“Hate Speech” as it Pertains to Israel
By Sarah Clendenon • May 5, 2024The Ada County Republican Central Committee (ACRCC) passed a resolution last week in support of United States military and financial aid for Israel. ACRCC also passed the same language as a proposed change to the state Republican Party platform to be considered at the state central committee meeting during the summer. The resolution/proposed platform change sponsored by Legislative District 19 GOP Chairman Lynn Bradescu and Legislative District 19 GOP Vice Chair Blair Moss reads:
“It is proposed that the following section be added to Article XVII, National Defense, Section 7: Support of Israel:
We believe that the modern state of Israel is an exceptional country that shares our most essential values of Democracy, Freedom of Speech, and Freedom of Religion. We believe Jerusalem is the eternal and indivisible capital of the Jewish state. We believe in Israel’s right and obligation to defend itself against terror attacks of Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran and against alternative forms of warfare being waged upon it legally, economically, and culturally. We believe it is in the National Defense interest of the United States to provide financial and military support to the State of Israel in order to maintain its sovereignty rights and its ability to defend itself against terror attacks of any kind and nature. We believe American combat troops should not be used to support Israel unless the U.S. Congress issues a Declaration of War.”
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Idaho Dispatch was there to livestream and record the ACRCC meeting. Bradescu mentioned during her presentation of the resolution that Mark Fuller of the Bonneville County Republican Central Committee has also been working on a resolution relating to Israel, which he will be presenting at the summer meeting of the GOP State Central Committee. You can view the ACRCC Israel Resolution debate here.
While this is happening in Idaho, the U.S. Congress has been discussing this issue and working on HR6090, legislation relating to the people discussing Israel. Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas said this of the protests happening across the country on college campuses:
H.R. 6090 has passed the U.S. House of Representatives. Idaho’s Representatives Russ Fulcher and Mike Simpson both voted in favor of it. It is now headed to the U.S. Senate for consideration. The bill is titled the Antisemitism Awareness Act. The summary reads,
“This bill provides statutory authority for the requirement that the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights take into consideration the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA’s) working definition of antisemitism when reviewing or investigating complaints of discrimination based on race, color, or national origin in programs or activities that receive federal financial assistance. According to the IHRA’s working definition, antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews.”
The text of the bill can be found here and the vote can be found here.
An organization called Behold Israel issued a statement explaining their position on the proposed federal legislation criminalizing speech in reference to Israel or Jewish people. They said,
“…we have received many inquiries regarding a concern that the Antisemitism Awareness Act recently passed by the house, and which is currently before the senate, references language provided by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) that could lead to portions of Scripture being banned. The controversy surrounds a definition of “antisemitism” that includes, as an example, those who blame Christ’s death on the Jewish people.”
The document, which is shown below, goes on to list 5 specific points.
Behold Israel1. Calling the Jews of today “Christ-killers” or in any way blaming modern Israel for the crucifixion of Christ is inaccurate, non-sensical, and antisemitic.
2. Laying blame for the crucifixion of Jesus upon the Jews of His day, as a people, is also inaccurate. If any finger-pointing is needed, it should be directed at the Jewish religious leaders of the day.
3. Ultimately, there is no one to blame for Jesus’ crucifixion, as there was no one who had the power to take His life. He had the power over His own life, and He willingly laid it down (John 10:17-18). If we are truly seeking responsibility, it should be directed toward each of us, because it was His goal to pay the penalty for our sins that led Him to the cross.
4. This plan of salvation, including the willing sacrifice of the Messiah, is woven throughout Scripture, and is not limited to any particular passages, be they Old Testament or New Testament.
5. In the definition of antisemitism provided by the IHRA, which is the foundation of the Antisemitism Awareness Act as well as that of the previous administration’s 2019 Executive Order on Combating Anti-Semitism, the reference to “Jews killing Jesus” is directed specifically at calling Jews today “Christ-killers” and has nothing to do with what is written in the Bible.
Mentioned in HR 6090 and by Behold Israel is the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) “working definition” of the term antisemitism. You can see that information here.
A few of the specific points mentioned include,
“-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.
-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 Jewish citizens of being more loyal to Israel, or to the alleged priorities of Jews worldwide, than to the interests of their own nations.
-Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis.”
According to this source, as of April 2023, 42 countries across the world have adopted the IHRA “working definition of antisemitism.”
This article from the Jewish Telegraphic Agency said in 2021,
“Establishment Jewish groups want Joe Biden’s administration to treat some anti-Israel speech as anti-Semitism. Progressive Jewish groups disagree, worried about chilling or criminalizing legitimate criticism of Israeli policy.”
The piece goes on to mention that former President Donald Trump addressed this issue at the end of his presidency in 2020.
“At the center of the debate is a 500-word “working definition” of anti-Semitism, published in 2016 by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, or IHRA. That definition seeks to provide a guide to which statements or actions qualify as anti-Semitism.
It ranges from stereotypes about Jews to incitement of violence to Holocaust denial. A growing list of countries, international agencies, universities and sports teams have adopted the definition in an effort to help them recognize Jew-hatred.
But its provisions on rhetoric around Israel have sparked contentious debate, which was heightened last year when President Donald Trump signed an executive order essentially adopting the working definition as a reference for adjudicating civil rights complaints on [college] campus[es].”
The ACLU issued a statement this month in strong opposition to HR 6090. They said,
“The American Civil Liberties Union strongly condemns the House of Representatives for passing H.R. 6090, the Antisemitism Awareness Act, which threatens to censor political speech critical of Israel on college campuses under the guise of addressing antisemitism…
…The bill directs the Department of Education to consider an overbroad definition of antisemitism that encompasses protected political speech when investigating allegations of discrimination under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. The ACLU has warned this could pressure colleges and universities to restrict student and faculty speech critical of the Israeli government and its military operations out of fear of the college losing federal funding.”
You can find the entire statement here.
Tags: ACLU, ACRCC, Ada GOP, Antisemitism, Behold Israel, Blair Moss, Bonneville County GOP, Chilling Speech, Civil Rights Act, Congressman Mike Simpson, Congressman Russ Fulcher, Criminalizing Speech, Donald Trump, Federal Funding, Free Speech, Germany, Hate Speech, Holocaust, Holocaust Denial, HR 6090, Idaho GOP, IHRA, International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, Israel, Jewish People, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Jews, Joe Biden, Lynn Bradescu, Mark Fuller, Nazis, Senator Tom Cotton
First of all, I support and stand behind the nation of Israel.
Second of all the Anti-Christian Liberties Union (ACLU) should be, along with the “United” Nations collectively deported and removed forever from U.S. soil.
We, as a nation should be absolutely behind the nation of Israel in support of their ongoing defense of their sovereign territory promised to them by God.
Period.
Amen, brother!
Haha!! ” support of their ongoing defense of their sovereign territory promised to them by God”
So god is a real estate agent now, right? If they were promised the land from a god then why did they have to terrorize and murder the people that were already there to get the so-called promised land, and continue to do so?
The moral hypocrisy when It comes to this subject is disgusting.
I seem to recall that the phrase and instruction was “blessed are the peacemakers” but that seems to be forgotten.
Israel wouldn’t be our friend if our income wasn’t redistributed by the multiple billions to Israel of any other foreign nation.
That promise ended in 70AD when God destroyed Jerusalem and ground it to powder. This destruction was foretold by the prophets (whom the Jews killed), by Jesus (whom the Jews also killed) in Matthew 24, and by John in the book of Revelation.
Most Evangelical pastors are teaching error that a coming destruction is still in the future, driven by the deceptions of the Scofield Reference Bible and dispensational futurism. The errors of the Scofield Reference Bible are intentional to trick Christians into supporting the modern state of Israel, which is filled with those who say they are Jews but are not.
If you have never heard any of this before, you need to check our Pastor Chuck Baldwin of Liberty Fellowship. All of his sermons are available for free on his website at LibertyFellowshipMT.com and on YouTube. Start by watching The Destruction of Jerusalem and then watch his Israel Packages and then Prophecy Packages series. He too used to teach the errors of the Scofield Reference Bible and dispensational futurism for 30 years before God awakened him to the truth. He is also an uncompromising patriot who refused to shut down his church and was speaking out against masking and vaxxing from the very beginning.
“To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead.” ~ Thomas Paine ~
I stand by my post 100%
Period.
This legislation is anti-American.
AIPAC owns way too many legislators and I, for one, am tired of subsidizing a relatively rich country and fighting their wars.
Lol
Indeed our politicians , government employed and the military are the only enemy destroying and bankrupting this nation.
Tulsi Gabbard revealed that all congresscritters pledge allegiance to Israel. Why are Americans pledging allegiance to a foreign country? How is this OK?
What a joke! this is our tax dollars at work, Free speech is just exactly that in America I guess the only problem is all the highly educated people in the world are to brain dead to figure it out. These people protesting for Hamas don’t have enough noodle left to begin to know the significant part of Israel in the middle east.
The biggest question we should all be asking?
WHAT ARE THE POLITICIANS HIDDING WHILE PRODUCING THIS GAURBAGE. AND A WHOLE LOT OF OTHER GAUBAGE.
Then we turn down military supplies to Israel in the mean time.
We need to end any and all foreign aid.
My fav part of the lefties protesting for Palestine is that the Palestinians practice a religion that goes completely against what the left stands for (anti-woman, anti-LGBTQ). It’s ridiculous.
OTOH, this over-the-top support for Israel is also insane. We need to take care of our country first and stay the hell out of the middle east’s problems.
Hate speech is a pejorative term designed to circumvent the First Amendment.
100% spot on. It is sad to see Republicans are now on that bandwagon.
The Republicans are the other Democrats all we need to do is pay attention.
The Tv isn’t paying attention.
This oughta help out their reputation
“Hate speech” is what the Democrats want too, they just use CRT, LGBTQ++, and Covid19 to try to get it. So now the Republicans are using Israel to get hate speech laws passed?
When do people start waking up? Please go see the disaster that has ensued in Scotland after they have passed “hate speech” laws.
The Republicans are the other Democrats all we need to do is pay attention.
The Tv isn’t paying attention.
Absolutely. I’ve stayed away from the TV for 12 years. It’s all garbage.
I agree with Quatermain. This article itself could be considered hate speech.
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. ~ U.S. Constitution First Amendment”
“I Disapprove of What You Say, But I Will Defend to the Death Your Right to Say It” ~ Various attributions (https://quoteinvestigator.com/2015/06/01/defend-say/)
I 100% agree that we need to STOP violent protests. It doesn’t matter if they are pro- Israel, Hamas, George Floyd, Family, Abortion, or pro-Basketball. Or anti- all that. It doesn’t matter.
We must stop illegal BEHAVIOR — ACTIONS. We must not make certain speech illegal (except the usual yelling fire in a crowded room) while considering other speech just fine depending on personal opinions or the virtue signaling of the day. The Overton Window of what is acceptable or allowable is more like a saloon door — it swings back and forth depending on the cause of the day.
Odious speech is odious, but it should not be illegal. People who don’t like what you say can do a lot: 1) Try to convince you that your words are wrong; 2) Explain that you are being a jerk, impolite, and hurtful; 3) Go away and not listen; 4) Teach your fellow humans to follow the Golden Rule.
But as long as your speech is not imminently threatening someone’s person or property (e.g., “I’m going to kill you.” — “I’m going to burn your house down.”), speech should be allowed.
FREE SPEECH should be sacrosanct. Enacting criminal measures or even resolutions limiting free speech is wrong and mostly virtue signaling.
Ask Scotland, Ireland, Canada, Australia, and other countries how their “hate speech” laws evolved into abominations such as Scotland’s Hate Crime and Public Order Bill: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2021/14/contents.
Ask Germany how the Nazis slowly and then quickly eroded constitutionally guaranteed free speech rights in the 1930s: https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/nazi-propaganda-and-censorship
It starts “innocently” but doesn’t take long to morph into something much uglier.
Do we really want this in America?
Has anyone ever read The Talmud? Read what it says about Jesus? His mother, Mary? What it says about Jews versus non-Jews, called Goyim?
Now, why must we satisfy the Jewish needs without any quid pro quo for Christians?
Do you want the New Testament to become outlawed? Do you want to be jailed for quoting St. Paul 1 Thess 2:15?
Are Palestinians children of God? Was their land stolen and should genocide be the final solution?
We defend others’ borders while neglecting our own. Do you see the deflection?
Two words. AMERICA FIRST!
No more of my money to Israel, Ukrain or any other country. Close our borders, take care of our veterans, feed our hungry and make it so a single income can buy a home and live in comfort. Remove all the uniparty anti American politicians. That is what the republicans should be fighting for.
It saddens me further to see continued hate speech in the comments of a fair reporting of Bill 6090. Bible references by left leaning and unstudied pastors must be recognized as the wolves among the sheep. Read your Bible. The Jews are God’s people by His covenant with Abraham. God always keeps His promises. We should tremble!
The Abrahamic Covenant was conditioned upon obeying the Ten Commandments.
Palestine: Thou shall not murder (especially innocent and defenseless life).
Read Genesis 17 which establishes the covenant, most note worthy verses 7-10.
Generations pass and much sin happens before Moses and the Commandments.
Jesus, who is God incarnate, was a Jew. They remain his people through the promise. But it is by free will for them to choose, as it is for us.
The Church is the New Israel.
What does St. Peter tell the Jews in Acts 2: 36-41? Read that!
Our Lord and Savior Jesus tells the Jewish leaders their father is the devil.
Jesus founded the Church and the Bible is to be interpreted through this Church and not individually.
None of what I state here diminishes God’s love for and covenantal promises to them. They must reject their rejection of the Messiah and be baptized.
https://inthebible.life/
Wake up people. please wake up.
(by the way how are we pretending these people aren’t responsible for the murder of Jesus Christ, and also are the Jews of the Bible and have the right to take the land from its citizens. You can’t have it both ways.
End all of the taxpayer funding to Ukraine and Israel. We’re broke and on an unsustainable trajectory. It’s time for the uniparty to wake up.
Any country or lobby that would censor Americans’ constitutional right to free speech is not our friend. Check yourself, you’re in an abusive relationship. There is a law in Idaho that forbids companies that boycott Israel from doing business with the state. Boycotting is protected political speech under the first amendment. The Israel lobby hates your right to free speech and shame on our government for submitting to them.
Free speech is guaranteed in the US Constitution, in the first amendment. This includes uncomfortable or unpopular speech. When did this change? We can’t start (or continue) to pick special groups and give them special rights over the rights of other groups. This is picking favorites and not being “equal”. The republicans have become an anti-US Constitution party. The ultimate goal for this bill and others like it is to silence Christians. This is another attack on Christianity in this present evil world (Galatians 1:4 KJV)
1 John 2:18
“Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.”
The state of the first amendment right to free speech in America has deteriorated to such a degree that even this post may put me in the crosshairs of the politicized FBI or DOJ. Soccer moms speaking up at their kid’s schoolboard meetings, traditional Catholics worshipping in the same manner their ancestors have for millennia, and now anyone who’s international political views don’t favor the Zionist state of Israel are all in danger of fed-goons busting down their doors with guns in the middle of the night. Notice that none of the previous examples have anything to do with hate, let alone hating Jews because they are Jews.
Rational and sane people everywhere would agree that hating an entire demographic of people is to be discouraged, even not tolerated. The unintended consequences (at best) of this bill will have a chilling effect on open discussions, opposing viewpoints and free speech in general. Go to that IHRA website and see for yourself how extremely wide they define “anti-Semitism” and think about how any reasoned discussion on the topic would be allowed. No opinions that are not pro-Zionist, pro-Israeli will be allowed. Any opinions to the contrary will be prosecuted as bad-think by the modern day thought police. Go straight to wrong-think jail and be cancelled on all aspects of your life. Think it can’t happen? it is exactly like this in Communist China right now. Wake up to this Trojan Horse of tyranny.
Israel is not a sacred cow above criticism by the international community. It is governed by fallible humans, just like here at home. It is precisely the international pressure on Israeli leaders that prevented the atrocity of the Hamas attack becoming a genocidal counter-attack on the people in Gaza. One only has to look at the official casualty figures to see the disproportionality of the response. The Hamas atrocity attack killed 1,139 people with dozens still held captive. 35,000 Palestinians have been killed, 78,000 wounded, with 70% of the dead being women and children. The people of Israel are not fooled by the war hawks in power. The greatest desertion from the military happened en masse when the ruling party subjugated their supreme court to the judicial branch of government. They see their country descending into tyranny. Does that make them anti-Semitic? Does that make them Hamas collaborators? Obviously not. Let’s not be fooled by the term “anti-Semitism” when it is used as a dog whistle to garner our unthinking support.
This is the most egregious violation of the 1st Amendment I have ever seen and what is WRONG people for going along with it. George Orwell saw this one coming! FREEDOM OF SPEECH is all about uncomfortable speech and ugly, nasty speech. GROW UP!!! THIS IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL. SHAME on our legislators who voted for it. They should all be kicked to the curb.
Free speech for me but not for thee.
The children of Israel or the Israelites are a people, Israel of today is a country. Do not confuse the two. The former are those who believe Jesus Christ is our Savior. The latter was conceived pre WW1, and promised to the Khazarians (Lord Rothschild) by the British government in the form of the Balfour Declaration, in return for getting the US into WW1 on the side of the Brits. The Khazars revere the Talmud, Zohar and other forms of Babylonian mysticism. Most still believe they are waiting for their god to return and therefore still practice ritual sacrifice from the 1st covenant from the Old Testament which has been satisfied once Jesus died for our sins, They will continue to use the US$ to their advantage, under the guise of Gods chosen people. As we know in John 3:14, “ no one comes to the father except through me (Jesus)”. Since many Khazars abhor Jesus, as known in their writings, that would mean they are not Pro-Christ and therefore they must be anti-Christ. The greatest scam ever conceived… these edomites who call themselves Jews and are not use a skewed interpretation of religion, and have been manipulative to take advantage of the Christians aka, Children of Israel. Revelations 3:9 comes to mind.
Why is it that freedom of expression needs to be limited? It’s interesting that the Republican Party seeks to limit the rights of Americans to protect a foreign power. This might as well be a hate speech law which the Party does not support. Americans 1st amendment rights are just as important as the 2nd amendment.