Archbishop of Jerusalem Confirmed to Address ADC Convention
The American- Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) is pleased to announce that His Excellency Archbishop Hilarion Capucci, the Archbishop of Jerusalem, is a confirmed featured speaker during the 2009 ADC Annual National Convention. Archbishop Capucci is one of the foremost leaders regardless of faith advocating for human rights in the world today.
In 1965, Hilarion Capucci was ordained Archbishop of Jerusalem and remained steadfastly committed to freedom and justice for Palestinians. Then, in 1974, the Israeli authorities detained the Archbishop on the allegation that he abused his religious status and privileges granted him by supporting the Palestinian political rights to live.
Archbishop Capucci maintained his innocence and denied all charges against him. He continued to pray and go on hunger strikes in demonstration against his arrest. Through the intervention of the Vatican, Archbishop Capucci was released after 4 years of imprisonment in an Israeli jail on the condition that he would be exiled from Palestine.
Archbishop Capucci continued to advocate for Palestinian rights and most recently, in January 2009, set sail with a group of human rights activists from Beirut to Gaza in an effort to break the Israeli blockade and provide much needed relief to the people of the Gaza Strip. The boat was diverted by Israeli authorities and Archbishop Capucci was again detained for several hours.
Join us in welcoming Archbishop Capucci at the 2009 ADC National Convention which will be held June 12-14 at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC.