Posted on 02/09/25
| News Source: JPost
The Antisemitism Awareness Act (AAA) was reintroduced to the House on Wednesday by Democratic and Republican representatives after the bill failed to appear before the Senate last year.
The bill, if passed, would require that the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights consider the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) definition of antisemitism when investigating complaints that Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 had been violated federally funded programs.
The AAA, sponsored by New York Republican Congressman Mike Lawler, was first introduced on October 26, 2023, weeks after the Hamas-led massacres in southern Israel triggered a global torrent of antisemitic incidents.
It initially passed the house by a vote of 320 to 91 on May 5 of last year. However, it failed to appear in front of the Senate due to political disputes, according to a report from Jewish Insider.
Majority Leader Schumer reportedly avoided a standalone vote after failed attempts to attach the AAA to other bills, including the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
According to JI, Schumer feared that allowing the AAA to stand alone would expose divides within the Democrats over the bill when Democrats viewed the IHRA antisemitism definition as unduly characterizing criticism of Israel as antisemitic.
Some Republicans also opposed the bill because of concerns about free speech. Some others viewed the IHRA definition as anti-Christian as it defines accusing Jews of killing Jesus as antisemitic.
Ultimately, the bill was left without a path forward.
However, on Wednesday, Lawler, along with Ohio Republican Max Miller and Democrats Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey and Jared Moskowitz of Florida, reintroduced the bill to the House.
“Colleges and universities have repeatedly failed to uphold federal law and protect Jewish students,” Lawler said. “The Antisemitism Awareness Act makes it clear: antisemitism will not be tolerated — on campus or anywhere else.”
Along with the reintroduction of the AAA, senators Tim Scott, a Republican from South Carolina, and Jacky Rosen, a Democrat from Nevada, are expected to reintroduce a Senate version of the AAA soon.
Combat Antisemitism Movement, a leading NGO and international network of 850 groups dedicated to combating antisemitism, applauded the reintroduction of the bill.
“CAM supports the president’s all-of-government approach to combating antisemitism. Which also extends Title VI rights to Jewish students using the IHRA definition and examples as a tool,” CAM Board of Governors Member Arie Lipnick said. “And that’s what we’re talking about today — the AAA would codify a vital part of the president’s first executive order [from 2019, during Trump’s first term] on combating antisemitism.”
“This is how CAM believes our government should be combating antisemitism — the president, executive agencies, and Congress all working together on a bipartisan basis,” Lipnick continued.
The bill enjoys support from a number of Jewish and pro-Israel organizations, including the American Jewish Committee, Anti-Defamation League, Christians United for Israel, Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, Hadassah, Jewish Federations of North America, Orthodox Union, Zionist Organization of America, CAM noted.