Ford Foundation. “American Jewish Committee - Immigration Reform Training and Policy Analysis.” Grant #111123, May 2009–December 2010. [https://www.fordfoundation.org/work/our-grants/awarded-grants/grants-database/american-jewish-committee-111123/](https://www.fordfoundation.org/work/our-grants/awarded-grants/grants-database/american-jewish-committee-111123/) - Cause IQ. “American Jewish Committee (AJC) - Who Funds AJC.” (Grantmaker transactions list with amounts and dates.) [https://www.causeiq.com/organizations/american-jewish-committee%2C135563393/](https://www.causeiq.com/organizations/american-jewish-committee%2C135563393/) - Jewish Virtual Library. “AJC Surveys of American Jewish Opinion.” https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/ajc-surveys-of-american-jewish-opinion - Sternlicht Family Foundation. _“Sternlicht Family Foundation | Wilmington, DE | Cause IQ.”_ Cause IQ. [https://www.causeiq.com/organizations/sternlicht-family-foundation%2C260039094/](https://www.causeiq.com/organizations/sternlicht-family-foundation%2C260039094/) - American Jewish Committee (AJC). _“American Jewish Committee (AJC) | Charity Ratings | Donating Tips | Best Charities | CharityWatch.”_ CharityWatch. [https://www.charitywatch.org/charities/american-jewish-committee-ajc](https://www.charitywatch.org/charities/american-jewish-committee-ajc) - American Jewish Committee. _“Letter to Big Tech.”_ AJC. [https://www.ajc.org/LettertoBigTech](https://www.ajc.org/LettertoBigTech) [^1]: ProPublica, “Paul E Singer Foundation,” [https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/272009342](https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/272009342)