United States Capitol Building Washington, D.C., June 27th: Today, the U.S. Congress’ Bipartisan Taskforce for Combating Anti-Semitism issued an important letter in support of the European Parliament for its adoption, earlier this month, of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) definition of anti-Semitism. While applauding the Parliament’s efforts, the Taskforce notes that “more work remains to be done,” and urges all EU-member parliaments to formally adopt the definition – a step that the United States has not yet fully taken, although the U.S. is an IHRA member. The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Right Under Law (LDB) in a press release issued this afternoon commends the Bipartisan Taskforce for Combating Anti-Semitism for its support of the European Parliament’s actions, which mirrors the center’s own statement earlier this month. The Taskforce letter, addressed to Hon. Juan Fernando Lopez Aguilar, Chair of the European Parliament Working Group on Antisemitism, notes the resurgence of anti-Semitic incidents in the United States and Europe, and encourages further action in adopting the IHRA’s working definition of anti-Semitism. “The Taskforce letter is an important signal for three reasons,” stated Louis D. Brandeis Center President Kenneth L. Marcus. “First, the Taskforce demonstrates that the campaign against anti-Semitism surmounts partisan rancor and garners support from both sides of the congressional aisle. Note that leading congressmen of both parties are underscoring the importance of adopting a definition of anti-Semitism substantially similar to the U.S. State Department’s.” That same bipartisan support was seen in December, when the U.S. Senate unanimously passed Senators Tim Scott and Bob Case’s important Anti-Semitism Awareness Act, which provides Jewish students protection under Title VI of the Civil Rights act and urges the Department of Education to use the State Department’s definition of anti-Semitism. “Second,” Marcus continued, “the Taskforce letter demonstrates that the United States Congress, as well as the executive branch of our government, will continue to assert strong leadership in the fight against global anti-Semitism.” The timing is significant, in light of recent reports regarding staff departures at the U.S. State Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Global Anti-Semitism. This Taskforce letter reassures human rights advocates throughout the world that the United States remains committed to the fight against anti-Semitism and other forms of bigotry. “Third,” Marcus added, “the statement illustrates both strong momentum in the ongoing global efforts to fight anti-Semitism, as well as the substantial amount that remains to be done. The IHRA’s definition closely resembles the State Department’s definition of anti-Semitism, but the department does not have jurisdiction on incidents of anti-Semitism, and U.S. domestic agencies, other than the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, have not adopted the definition for domestic purposes, which is why legislative efforts like Senators Scott and Casey’s work is so important. Ongoing efforts continue to implement a national definition of anti-Semitism in light of the growing anti-Semitic incidents on college campuses. Efforts to do so are underway in South Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee. Launched in March of 2015, the Taskforce is chaired by eight members of congress, both Democrats and Republicans, who keep their congressional colleagues apprised of anti-Semitic incidents. Members include representatives Nita Lowey (D-NY), Chris Smith (R-NJ), Eliot Engel (D-NY), Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Ted Deutch (D-FL), Kay Granger (R-TX), Marc Veasey (D-TX), and Peter Roskam (R-IL). Today’s letter is bears the signature of 32 Members of Congress: the eight co-chairs as well as Task Force members. Task force members include representative. Grace Meng (D-NY), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Gregory Meeks (D-NY), Lois Frankel (D-FL), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Mike Quigley (D-IL), Al Green (D-TX), Albio Sires (D-NJ), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Brad Schneider (D-IL), Ted Lieu (D-CA), Grace Napolitano (D-CA), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Donald Norcross (D-NJ), Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), Jamie Raskin (D-MD), Pete King (R-NY), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Kathleen Rice (D-NY), Alan Lowenthal (D-CA), Brenda Boyle (D-PA), and Jan Schakowsky (D-IL). The European Parliament adopted the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism on June 1, 2017. Austria, Romania, and the United Kingdom have already done so, but most European Union members have not yet followed suit. As the letter notes, “This resolution…..sends a bold statement to those who foment hatred against Jews: European leaders are aware of the growing trends of anti-Semitism and refuse to tolerate it.” Please see below for the full text of the Taskforce letter: Dear Mr. Chairman, As members of the Bipartisan Taskforce for Combating Anti-Semitism in the U.S. House of Representatives, we applaud the European Parliament’s passage of a working definition of anti-Semitism. We wish to congratulate you and your colleagues of the European Parliament Working Group on Antisemitism for your hard work in building support for this important resolution. The frequency and scale of anti-Semitic incidents in both the United States and Europe over the past few years has been deeply alarming. From large-scale attacks, such as the 2012 assault on a Jewish school in Toulouse, to smaller but all too common incidents of harassment and vandalism, European Jewish communities often fear for their safety and deserve a strong message of support from their governments. This resolution, which includes a working definition of anti-Semitism adopted from the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, encourages European Union (EU) Member States to monitor and prevent anti-Semitic violence and prosecute the perpetrators. It also sends a bold statement to those who foment hatred against Jews: European leaders are aware of the growing trends of anti-Semitism and refuse to tolerate it. The resolution represents an important step in combating anti-Semitism, but more work remains to be done. Of all the states participating in the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, only Austria, Romania, and the United Kingdom have formally adopted the definition. Following the recent passage of the working definition of anti-Semitism, we strongly encourage all EU-member national parliaments to formally adopt the definition and commit to greater action against anti-Semitism. Anti-Semites must understand that there is no place for anti-Jewish bigotry, and European Jewish communities must be reassured that their governments will do all they can to keep them safe. Last month, the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed the Combating European Anti-Semitism Act (H.R. 672), which would encourage greater coordination and partnerships between the United States and European countries to address anti-Semitism. This and other important initiatives for combating anti-Semitism, including efforts to integrate a working definition of anti-Semitism into various aspects of U.S. policy and practice, are top priorities for many members of Congress. We must continue to build on the momentum created by this bill’s passage and the passage of the working definition. We look forward to working closely with the EU and individual member states in achieving the shared goal of protecting Jewish communities and combating anti-Semitism. Sincerely, This letter is signed by Task Force Co-Chairs Representatives: Nita Lowey (D-NY), Chris Smith (R-NJ), Eliot Engel (D-NY), Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Ted Deutch (D-FL), Kay Granger (R-TX), Marc Veasey (D-TX), and Peter Roskam (R-IL), as well as Task force members Reps. Grace Meng (D-NY), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Gregory Meeks (D-NY), Lois Frankel (D-FL), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Mike Quigley (D-IL), Al Green (D-TX), Albio Sires (D-NJ), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Brad Schneider (D-IL), Ted Lieu (D-CA), Grace Napolitano (D-CA), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Donald Norcross (D-NJ), Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), Jamie Raskin (D-MD), Pete King (R-NY), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Kathleen Rice (D-NY), Alan Lowenthal (D-CA), Brenda Boyle (D-PA), and Jan Schakowsky (D-IL). ### About The Louis D. Brandeis Center: The Louis D. Brandeis Center, Inc., or LDB, is an independent, nonprofit organization established to advance the civil and human rights of the Jewish people and promote justice for all. The Brandeis Center conducts research, education, and advocacy to combat the resurgence of anti-Semitism on college and university campuses. It is not affiliated with the Massachusetts university, the Kentucky law school, or any of the other institutions that share the name and honor the memory of the late U.S. Supreme Court justice.
Yesterday, the Bipartisan Taskforce for Combating Anti-Semitism in the House of Representatives announced the issuance of an important letter from 38 Members of Congress to Secretary of Education John King, Jr. calling for the Department to “identify and distinguish when speech and activity that are critical of Israeli policies become anti-Semitic harassment and intimidation.” Coming on the heels of recent highly publicized incidents at the City University of New York, Stanford University, Oberlin College, Vassar College, and elsewhere, this watershed correspondence, contained within a letter dated April 15, demonstrates keen congressional attention to the federal government’s oft-criticized record in addressing campus anti-Semitism. The Taskforce made critical recommendations regarding the need for policy clarification, stating “The Department’s policies must continually evolve to meet the changing manifestation of certain biases to avoid new elements of prejudice. For example, anti-Semitic intimidation, harassment, and discrimination are manifested not only in easily recognizable anti-Semitic slurs but also in anti-Semitism masked as anti-Israel and anti-Zionist sentiment.” The Taskforce urged the Department to uphold its “responsibility for ensuring that all students, regardless of actual or perceived ancestry or ethnic identity, are guaranteed a campus experience free of violence, intimidation, or harassment.” LDB president Kenneth L. Marcus commented, “Kudos to the Taskforce for issuing this hugely important message to the Education Department. This is a clear signal that Congress is paying close attention to the Office for Civil Rights’ work on campus anti-Semitism and expects far more clarity than we have seen to date. In the past, the Taskforce was focused primarily on foreign affairs, so this letter marks a much-needed turn inward. It is not enough for our federal government to lecture foreign countries about their shabby handling of anti-Semitism complaints. We need to keep our own house in order too – and there is much urgent work for the Education Department to do.” The Taskforce requested details on how the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is responding to anti-Semitism on college campuses, focusing on OCR’s investigation of specific complaints and its efforts to prevent the spread of anti-Semitism. Their questions included: “How many cases of anti-Semitism on campuses is OCR currently investigating? What instruction has been given to the OCR regional offices to learn how to detect cases of anti-Semitic bias and implement these protections on college campuses? Does the Department track cases of ancestral or ethnic bias against members of groups that share a common faith (e.g., Jewish, Muslim, Sikh) on college campuses? Has the Department provided policy guidance concerning anti-Semitism on campuses and examples of when actions and discourse nominally about Israeli policies devolve into hostile environments for some students and are supported, permitted, disregarded, or insufficiently addressed by school employees? Is the Department providing technical assistance and public education on these issues? Does the Department engage frequently with stakeholders that focus on these issues?” The Taskforce explicitly recognized that responding to campus anti-Semitism is especially important now because of increasing anti-Israel sentiment on campus, including “reports of over 500 anti-Israel programs on U.S. college campuses during the 2014-2015 academic year, an increase of 38% from the prior academic year, as well as 29 Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement campaigns sponsored by student groups, an increase of 21%.” The Taskforce directed Secretary King’s attention to the finding in the FBI’s Hate Crime Statistics Act report that “while the number of incidents, offenses, and victims of anti-Jewish bias has decreased country-wide since 2010, they still make up a majority of all hate crimes motivated by religious bias.” A 2014 report by LDB and Trinity College found that 54% of Jewish students have experienced or witnessed anti-Semitism on their college campuses during the last academic year. Marcus explained, “These statistics demonstrate that the Department of Education must do more to help stop the spread of campus anti-Semitism. Recognizing an official definition of anti-Semitism which clarifies when anti-Israelism and anti-Zionism cross the line into anti-Semitism, such as the U.S. State Department definition, would assist OCR in determining whether Title VI has been violated under the 2004 policy.” The Taskforce, launched last year in response to rising global anti-Semitism, is co-chaired by four chairs from each of the two political parties. Kenneth Marcus commented, “We especially want to commend the leadership of the Task Force’s co-chairs: Reps. Nita Lowey (D-NY), Chris Smith (R-NJ), Eliot Engel (D-NY), Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Steve Israel (D-NY), Kay Granger (R-TX), Ted Deutch (D-FL), and Peter Roskam (R-IL).” The Taskforce has already spearheaded several initiatives to respond to anti-Semitism at the global level, and this letter marks an important step for the Taskforce to address the issue at the national level. The Taskforce engaged with the national concern of anti-Semitism by holding a briefing last fall to assess the state of anti-Semitism on US college campuses, in which LDB was honored to participate. At the briefing, LDB president Kenneth L. Marcus provided the Taskforce with specific public policy recommendations on how Congress and the Executive Branch can best address the resurgence of campus anti-Semitism, and founding president of LDB’s Cardozo Law chapter Melanie Goldberg spoke about her own experiences with anti-Semitism as an undergraduate at Brooklyn College. The Taskforce letter drew attention to OCR’s 2004 policy statement to include discrimination against Jewish students under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which clarifies that OCR will “interpret Title VI to include instances where students are targeted because of their actual or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, regardless of whether they are members of a faith community, as in the case of Jewish, Sikh, and Muslim students,” and expressed the Taskforce’s appreciation for the Department’s reaffirmation of this policy in 2010 and 2015. However, as OCR has not found any violations of this policy to date, the Taskforce requested information including the number of campus anti-Semitism cases OCR is currently investigating, as well as OCR’s guidance and education efforts in identifying and protecting against campus anti-Semitism. According to Marcus, “The 2004 policy is important because it clarifies that anti-Semitism falls under Title VI and that it should be taken just as seriously as other forms of discrimination. At the same time, it is concerning that, despite the prevalence of campus anti-Semitism, OCR has not yet found any violations of this policy. We appreciate the Taskforce’s initiative in calling attention to this issue and raising the question of how OCR is implementing its existing policy.” The full text of the letter can be found below: (more…)