US House Antisemitism Resolution Faces Mixed Reactions
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Worthy News
WASHINGTON/JERUSALEM (Worthy News) – There have been mixed reactions to a resolution passed by the U.S. House of Representatives condemning the rise of global antisemitism after Hamas’s October 7 terror attacks in Israel.
Israeli media and other critics noticed that more than 100 legislators declined to vote “yea” (yes) for the resolution, despite the killing by Hamas of 1,200 people in the worst recorded atrocity against Jews since the Holocaust, or Shoah in Hebrew.
Thirteen Democrats voted “nay” (no), while dozens of others either voted “present” or did not vote on the passage of H. Res. 894.
Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky was the only Republican to vote against the measure, which passed by a 311-14 vote, with 92 Democrats voting “present.”
The outcome disappointed Representatives David Kustoff and Max Miller, the only two Jewish members of the Republican caucus who introduced the measure.
Miller combined the 92 “present” votes with the “nay” ones and said all failed to make a full-throated condemnation of antisemitism.
“Elected leaders must have the courage to condemn and fight all forms of domestic and global antisemitism,” Miller added in a statement. “While I am glad this resolution passed the House today, I am disappointed that 106 of my colleagues failed to take this opportunity to condemn antisemitism forcefully.”
VOTING PRESENT
Representative Jerry Nadler, a Democrat from New York who is Jewish and voted “present,” said during debate on the House floor that he couldn’t support the resolution. He said it had no Democratic co-sponsors and risked conflating opposition to Israeli policy with antisemitism.
“Under this resolution, those who love Israel deeply but criticize some of its policy approaches could be considered anti-Zionist,” Nadler said. “That could make every Democratic Jewish member of this body because they all criticized the recent Israeli judicial reform package, de facto antisemites.”
The 14 “nay” votes came mainly from the so-called “Squad” of left-wing progressives and other frequent critics of Israel, Israeli media noticed.
The Israel365News.com website noticed that Massie, “a libertarian who regularly votes against foreign policy legislation, was the lone Republican “nay” vote.”
This week’s vote came amid broader concerns about pro-Palestinian protests in the United States and Europe turning into antisemitic rallies, as well as several recent deadly terror attacks.
The resolution emphasizes that “combating antisemitism is essential to the broader fight against all forms of hatred and to the defense of our democracy.”
The Jerusalem Post newspaper noticed that the resolution states: “Whereas there is an alarming rise in antisemitism in the United States, as reported by the Department of Homeland Security, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Anti-Defamation League, and the American Jewish Committee.”
HATE CRIMES
American Jews, though only comprising 2.4 percent of the U.S. population, are the victims of 63 percent of reported religiously motivated hate crimes, the paper said, citing recent data.
A “significant focus of the resolution” is the increase in antisemitism on college and university campuses, with a reported 41 percent increase from 2021 to 2022, The Jerusalem Post commented.
The measure explicitly condemns these acts, saying: “Whereas Jewish students have been targeted for disparate treatment in classes, and derision and exclusion on college campuses and in official student organizations, not only because they are Jewish but often because of their real or perceived views about or connection to, or support for, the State of Israel.”
The resolution also addresses the broader implications of antisemitism, highlighting that “antisemitic conspiracy theories fuel other forms of hatred, discrimination, and bias, and threaten the foundations of our democracy.”
The resolution calls for bipartisan collaboration and an all-of-government response to counter antisemitism as part of the U.S. National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism introduced earlier this year.
Key points of the resolution include a call for increased funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program and other measures to enhance “the safety” of the American Jewish community.
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