WORLDWIDE FINANCIAL ='\ Major Jewish Groups Support The ADL SANDY NORMAN THE $10,000,000 MAN AT TOWN & COUNTRY SELECTED OUTSTANDING REALTOR Century 21's most successful agent in the midwest 1989-1992 WORLD WIDE FINANCIAL SERVICES THE MORTGAGE LENDER Ask For Brad Silverstein 647-1199 1 533 N. Woodward, Suite 140 • Bloomfield Hills, MI 48304 New York (JTA) — Jewish organizations have closed ranks behind the embattled Anti-Defamation League, which is under investigation by the San Francisco Police Department on suspicion of carrying out illegal informa- tion-gathering activities. In separate statements, four major umbrella groups have expressed their con- fidence that the accusations leveled against the ADL would prove groundless. The groups are the Con- ference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, the National Jewish Community Rela- tions Advisory Council, the World Jewish Congress and the American Zionist Movement. "ADL deserves our respect and confidence. We are cer- tain that after all the legal processes are concluded, our trust in and respect for the ADL will be justified," read a statement issued by Lester Pollack, chairman of the Conference of Presidents, and Malcolm Hoenlein, ex- ecutive vice chairman. The controversy surroun- ding the ADL stems from ac- cusations made by the San Francisco police that the organization illegally ob- tained information using a variety of means, including wiretapping and the pur- chase of confidential police files. No formal charges have been filed yet, although the police executed search war- rants at the ADL's Los Angeles and San Francisco offices earlier this month. Police officials claim the ADL's violations came about as part of its effort to keep tabs on thousands of in- dividuals and organizations as part of a nationwide "spy network." ADL, an organization founded to fight anti- Semitism and racism, main- tains it has not broken any laws and that its compila- tion of information on racist and extremist groups has been totally legitimate. The ADL reiterated this stand to the 20 or so repre- sentatives of Jewish organ- izations who gathered to draft the Conference of Pres- idents statement. A representative from Americans for Peace Now, the newest member of the 50-member conference, ask- ed about reports that her organization was among those concerning which ADL maintained files. "I was told that the folder marked APN contains in- formational materials, our own publications and clipp- ings about our activities," said Letty Cottin Pogrebin, chair of Americans for Peace Now. "I certainly subscribe to the view that what's impor- tant is how people use files, and if I don't see any evidence that they have used the files to denigrate us, I don't have any problem with it," she said. NJCRAC, an umbrella group comprised of 13 na- tional and 117 community organizations, applauded the ADL's work, saying its "fact-finding activities have been significant in counter- ing extremism and protec- ting the rights of all Ameri- cans. "For this work, the organized American Jewish community, and indeed all who support civil rights for all Americans, are in the debt of the ADL." The American Zionist Movement, composed of 21 Zionist groups, likewise praised the ADL and dismissed the recent allega- tions against it. "The Anti-Defamation League is the pre-eminent organization devoted to the struggle against anti- Semitism, racism and bigotry," Seymour Reich, president of the movement, said in a statement. "Having heard the report of the leadership of the ADL, we reject the allegations that ADL has employed il- legal methodologies in the course of information gathering," he added. The World Jewish Con- gress also joined the chorus of support for ADL. "The World Jewish Con- gress, representing the Jew- ish communities of 86 coun- tries, expresses its full con- fidence in the integrity of the operations of the ADL," a WJC statement said.