ADC Brings Legal Weight to Protect Municipal Autonomy as Out-of-State Foundations Seek to Override a Democratically Enacted Law
MEDFORD, Mass., April 29, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) today announces it is serving as co-counsel in a Motion to Intervene filed in federal court (Case No. 1:26-cv-10589-GAO) to defend the Medford, Massachusetts’ Values-Aligned Local Investments Ordinance against a legal challenge brought by two out-of-state foundations.
ADC is filing alongside The Medford Coalition for Values-Aligned Investment and local counsel Micah-Shalom Kesselman. The organizations are intervening on behalf of municipal taxpayers and Medford community members advocating for fundamental human rights and who are directly impacted by the suppression of protected speech.
The ordinance – the third of its kind enacted in the United States – requires the city to divest public funds from weapons manufacturers, fossil fuels, private prisons, and companies found to be complicit in human rights violations, including in contexts such as the genocide in Palestine, companies in which Medford currently holds $12 million in trust fund investment. The ordinance was passed in August and has drawn support from a number of advocacy groups since, including Medford for Palestine, the New England Jewish Labor Committee, Medford’s Energy & Environment Committee and Medford People Power.
“This case will resonate across Arab American communities and beyond, particularly for communities concerned with global human rights issues, including those related to Palestine and Sudan. If the challenge succeeds, it could set a precedent threatening similar values-aligned investment policies nationwide. ADC is committed to ensuring that does not happen,” said ADC staff attorney Malak Afaneh. “ADC calls on the City of Medford to mount a full and vigorous defense of the ordinance and urges the court to grant the Motion to Intervene without delay.”
ABOUT THE ADC
The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) is the largest Arab American grassroots organization in the United States, founded in 1980 by former Senator James Abourezk. ADC’s mission is to defend and promote the human rights, civil rights, and liberties of at least 3.7 million Arab Americans residing in the United States. Through its work, ADC fights discrimination, enhances public understanding of Arab history and culture, and partners with marginalized communities globally to advance social justice. The ADC can be found online at: https://adc.org/.
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SOURCE American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee
