Adidas, Anti-Defamation League create anti-bigotry curriculum for student athletes, enlist athletes to fight antisemitism
NEW YORK -- The president of Adidas made a big announcement in in the city on Thursday, one week after the company ended its relationship with rapper Kanye West.
As CBS2's Lisa Rozner reported, it's one of several measures that were taken at what was considered to be the world's largest summit on antisemitism.
In front of more than 2,000 people at the Jacob Javits Center, Rupert Campbell, the president of Adidas North America, denounced the antisemitic comments made by West, who is now known as "Ye."
READ MORE: Stephen Colbert says Kanye West is banned from "The Late Show" theater: "Stay out of Times Square"
The Anti-Defamation League said at its global summit Wednesday that thousands of people lobbied the company to cut ties with the rapper.
"First, we acknowledge that we don't always get things right," Campbell said. "The racist and antisemitic hate speech by our former partner violated our values. We took action to begin dismantling the partnership. This took time, given the complexity of the partnership. But we remain committed to living our values."
Besides West, NBA star Kyrie Irving has also been under fire for promoting an antisemitic film.
READ MORE: Kyrie Irving apologizes to Jewish community following 5-game suspension
"The past few weeks have been quite difficult," said Scott Richman, regional director of the ADL of New York and New Jersey.
With the ADL, Adidas is going to create an anti-bigotry curriculum for student athletes, and enlist professional athletes to fight against antisemitism.
"If you're not Jewish, be prepared to assert yourself as an ally because our struggle is your struggle. It's America's struggle," said Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the ADL. "ADL tracked a 34 percent increase in anti-Jewish acts in 2021. That was the highest number we've ever seen in more than 40 years of doing this work. This is no longer a situation of concern. This is a state of emergency."
READ MORE: Kanye West's antisemitic comments spark conversations in New York City about hatred and prejudice
FBI Director Christopher Wray said 63 percent of religious hate crimes are motivated by antisemitism, targeting a group that makes up just 2.4 percent of the population.
He said foreign terrorist organizations, and people on U.S. soil have hateful views paraded online, which can boil over into acts of violence.
"On the criminal side, we designated civil rights, specifically including hate crimes, as a national threat priority," Wray said.
READ MORE: American Jewish Committee urges Amazon to pull antisemitic film Kyrie Irving promoted
Professors and university students also shared their experiences with antisemitism on college campuses.
"Vandalizing Chabad and Hillel property and other Jewish property. Defacing posters that Jewish students put up for their events. Shutting down speakers, which happens all the time. None of that, including pervasive harassment, is protected speech," said Dr. Miriam Elman, executive director of the Academic Engagement Network.
"Friends" actor David Schwimmer participated in a discussion on antisemitism and racism with distinguished professor Michael Eric Dyson.
"It's kind of a moral obligation to leave the world a better place than how we found it," Schwimmer said.
The ADL also announced it's acquiring the Jewish investment watchdog J-Lens to promote socially responsible investing.
