Dina Porat “Well written and well documented, Marcus’s new book on the definition of anti-Semitism is a timely publication: the recent rise of anti-Semitism worldwide has drawn attention to the crucial issue of defining it properly. Based on a vast variety of historical examples on the one hand, and referring to the present context on the other, Marcus offers insights and solutions that should be carefully listened to.” — Professor Dina Porat, Head of the Kantor Center, Tel Aviv University, and Chief Historian of Yad Vashem The Definition of Anti-Semitism (Oxford 2015) by Kenneth L. Marcus is available at amazon.com. What is anti-Semitism? While rooted in history, it remains a malady to this day, evidenced by the recent and widely publicized terrorist attacks in a Parisian market. But as times change, so does the term’s meaning. THE DEFINITION OF ANTI-SEMITISM by Kenneth L. Marcus (Oxford University Press Hardcover; September 2015; $29.95) is the first book-length study to explore what anti-Semitism means in the contemporary world. Previous efforts to define “anti-Semitism” have been complicated by the murky origins of the term, the contested politics that surround it, and the staggering diversity of its manifestations. Despite the conceptual confusion, though, defining it properly is a vitally important task given the salience of the issue: the year 2014 alone saw a measurable rise in anti-Semitic violence globally. After exploring how the definition of the term has evolved over the centuries, Marcus – who is the President and General Counsel of the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law – shifts to the present. He combines legal analysis of the meaning of the term with an anatomy of current public debates about what does—and does not—count as anti-Semitism. He then moves to specific episodes. Does the 1964 Civil Rights Act apply to American Jews? What is the line separating anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism in critiques of Israel? Finally, to what extent is anti-Semitism (rather than anti-Zionism) fueling critiques of Israel on American college campuses? A major intervention in a hotly contested international debate that is raging with renewed relevance, THE DEFINITION OF ANTI-SEMITISM is an important book for anyone interested in the new forms of anti-Semitism plaguing the world. ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Kenneth L. Marcus Kenneth L. Marcus is President and General Counsel of the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law and author of the award-winning Jewish Identity and Civil Rights in America (New York: Cambridge University Press: 2010). Marcus founded the Brandeis Center in 2011 to combat the resurgence of anti-Semitism in American higher education. In November 2012, Marcus was named to the Forward 50, the Jewish Daily Forward’s listing of the “American Jews who made the most significant impact on the news in the past year.” Previously, he served as Staff Director at the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and held the Lillie and Nathan Ackerman Chair in Equality and Justice in America at the City University of New York’s Baruch College School of Public Affairs. He publishes frequently in academic journals and national publications including Commentary, The Weekly Standard, and The Christian Science Monitor. Mr. Marcus is a graduate of Williams College and the University of California at Berkeley School of Law. He lives in the metropolitan DC area. THE DEFINITION OF ANTI-SEMITISM By Kenneth L. Marcus (Oxford University Press Hardcover; 978-0-19-937564-6; $29.95; 296 pages) September 1, 2015 www.global.oup.com