As anti-Israel protests intensify on college campuses across the country, the House of Representatives voted to expand the legal definition of anti-Semitism used to enforce anti-discrimination laws.
The bipartisan Anti-Semitism Awareness Act, if passed by the Senate and signed by President Biden, would require the Department of Education to legally adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA). definition of antisemitism When enforcing anti-discrimination rules.
Critics of the bill attacked it as government overreach and said it would harm free speech on campus.
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The House of Representatives passed a bill expanding the definition of anti-Semitism for academia. (Getty Images)
Like most issues arising from Israel’s war against Hamas, the vote divided Democratic opinion. A growing number of left-wing voices, particularly progressives, are criticizing the US government’s stance on Israel’s invasion of Gaza and the war.
The bill was supported by more than a dozen Democrats, including Jewish representatives Josh Gottheimer (D.J.), Jared Moskowitz (D.), and Ritchie Torres (D.Y.). I had supporters.
It was up 320-91 on Wednesday.
The opposition was led in part by Rep. Jerry Nadler (D.N.Y.), a Jewish progressive who is the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee.
“This definition, adopted by the International Holocaust Remembrance Association (IHRA), includes contemporary examples, quotations and citations of anti-Semitism. The problem is that these examples do not have any context, particularly towards the state of Israel. “In terms of criticism, it could involve protected speech,” Nadler said during the bill’s consideration.
“To be clear, I strongly disagree with the sentiments against Israel expressed in these instances, and too often criticism of Israel actually takes the form of vicious anti-Semitism. ”
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Rep. Jerry Nadler of New York is leading Democratic opposition to the bill. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
On the other side of the aisle, Kentucky Republican Rep. Thomas Massey spoke out against the bill on the morning of the vote.
“This is a poorly thought out and unconstitutional bill and I will vote against it,” Massey said, along with a screenshot of what it defines as anti-Semitism on the IHRA website. I wrote to X.
These include “arguing that the existence of the state of Israel is a racist act” and “comparing modern Israeli policy with that of the Nazis.”
Rep. Mike Lawler (R.N.Y.), who sponsored the bill, told FOX News Digital, “I don’t want people to justify the murder of Jews, to use bloody defamation, to show solidarity with Jews against that act.” “When it engages in harassment or bullying of Jewish individuals in a way that creates liability.” It’s unfortunate that the Israeli government’s version is anti-Semitic and needs to be made clear, but that’s why we need this bill. ”
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Student protesters march around an encampment on the Columbia University campus on Monday, April 29, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Stephen Jeremiah)
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He also reiterated his criticism of anti-Israel protests at universities such as Columbia University and Yale University, where tensions have escalated to the point where Jewish students report feeling unsafe on campus.
“There is no place for anti-Semitism on college campuses,” said Rep. Pat Ryan, D-N.Y., one of the Democrats sponsoring the bill.
“We need to take an aggressive, multi-pronged approach to keeping Jewish students safe, and that means passing the Anti-Semitism Awareness Act immediately,” Ryan told Fox News Digital. .
