Sec. 2. Findings

480 words·~2 min read·/bill/118/hr/7921/ih/section-2

A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.

Congress finds the following: Antisemitism, which is often called the oldest hatred , is a serious and growing danger for Jews in the United States and around the world. In 2022, the Federal Bureau of Investigation found that anti-Jewish hate crime incidents increased by more than 37 percent from 2021 to 2022. In 2022, the Anti-Defamation League reported nearly 3,700 antisemitic incidents in the United States, including assault, vandalism, and harassment, which is a 36 percent increase from 2021 and represents the highest number on record of antisemitic incidents reported by the Anti-Defamation League, and the American Jewish Committee reported that 25 percent of Jewish Americans were personally targeted by antisemitism in 2023.

Jewish Americans are facing an unprecedented rise in antisemitic incidents following the October 7, 2023 Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel. Rising antisemitism is in part being driven by the spread and amplification of antisemitic comments, tropes, and conspiracies on social media platforms, which can lead to physical acts of harassment, assault, and vandalism. Holocaust denial and distortion, including intentional efforts to excuse or minimize the impact of the Holocaust, dishonor Holocaust victims and survivors, and reinforce the need for advancing accurate and comprehensive Holocaust education globally.

Protecting the history of the Holocaust and recognizing and confronting Holocaust denial and distortion are critical to preventing antisemitism. Jewish houses of worship are increasingly the targets of violent attacks in the United States, as evidenced by the deadly assaults on synagogues in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 2018 and Poway, California, in 2019. Antisemitic incidents have increased dramatically in many educational settings over the past several years, with many Jewish students facing discrimination or a hostile environment at schools, yet these incidents remain underreported.

The Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights is tasked with ensuring that all students are protected on campus, yet there is a backlog of discrimination complaints that remain pending before the Office for Civil Rights. On May 25, 2023, the Biden Administration issued the U.S. National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism, which outlines the Administration’s whole-of-society approach to tackle antisemitism and includes actions for Federal agencies to take and calls to action for Congress.

Antisemitism can have unique characteristics, including the evolving use of conspiracy theories that blame the various ills of society on Jews or attribute to individual Jews a variety of evil and harmful characteristics, and including the portrayal of Jews as too powerful or controlling and deserving of hatred and mistrust. Antisemitism can also exist when individual Jews are held responsible for the policies of the Israeli government, or attacked, disparaged, or demonized based on their real or perceived connection to, affiliation with, or support for, the state of Israel as a Jewish state.

Antisemitism can manifest distinctively and require a tailored response. While antisemitism most directly and intensely threatens Jewish Americans, it also undermines democracy and threatens the safety and rights of all Americans.