The Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith reported today it has been swamped with telephone calls in the aftermath of a blistering verbal attack against the “illegal Zionist colony known as Israel,” delivered yesterday by the leader of the Black United Front, Absolom Jordan on a major Washington television and radio network. Jordan was speaking on WTOP-TV, the Washington affiliate of CBS. The station invited the Black militant to air his views as a rebuttal to their own editorial comment against political hijackings.
In his comments, Jordan condemned Israel “for its support of oppression.” He declared, “those people who stole a nation from the Palestinians are pirates,” and lauded Libya as “the last bastion of freedom and hope for oppressed and exploited Black political prisoners.” Jordan also accused the WTOP broadcasting station of “Zionist ownership.” The WTOP editorial office told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency that it could only surmise Jordan was referring to Daniel Gold, general manager of WTOP-TV, or Larry Israel, chairman of the board of the Washington Post-Newsweek stations.
WTOP, after much deliberation, agreed to let Jordan speak so he might “expose himself for what he is.” His address was rebroadcast on the radio several times throughout the day. WTOP noted a deluge of outraged phone calls followed the broadcast. They have as yet received no calls from any Black organizations disassociating themselves from Jordan’s comments. The Black United Front which Jordan represents is a local Washington group formed five years ago. The Anti-Defamation League said it will meet next week to decide upon an avenue of counteraction.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
