Law enforcement authorities in Pennsylvania have opened an investigation into the Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention following a complaint filed by relatives of Jewish jurist Raphael Lemkin and the European Jewish Association.
The complainants allege that the institute used Lemkin’s name without authorization. Lemkin coined the term “genocide” and played a major role in shaping the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. The complaint also alleges that donations were raised using his legacy, against the family’s position.
The investigation does not focus on the institute’s positions or its allegations against Israel, but rather on the use of the Lemkin name and issues related to nonprofit law and fundraising in Pennsylvania. The findings could determine whether the institute will be allowed to continue operating under its current name or will be required to make changes.
In recent years, the Lemkin Institute has been at the center of controversy over a series of publications accusing Israel of committing genocide.
On October 17, 2023, just 10 days after the Hamas attack and before the start of the IDF’s ground operation in the Gaza Strip, the institute published a statement accusing Israel of genocide. Since then, it has issued dozens of statements, opinions and condemnations repeating the claim, becoming one of the bodies most closely associated worldwide with use of the term in relation to the war in Gaza.
The institute continued to publish documents and statements arguing that Israel committed genocide in Gaza, and became one of the organizations most frequently cited by anti-Israel groups and international campaigns promoting similar claims.
At the center of the complaint is Joseph Lemkin, the closest living relative of Raphael Lemkin. Together with the European Jewish Association, he asked the institute to stop using the family name, but the request was rejected. According to the complainants, despite the family’s opposition, the institute continued to operate under the name “Lemkin.”
Francesca Albanese, who mocked a mother whose daughter was murdered on October 7
(Photo: Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)
Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism Minister Amichai Chikli wrote Monday to Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, asking that the investigation into the institute be advanced “quickly, professionally and without unnecessary delays.”
The complaint further argues that the Lemkin Institute uses the name of the jurist who helped shape the UN genocide convention after the Holocaust to promote positions that contradict his legacy and worldview. Chikli described it as a “political use” of the term genocide.
The European Jewish Association said the institute had given a platform and public support to Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur on the Palestinian territories, who has shared the institute’s content over the years. Albanese has also mocked a mother whose daughter was murdered on October 7 and called Israel an “enemy of humanity.”
The complainants also said the institute previously published a claim that flour sacks distributed in Gaza through the American-Israeli humanitarian foundation contained drugs. The claim, which was traced to Hamas-affiliated media channels, was rejected by U.S. officials.
At the heart of the dispute is also the question of how Raphael Lemkin himself would have viewed the institute’s activity. His relatives and some academic figures argue that Lemkin was a Zionist and supported the right of the Jewish people to self-determination in the Land of Israel. In their view, using his name to promote accusations against Israel contradicts his legacy.
Rabbi Menachem Margolin, chairman of the European Jewish Association, said: “The audacity of taking over the name and moral authority of a person against the explicit wishes of his family, and using it in a way that is the complete opposite of his legacy, solely for the antisemitic purpose of fighting the State of Israel, is an absurd scandal that is also completely contrary to the law.”
“We are not asking for special treatment,” he added. “We are asking for the law to be applied and for the institute to stop spreading hatred of Israel around the world.”
The Lemkin Institute rejected the allegations against it and continued to present its activity as part of a global struggle to prevent genocide and defend human rights.