The Israeli-American Council is an Israeli-American community organization that aims to strengthen the American Jewish community, future generations of Israeli-Americans, and Israel. It is the largest organization of Israeli-Americans in the United States. ¹

The organization states that it “wholeheartedly supports the State of Israel” and its people. It also supports “a strong U.S.-Israel relationship that is based on the shared values of both nations.” ²

On April 28, 2024, the Israeli-American Council led a counter-protest to an anti-Israel demonstration at the University of California Los Angeles. Israeli-American Council chief executive officer Elan Carr addressed the pro-Israel protesters stating, “We will take back our streets. We will take back our campuses from Columbia University to UCLA and everywhere in between.” ³

Background

The Israeli-American Council (IAC) is an Israeli-American community organization that was founded in 2007 as the Israeli Leadership Council (ILC). ILC aimed to strengthen the American Jewish community, future generations of Israeli-Americans, and the State of Israel. ⁴

The Israeli Leadership Council changed its name to Israeli-American Council in 2013, and by the end of 2014, the organization had established six regional offices across the United States. Its national headquarters was located in Los Angeles, with other offices in New York, New Jersey, Boston, Miami, and Las Vegas. ⁵

IAC also held the first Israeli-American Community National Conference in Washington D.C. at the end of 2014. ⁶

University Campus Gaza Protests

Anti-Israel protests began spreading to university campuses across the United States in April 2024 in response to Israel’s conduct during the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza. The protests began at Columbia University when demonstrators set up encampments on the main university grounds. According to The Guardian, the student protesters claimed they would occupy the campus lawn until the university “divests from companies with ties to Israel.” The demands from the students align with the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) movement, an international campaign to delegitimize the State of Israel as the expression of the Jewish people’s right to national self-determination by isolating the country economically through consumer boycotts, business and government withdrawal of investment, and legal sanctions. ^{7 8 9}

The Israeli-American Council led a counter-protest against anti-Israel demonstrators at the University of California, Los Angeles on April 28, 2024. IAC chief executive officer Elan Carr addressed the pro-Israel protesters stating “we will take back our streets. We will take back our campuses from Columbia University to UCLA and everywhere in between.” ¹⁰

During the counter-protest, IAC played the Israeli national anthem and played videos of the Hamas terrorist attacks of October 7, 2023 on a large screen. According to the Los Angeles Times, the videos contained “a running torrent of loud, disturbing sounds over a stereo—an eagle screeching, a child crying—and blasted a Hebrew rendition of the song, ‘Baby Shark’ on repeat, late at night, so that campers could not sleep.” ¹¹

Two days after the initial counter-protest, pro-Israel demonstrators returned and played “gruesome footage from the October 7 attacks.” ¹²

People

Elan S. Carr is the Israeli-American Council’s chief executive officer. Prior to his position at IAC, Carr was a senior United States diplomat, spent 20 years as an officer in the U.S. Army Reserves where he led an anti-terrorism team in Iraq, and spent more than 10 years as a Deputy District Attorney for Los Angeles County. ¹³

Carr was appointed the United States Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism in 2019, is a voting member of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, and a national council member of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. ¹⁴

Financials

The Israeli-American Council receives most of its revenue in the form of contributions gifts and grants. The organization had a total revenue of $18.5 million in 2022; $21,000 came from membership dues, $820,000 from fundraising events, a little under $1.5 million from government contributions, and just over $14.8 million from all other contributions. The Israeli-American Council’s total expenses amounted to just over $17.2 million in 2022, of which just under $7.2 million was spent on salaries and wages, while $731,544 was spent on executive compensation. ¹⁵

Funding

The Israeli-American Council received one grant worth $100,000 in 2011, and another worth $200,000 in 2016 from the Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles, a grantmaking organization supporting nonprofit programs that support Jewish communities in California, across the United States, and around the world. ¹⁶

IAC was also listed as a recipient of a 2021 grant from the Rose Community Foundation, a left-leaning Jewish non-profit organization that addresses issues of racism and injustice in the Jewish community in Denver, although no amount was publicly listed. ^{17 18}

1. “The history of the IAC.” IAC | Israeli American Council. April 25, 2015. Accessed June 14, 2024. https://www.israeliamerican.org/national/history-of-iac.
2. “IAC FAQ Guide.” Israeli American Council. March 11, 2019. Accessed June 17, 2024. https://www.israeliamerican.org/faq
3. Bamford, James. “The Israel-Affiliated Organization Leading the Backlash Against Student Protests.” The Nation. May 16, 2024. Accessed June 17, 2024. https://www.thenation.com/article/activism/israeli-american-council/.
4. “The history of the IAC.” IAC | Israeli American Council. April 25, 2015. Accessed June 14, 2024. https://www.israeliamerican.org/national/history-of-iac.
5. “The history of the IAC.” IAC | Israeli American Council. April 25, 2015. Accessed June 14, 2024. https://www.israeliamerican.org/national/history-of-iac
6. “The history of the IAC.” IAC | Israeli American Council. April 25, 2015. Accessed June 14, 2024. https://www.israeliamerican.org/national/history-of-iac.
7.  Aratani, Lauren. “Israel, Gaza and divestment: why are Columbia students protesting?.” The Guardian. April 22, 2024. Accessed June 17, 2024. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/apr/22/columbia-university-student-protests-israel-gaza.
8. Looker, Rachel. “Columbia University cancels main graduation amid protests.” BBC News. May 6, 2024. Accessed June 17, 2024. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-68965723.
9. “Calling out BDS anti-Semitism.” Canadian Jewish News. August 26, 2015. Accessed June 17, 2024. https://thecjn.ca/perspectives/opinions/calling-bds-anti-semitism/.
10. Bamford, James. “The Israel-Affiliated Organization Leading the Backlash Against Student Protests.” The Nation. May 16, 2024. Accessed June 17, 2024. https://www.thenation.com/article/activism/israeli-american-council/.
11. Bamford, James. “The Israel-Affiliated Organization Leading the Backlash Against Student Protests.” The Nation. May 16, 2024. Accessed June 17, 2024. https://www.thenation.com/article/activism/israeli-american-council/.
12. Bamford, James. “The Israel-Affiliated Organization Leading the Backlash Against Student Protests.” The Nation. May 16, 2024. Accessed June 17, 2024. https://www.thenation.com/article/activism/israeli-american-council/.
13. “Elan S. Carr.” Israeli American Council. October 2, 2023. Accessed June 17, 2024. https://www.israeliamerican.org/national-headquarters/team-member/elan-s-carr.
14. “Elan S. Carr.” Israeli American Council. October 2, 2023. Accessed June 17, 2024. https://www.israeliamerican.org/national-headquarters/team-member/elan-s-carr.
15. “Israeli American Council.” ProPublica. Accessed June 17, 2024. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/223951652/202313319349300431/full.
16. “Israeli-American Council.” Jewish Foundation of Los Angeles. January 1, 2016. Accessed June 17, 2024. https://www.jewishfoundationla.org/grant-org/israeli-american-council/.
17. “Our Story.” Rose Community Foundation. Accessed June 17, 2024. https://rcfdenver.org/our-story/.
18. “Rose Community Foundation Invests $2.1 Million in Jewish Life in 2021.” Rose Community Foundation. Accessed June 17, 2024. https://rcfdenver.org/insights/news-article/rose-community-foundation-invests-2-1-million-in-jewish-life-in-2021/.