The GOP antisemitism bill harms more than it helps
The Antisemitism Awareness Act that passed the House this week handicaps our ability to fight anti-Jewish bigotry
Representative Mike Lawler, a Republican from New York, during a news conference at the US Capitol, March 6, 2024. Lawler led the effort to pass the Antisemitism Awareness Act. Photo by Tierney L. Cross/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Just days after the heinous Hamas attack in southern Israel, President Joe Biden and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff held a poignant meeting with Jewish leaders Oct. 11. “We cannot do this alone,” the second gentleman told the group. “The story of the Jewish people has always been one of perseverance and resilience. In dark times, we come together, fight back, and seek to build a better world.”
The Biden administration fulfilled its pledge to confront this hatred head-on when it released its National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism last May. The strategy provides a roadmap for raising awareness and understanding of antisemitism while enhancing safety and security for Jewish communities. It is a comprehensive action plan, with over 100 concrete measures to combat anti-Jewish prejudice, counter and reverse the normalization of antisemitism, and foster cross-community solidarity and collective action against hate.
However, the strategy’s success hinges on Congress playing its part, and thus far, it has not. Indeed, yesterday, under the pretext of countering antisemitism, the House passed a bill called the Antisemitism Awareness Act, which cynically pays lip service to fighting this scourge while undermining the president’s comprehensive strategy.
I have spent decades working with elected officials and bringing the concerns of the Jewish community to lawmakers. From my perch, the AAA’s claim to helping combat the disturbing surge in anti-Jewish incidents across the United States is, upon closer examination, little more than a symbolic gesture that could actually weaken the fight against this bigotry.
The core provision of the House-approved AAA directs the Department of Education to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance working definition of antisemitism. This is a grave error. As IHRA itself states, its definition is non-legally binding and was not intended to be codified into law. Its adoption into legislation reflects a lack of seriousness compared to the concrete action items outlined in the National Strategy. At this moment of rising antisemitism, we need solutions rather than more rhetoric.
Yesterday, Rep. Jerry Nadler warned his House colleagues that passing the AAA would threaten “to chill constitutionally protected speech.” He was concerned not only about the codification of IHRA but also about the act’s assertion that “alternative definitions of antisemitism” could harm efforts to enforce laws related to this issue. This claim contradicts the intent of the National Strategy and undermines its effectiveness.
The Biden administration recognized the value of employing multiple frameworks for understanding antisemitism to bolster the fight against it. In the National Strategy, the administration provided its own comprehensive definition of antisemitism while acknowledging the importance of IHRA and other definitions as well. The administration understood that drawing on diverse perspectives could help explain how principles for identifying antisemitism might be applied in different situations, versus having one rigidly codified definition. IHRA itself encourages paying attention to context, an open-minded approach embodied in the National Strategy.
Distinctions and nuances are vital for developing strategies to fight this prejudice. If those with whom we disagree about Israel — sometimes vehemently — are labeled antisemitic without regard to nuance or context, they will not join us in coalition against anti-Jewish bigotry.
A viable strategy against this scourge — especially in a time of upheaval — must recognize this. It cannot ignore the tremendous racial, ethnic, religious and political diversity that exists in this country, a diversity reflected in an intense debate about Israel within the Jewish community, on college campuses, and beyond.
If policymakers are genuinely committed to this cause, they should unite behind the Countering Antisemitism Act, led by Sens. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) and James Lankford (R-Okla.), and Reps. Kathy Manning, (D-N.C.) and Chris Smith (R-N.J.). This legislation, introduced on April 10, before the recent AAA push, does not ignore definitions; it calls for IHRA to be used as a tool for identifying antisemitism, but it doesn’t codify it.
Instead, the bill’s real (and correct) focus is on action. It would establish the first-ever national coordinator to counter this hatred as it manifests itself in the United States, streamline coordination across domestic agencies and promote a comprehensive approach to eradicating this vile prejudice. It is the only serious legislative vehicle that strengthens and codifies the critical work already underway through Biden’s National Strategy.
The Countering Antisemitism Act is a tool for unifying our community and building cross-community alliances. We may disagree about Israeli policies — as a Jewish community and as Americans — but we must be united in confronting antisemitism and other forms of racism and discrimination.
As Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel taught us, “In a free society, some are guilty, but all are responsible.” We cannot combat antisemitism alone; we need allies from all communities who share our commitment to justice, equality and human dignity. If the Senate passes the AAA, it will alienate our political allies, including stalwart supporters of Jewish causes and Israel, and narrow the coalition we need to confront the spread of antisemitism.
I urge my colleagues in the Jewish community and my friends in Congress to resist divisive messaging bills that serve political and ideological interests and prioritize the Countering Antisemitism Act.
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