By Executive Director, Jennifer Meeropol
(photo credit: Bud Korotzer, Desertpeace)
Breaking News: The RFC has launched a campaign calling on President Obama to exonerate my grandmother, Ethel Rosenberg. Please take a moment to sign the petition here, and see below for my account of the extraordinary events that led to this campaign. -JM
As we start 2016, I’ve found myself reflecting on several milestones of the last twelve months. In addition to the RFC’s 25th anniversary described in this issue’s cover story, 2015 saw several momentous developments in my grandparents’ case.
On July 15th, David Greenglass’ testimony before the grand jury investigating his sister and brother-in-law, Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, was finally released. Trial experts agree the testimony demonstrates David committed perjury when he testified against Ethel and that the new evidence seriously undermines the entire case against her (see www.rfc.org/caseoverview and www.rfc.org/supportingmaterials for more information).
In their August 10th Op-Ed in The New York Times, my father and uncle wrote in response to these revelations:
“The newly released [material] — along with previously released testimony and other records — demonstrates conclusively that our mother was prosecuted primarily for refusing to turn on our father.” They concluded the piece by calling for the exoneration of their mother. “Our mother was not a spy. The government held her life hostage to coerce our father to talk, and when that failed, it extracted false statements to secure her wrongful execution. The apparent rationale for such action — that national security demanded it during a time of international crisis — has disturbing implications in post-9/11 America. It is never too late to correct an egregious injustice. We call on the government to formally exonerate Ethel Rosenberg.”
While President Obama has not responded to their call, other elected officials have. Following significant media coverage of this newly available evidence, on September 28, 2015 (on what would have been my grandmother’s 100th birthday) Members of the New York City Council issued a proclamation which declared the U.S. government, “wrongfully executed Ethel Rosenberg.” The proclamation concluded,
“now therefore BE IT KNOWN: That we, the undersigned Members of the New York City Council, honor the life and memory of Ethel Rosenberg in observance of the 100th anniversary of her birth.”
In addition, the Manhattan Borough President bestowed a remarkable honor of her own on Ethel, proclaiming,
“I, Gale A. Brewer, do hereby recognize the injustice suffered by Ethel Rosenberg and her family, and on the occasion of her 100th birthday on Monday, September 28th, 2015, proclaim ‘Ethel Rosenberg Day of Justice in the Borough of Manhattan.’”
(Read both proclamations here.)
It was an extraordinary experience to stand with three generations of my family on the steps of City Hall while New York City politicians honored my grandmother’s actions, decried her execution, apologized for the wrong done to our family, and announced a day in her honor. I was amazed at what my father and uncle (pictured above) had accomplished after years of working with many others to make the proclamations a reality.
Everywhere I turned, I saw someone else for whom the day had special meaning: the director of the National Committee to Reopen the Rosenberg Case, a civil liberties attorney who worked with my sister, a family friend from my youth, and a contemporary of my grandparents who marched to try to stop the executions and took me aside to say she was there in memory of her husband, who died before he saw this remarkable result of their years of protest.
Personally and professionally, I continue to feel the effects from these extraordinary developments and I expect this trend to continue throughout this year. Look for more news from us about three significant events we anticipate in the coming months:
- 60 Minutes is developing a story inspired by the news about Ethel that they plan to air this spring.
- A major film studio has hired a writer and engaged family members as consultants for a TV mini-series about my grandparents.
- The RFC has launched an online petition campaign to exonerate my grandmother. Sign the petition and help spread the word, here.
I encourage you to subscribe to our email list and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, for additional information on these and other developments as soon as it is available.