Jewish Students Against "Silencing Students Act" (S.852)
We are Jewish students that come from campuses across the country; from different Jewish denominations, and with different perspectives on the role of Israel in Jewish life. We speak now as one to urge you to reject the Anti-Semitism Awareness Act of 2019, and to protect free speech on campuses across America.
Under the Trump administration, there is a violent rise of real antisemitism from white supremacist movements in this country. But this bill does little to protect us, as Jewish students, from these dangers. Rather, it serves to limit our freedom of expression around the vital issues of our time.
Regardless of our personal political views, we recognize that criticism of Israel and support for Palestinian rights, including support for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, is not inherently antisemitic.
This is the third time this act has been brought forth in Congress, and yet it still conflates legitimate criticism of the policies of the Israeli government with antisemitism, using a problematic definition of antisemitism never intended for use on college campuses.
At a time when freedom of expression is under threat across the country, we need to be protecting and expanding speech, not restricting it. We urge you to reject this act, and instead to take meaningful action to combat anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, anti-immigrant sentiment, and other forms of bigotry on the rise across the country.
