DES MOINES, Iowa – The Iowa Senate on Wednesday unanimously approved a bill, HF 2220, codifying the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism. The bill will now head to Gov. Kim Reynolds’ desk.
The legislation also applies contemporary examples adopted IHRA in the Iowa Code. Last week, the Iowa House of Representatives passed the bill by a bipartisan 66 to 31 vote.
State Rep. Steven Holt, R-Denison, is the bill’s author. State Senator Brad Zaun, R-Urbandale, was the original sponsor of the Iowa Senate’s companion legislation, SF 2183, replaced by the Iowa House bill during the Senate’s floor debate.
IHRA defines antisemitism as “a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. 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.”
They also state:
Manifestations might include the targeting of the state of Israel, conceived as a Jewish collectivity. However, criticism of Israel similar to that leveled against any other country cannot be regarded as antisemitic. Antisemitism frequently charges Jews with conspiring to harm humanity, and it is often used to blame Jews for “why things go wrong.” It is expressed in speech, writing, visual forms and action, and employs sinister stereotypes and negative character traits.
Contemporary examples of antisemitism in public life, the media, schools, the workplace, and in the religious sphere could, taking into account the overall context, include, but are not limited to:
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- Calling for, aiding, or justifying the killing or harming of Jews in the name of a radical ideology or an extremist view of religion.
- Making mendacious, dehumanizing, demonizing, or stereotypical allegations about Jews as such or the power of Jews as collective — such as, especially but not exclusively, the myth about a world Jewish conspiracy or of Jews controlling the media, economy, government or other societal institutions.
- Accusing Jews as a people of being responsible for real or imagined wrongdoing committed by a single Jewish person or group, or even for acts committed by non-Jews.
- Denying the fact, scope, mechanisms (e.g. gas chambers) or intentionality of the genocide of the Jewish people at the hands of National Socialist Germany and its supporters and accomplices during World War II (the Holocaust).
- Accusing the Jews as a people, or Israel as a state, of inventing or exaggerating the Holocaust.
- Accusing Jewish citizens of being more loyal to Israel, or to the alleged priorities of Jews worldwide, than to the interests of their own nations.
- Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, e.g., by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor.
- Applying double standards by requiring of it a behavior not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation.
- Using the symbols and images associated with classic antisemitism (e.g., claims of Jews killing Jesus or blood libel) to characterize Israel or Israelis.
- Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis.
- Holding Jews collectively responsible for actions of the state of Israel.
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The bill also states, “This chapter shall not be construed to diminish or infringe upon any right protected under the first amendment to the United States Constitution, or the Constitution of the State of Iowa. This chapter shall not be construed to conflict with local, federal, or state discrimination laws.”
In the Iowa Senate, State Senator Jason Schultz, R-Schleswig, introduced the bill, explaining what it does, and opened it up for additional comment from members of the Iowa Senate.
No one offered any comments.
In the Iowa House debate, State Rep. Ako Abdul-Samad, D-Des Moines, introduced an amendment that struck the original language and would have created legislation defining “hate groups” as “an organization or collection of individuals that, based on its official statements or principles, the statements of its leaders, or its activities, has beliefs or practices that attack or malign an entire class of people, typically for their immutable characteristics.”
It also said hate groups would include groups on the Southern Poverty Law Center’s hate group list. The left-wing organization has included conservative Christian groups on their list for their opposition to same-sex marriage and support for religious liberty and conscience.
“There should not be discrimination against any individual in a group, anyone that is there, anyone who is on this earth,” Abdul-Samad said.
“Because the problem that we have, and the history that we’re looking at now, is that we have individuals, we have groups that are perpetuating hate, that are perpetuating discrimination, that actually are perpetuating death on individuals because of their religion, because of their ethnicity just because people don’t like the people that makeup America,” he said.
State Rep. Sandy Salmon, R-Janesville, challenged the amendment’s germaneness, and Speaker Pat Grassley, R-New Hartford, found the amendment not to be germane.
Abdul-Samad asked for a vote to suspend the House rules, which failed by a 39 to 58 vote.
Salmon offered her closing comments.
“According to the FBI, 60 percent of religious bias incidents were anti-Jewish incidents despite Jews making up only two percent of the US population. A recent Heritage Foundation and Educational Freedom Institute report found that there is a high rate of antisemitism on US college campuses,” she said.
“Diversity, inequality, and inclusion staff use social media to vilify Israel and Jews. Reports also show the failure of social media companies in dealing with complaints about antisemitic content, including Facebook, which only dealt with 11 percent of the posts. The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism is the international standard used to explain antisemitism and is vital in protecting Jewish communities around the world. It is the most widely accepted and adopted definition both here in the US and throughout the world,” Salmon added.
There were eight Democrats who joined the 58 Republicans present to vote for the bill.
State Reps. Liz Bennett, D-Cedar Rapids, Christina Bohannan, D-Iowa City, Steven Hansen, D-Sioux City, Charles Isenhart, D-Dubuque, Kenan Judge, D-Waukee, Rick Olson, D-Des Moines, Dave Williams, D-Cedar Falls, and Cindy Winckler, D-Davenport, joined Republicans voting for the bill.
No Republicans joined the 31 Democrats who voted against HF 2220.
The Council Bluffs Chamber of Commerce, Iowa Chamber Alliance, The FAMiLY Leader, and After Trading Corporation all registered support for the bill. No group registered opposition to the bill.
