On December 17, 2020, Brandeis Center Law School Chapters from across the country hosted a webinar with U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism, Elan Carr, who discussed U.S. policies and projects aimed at combatting the global resurgence of Jew-hatred. Law students joined other interested members of the Brandeis Center community to hear Special Envoy Carr’s riveting presentation, which was followed by a roundtable discussion between Carr, Brandeis Center Chairman, Kenneth L. Marcus, and Brandeis Center President, Alyza D. Lewin. Special Envoy Carr identified three distinct ideological sources of modern-day anti-Semitism: the far right, the radical left, and militant Islam. Carr stressed the importance of adopting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance Working Definition of Antisemitism (the IHRA definition) both domestically and abroad as a powerful tool to define, recognize and combat the manifestations of anti-Semitism that emanate from these contemporary sources of Jew-hatred. Indeed, the IHRA definition and its illustrative examples of anti-Semitism enable us to understand the multifaceted and dynamic nature of anti-Semitism. Thankfully, there is increasing global appreciation for Carr’s campaign to adopt the IHRA definition, as evidenced by the groundswell of support for the IHRA definition in recent years. Carr also discussed the Trump administration’s work with U.S. allies to allocate sufficient funds to ensure that necessary resources are available to protect and defend Jews across the world who are victims of anti-Semitism. Special Envoy Carr stressed the crucial role of law enforcement in recognizing and prosecuting hate crimes perpetrated against Jews on the basis of their ethnic, religious, and cultural Jewish identity. In his conversation with Mr. Marcus and Ms. Lewin, Carr discussed the potential impact that the Abraham Accords may ultimately have in this arena, from exposing more countries to an accurate understanding of Jewish identity to marginalizing and ultimately eliminating the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement. Special Envoy Carr also emphasized the need to combat anti-Semitism offensively, by “driving a philo-Semitic narrative through a philo-Semitic curriculum”. Carr explained that the opposite of anti-Semitism is “philo-Semitism,” not simply tolerance. Creating a philo-Semitic curriculum will increase understanding of the Jewish people and the countless contributions Jews have made to society. Carr warned that it is very difficult to tell any history, particularly U.S. history, without including the contributions of the Jewish people. These contributions should be valued and championed when discussing Jews. Carr reminded the audience that next year Germany will celebrate 1700 years of Jewish history in Germany. In anticipation of this monumental milestone, Carr has been working with the German government not only to help commemorate the momentous event, but also to ensure that as part of the commemoration, Germany’s education system teaches new generations of Germans about the extraordinary contributions of the Jewish people to Germany. Asked about the specific challenges facing Jewish students on college campuses, Carr lauded the fearless leadership of countless students, who are tackling head-on the bigotry they face on their campuses. Speaking on the last night Chanukah, Carr invoked a powerful comparison between the difficult work that young Jews are engaging in today to combat Jew-hatred on campus and the fight the Maccabees waged against the Hellenists thousands of years ago. “The anti-Semites of yesteryear, 2200 years ago, overthrew Jewish sovereignty, overthrew the city of Jerusalem, defiled the Temple, and attempted to prevent the Jewish people from living a Jewish life in the Jewish homeland. We celebrate today and still celebrate today 2200 years later the victory of those brave partisans who waged that battle and stood against what seemed to be insurmountable odds,” said Carr. “Today, we are asking no less than that of these great Jewish kids on campus who are willing to stand up and be proud of who they are.” The evening’s discussion concluded with insights from Special Envoy Carr, Ms. Lewin and Mr. Marcus about opportunities that are available for young people looking to participate in the effort to combat anti-Semitism; from State Department and Brandeis Center internships to the Brandeis Center’s JIGSAW Fellowship program for law students, there are ample opportunities to become involved in Jewish civil rights and the global fight against Jew-hatred. Now more than ever, it is imperative that those who are engaged in the fight against resurgent anti-Semitism stay the course. We are grateful for Special Envoy Carr’s inspiring leadership on this issue and the important accomplishments he has achieved in the fight against anti-Semitism world-wide. Watch the video of the webinar here.