The Arkansas House of Representatives unanimously passed the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism Wednesday after the Senate passed it earlier last week.
The IHRA Plenary in Budapest in 2015, made up of 31 member states, created the working definition in order to provide a more thorough resource for authorities to determine when an act of antisemitism has taken place, according to the State Department. Arkansas representatives voted 95 to zero Wednesday to pass the bill which will now go to Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ desk. (RELATED: University Launches Investigation Into Pork Put Outside Jewish Student’s Dorm)
The full IHRA working definition is listed in the bill, which also pointed out that it has” been adopted and used by dozens of countries as well as various departments within the United States Government.”
“Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews,” the definition reads. “Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.”
StandWithUs Director of Policy Education Jordan Cope explained in a prepared statement that in the past antisemitism has been hard to “address due to its evolving nature.”
“Having a definition on the books that clearly identifies how antisemitism manifests classically and contemporarily remains critical to defining it and mitigating its venom,” Cope said.
Pro-Israel demonstrators attend a rally denouncing antisemitism and antisemitic attacks, in lower Manhattan, New York on May 23, 2021. (Photo by Ed JONES / AFP) (Photo by ED JONES/AFP via Getty Images)
The bill was introduced by Republican state Sen. Jim Dotson and state Rep. Mindy McAlindon in January, according to the bill.
Dotson said he was ‘pleased” by the unanimous vote from both the Senate and the House of Representatives.
“Over the years our state has become a leader in promoting and defending this area of public policy,” Dotson said. “I hope that many other states will follow with their own best efforts to ensure equal protection for Jewish victims of crime and discrimination.”
McAlindon told the Daily Caller News Foundation that the bill she co-sponsored will “ensure public institutions continue to comply with Civil Rights requirements.”
“The Jewish population is only 2.4% of the US population but receive 60% of religious discriminatory acts,” McAlindon said. “This definition will aid in determining whether there has been a violation of any relevant policy, law, or rule prohibiting discriminatory acts. Anti-Semitic acts have increased over the years and we just wanted to codify a contemporary definition of Antisemitism for legal or DEI purposes.”
A recent report from the American Jewish Committee echoed McAlindon’s concerns and found that 82% of Jews believe that antisemitism has increased over the last five years, while one in four admitted to hiding outward displays of their Jewish identity out of fear of being assaulted or harassed.
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