Washington, D.C. (May 25, 2023): Kenneth L. Marcus, renowned anti-Semitism scholar and legal advocate, author of ‘The Definition of Anti-Semitism’ and ‘Jewish Identity and Civil Rights in America’, founder and chairman of the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law, former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Education for Civil Rights for two presidents, and a distinguished senior fellow at George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School, issued the following statement: “President Biden has invested significant attention addressing record levels of anti-Semitism, and importantly and appropriately recognizing that Jewish Americans are facing discrimination based not only on our religion but also our ethnic and ancestral background. This is to be commended. The Biden administration has also forcefully embraced IHRA, despite regretfully muddying the water by also acknowledging a lesser standard. Deeply troubling, however, is that the administration appears to be retreating from a longstanding commitment to issue regulations on combating anti-Semitism. Instead of issuing a new regulation that strengthens protections for Jewish students, the administration is promising only to issue informal guidance to remind institutions of their existing commitments. In short, the rhetoric is very strong and the intent is good, but the substance doesn’t always measure up There is a serious retreat from earlier commitments, and the implementation could be seriously flawed and rendered ineffective if this plan opens the door to using any definition of anti-Semitism other than IHRA.” On behalf of his organization, the Brandeis Center, Marcus offered the following more detailed analysis: Strengths: “The White House listened to the Jewish community and rightly endorsed the IHRA working definition of anti-Semitism – as administrations of both parties have done for many years – and explicitly acknowledged that federal civil rights law protects Jewish Americans based not only on their religion, but also on their ethnic and ancestral background. This is significant. The IHRA definition remains, as it is widely called, the gold standard for defining anti-Semitism. It is the only internationally-agreed upon anti-Semitism definition. The Biden administration was wise to reject misguided efforts to reduce the federal government’s support for this standard, which was well-entrenched within Executive Order 13899 as well as U.S. Education Department guidance. The Administration was also wise to reject efforts to elevate the more extreme so-called Jerusalem Declaration. “In addition, the Biden strategy is impressively broad, providing for a large number of programs and policies to address anti-Semitism, such as increased support for education about Jewish heritage and the Holocaust. We also appreciate the commitment to include anti-Semitism within Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion programs and hope that this leadership inspires action among the states and within the private sector. The emphasis on physical security for synagogues and other Jewish institutions is also welcome and, sadly, much needed. We applaud the forceful reiteration of the protection of Jewish Americans against not only religious discrimination but also discrimination based on ethnic or ancestral background. And we commend the White House acknowledgement that, ‘When Jews are targeted because of their beliefs or their identity, when Israel is singled out because of anti-Jewish hatred, that is antisemitism. And that is unacceptable.’ We appreciate that the national strategy as described is intended to combat all manifestations of anti-Semitism including anti-Zionism. And we applaud the forceful reiteration of the protection of Jewish Americans against not only religious discrimination but also discrimination based on ethnic or ancestral background.” Weaknesses: “The new plan, however, retreats from the White House’s longstanding commitment to issue regulations strengthening the civil rights protections of Jewish students. Instead, the new strategy only proposes to remind institutions of their existing obligations. The Biden administration has repeatedly promised to issue Education Department regulations that apply the Executive Order on Combating Anti-Semitism. This rulemaking, which the White House recently postponed until December 2023, will be a much-needed response to anti-Semitism on college campuses. The White House’s failure to mention this crucial activity is deeply disappointing. Instead, the new strategy would apparently downgrade this important rulemaking to a Dear Colleague Letter with lesser legal status. This is an unfortunate reduction in the federal government’s commitment to admit Jewish students at a time when the White House acknowledges that they are under attack. It is not enough for the administration to remind institutions of their existing duties; instead, the administration should be moving the ball forward and strengthening these protections. “In addition, the White House has unnecessarily muddied the waters by praising the Nexus Document, which is inconsistent with the national strategy’s stated goal of addressing all contemporary forms of anti-Semitism and which could undermine the proper and effective usage of of IHRA. Use of any definition other than IHRA will enable the continued normalization of anti-Semitic hate and prevent uniform and effective enforcement measures to combat it. Indeed, the third pillar of the national strategy – reversing the normalization of anti-Semitism and countering anti-Semitism discrimination – relies on the ability to recognize and identify anti-Semitism. To that extent, the definition used to label anti-Semitic conduct is essential.” U.S.-National-Strategy-to-Counter-AntisemitismDownload