Micah Avni

Micah Avni is an Israeli businessman and a human rights and anti-terrorism activist.

Avni is a managing partner Jerusalem Global Ventures (JGV), a venture capital fund known for its investments in software, telecommunications, and life sciences-related start ups.[1][2] He Joined FGV as partner in 2000.[3] He previously worked as part of the Hi-Tech Practice Group at Yigal Arnon & Co.[3] He was one of the team that founded Deltathree.com.[3] Investors in JGV include Africa-Israel Investments, Agilent Technologies, AOL Time Warner, Bank of America, Bank Hapoalim, Bausch & Lomb, China Development Bank, Comverse, Conexant Systems, ECI Telecom, HarbourVest, Motorola, and Tyco.[4]

Childhood and family

Avni's family moved to Israel from Connecticut in the United States in 1984. His father, Richard Lakin, was a civil rights advocate and school principal in Waterbury, Connecticut before the family moved to Israel.[5][6] He was one of the Freedom Riders who marched with the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr..[5][7] After moving to Israel, Lakin taught English to mixed classes of Arabs and Jews.[5][7] Avni's mother is Karen Lakin.[6]

Avni chose to Hebraize his surname.[6]

Anti-terrorism activism

Avni's father, Richard Lakin, was stabbed in the face and chest and shot in the head by Palestinian attackers while riding the #78 bus in Jerusalem during the wave of Palestinian terrorism in October, 2015.[6]

In March, 2016, Avni spoke before the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, urging them, and United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to condemn the murder of a civilian on a bus in Israel as an act of terrorism, calling the failure of the United Nations and the Secretary General to do so an act of "hypocrisy."[7]

In the wake of his father's murder, Avni became a lead plaintiff in the Shurat HaDin#2015 Facebook lawsuit filed in a New York state court by 2,000 Israeli victims of Palestinian terror attack against Facebook on the grounds that the social media company permitted the posting of "incitement to murder and the glorification of violence against innocent civilians."[8][9][10] His father's murderer, Bahas Alian, had announced his planned attack in advance on Facebook.[6]

References

  1. ↑ Blackburn, Nicky (16 January 2004). "The Holy Grail of data disaster recovery". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  2. ↑ Wagner, Matti (19 February 2003). "Jerusalem Global Ventures gives in to investors". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 Cashman, Greer Fay (2 August 2000). "The Business Scene". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  4. ↑ Wagner, Matti (7 February 2003). "Jerusalem Global accuses partners of bad-mouthing". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  5. 1 2 3 "Jewish advocate of coexistence slain". Los Angeles Times. AP. 29 October 2015. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Rudoren, Jodi (28 October 2015). "Death Came on the No. 78 Bus". New York Times. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  7. 1 2 3 Lazaroff, Tovah; Harov, Lahav (22 March 2016). "Terror victim's son calls on Human Rights Council to condemn dad's murder". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  8. ↑ "When it comes to incitement, is Facebook biased against Israel?". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. Retrieved 2016-06-14.
  9. ↑ Yonah, jeremy Bob (2 March 2017). "Terrorism cases against Facebook reach climax. Son of murdered American-Israeli: 'Outraged' at media powerhouse". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  10. ↑ "Lakin v. Facebook – Shurat HaDin". israellawcenter.org. Retrieved 2016-06-14.
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