https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/4127
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.
WHAT DOES H.R. 6090 DO?
H.R. 6090 defines antisemitism under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act,1 largely codifying existing guidance contained in the Trump administration’s 2019 executive order on combating antisemitism.2 Title VI, which has been federal law since 1964, prevents federal aid from going to any entity that discriminates on the basis of race, color, or national origin. For almost four decades, the U.S. Department of Education held that Jewish students are not protected under Title VI because it does not cover religion. Beginning with President George W. Bush, successive presidents have provided guidance stipulating that Jewish students are protected under Title VI if they are discriminated against on the basis of their Jewish ethnicity or origins. With H.R. 6090, Congress is now speaking to this issue. H.R. 6090 also incorporates the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism and applies it to Title VI.3 The IHRA definition is not new. It was adopted by the U.S. State Department in 2016,4 was included in the Trump administration’s 2019 executive order on combatting antisemitism, and has remained in place under the Biden administration. By approving H.R. 6090, Congress would be largely codifying the Trump administration’s executive order.
Background
On October 26, 2023, Rep. Michael Lawler (R-NY) introduced the Antisemitism Awareness Act of 2023 (H.R. 6090). The bill has more than 60 cosponsors, including 15 Democrats. On April 16, 2024, a bipartisan Senate companion bill (S. 4127) was introduced by Tim Scott (R-SC) and Bob Casey (D-PA), along with a bipartisan group of cosponsors.
On May 1, 2024, H.R. 6090 passed the House by a vote of 320-91, with 187 Republicans and 133 Democrats voting in favor. The Antisemitism Awareness Act would codify in federal statute a reference to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism including its contemporary examples and would require the Department of Education to take it “into consideration” when “reviewing, investigating, or deciding whether there has been a violation of Title VI” of the Civil Rights Act.
Summary
Sec. 2 Sense of Congress
The Act states that individuals who face discrimination based on actual or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic
characteristics related or tied to religion, do not lose protection under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Sec. 3 Findings
The Act finds that antisemitism is on the rise in the United States and is impacting Jewish students in K-12
schools, colleges, and universities. In response, the Act would utilize the definition of antisemitism set by the
IHRA, including its contemporary examples, and states that this working definition “helps individuals understand
the various manifestations of antisemitism.”
Sec. 4 Definitions
This bill would incorporate a reference to the IHRA definition of antisemitism, including its contemporary
examples, in federal law but it does not include its actual text.
As a reminder, the IHRA working definition states:
“Antisemitism is 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.”
The IHRA contemporary examples include, among others:
• “Applying double standards by requiring of [Israel] a behavior not expected or demanded of any other
democratic nation”;
• “Holding Jews collectively responsible for actions of the state of Israel”;
• “Using the symbols and images associated with classic antisemitism (e.g., claims of Jews killing Jesus or
blood libel) to characterize Israel or Israelis”;
• “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”; and
• “Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis.”
Sec. 5. Rule of Construction for Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
In reviewing or deciding whether there has been a violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 on the basis of race, color, or national origin, based on an individual’s actual or perceived shared Jewish ancestry or Jewish ethnic characteristics, the Department of Education shall “take into consideration” the IHRA definition of antisemitism and its contemporary examples when “reviewing, investigating, or deciding whether there has been a violation of Title VI.”
Sec. 6. Other Rules of Construction
This section clarifies that nothing in the bill shall be construed to
• expand the authority of the Secretary of Education;
• alter ED’s standards for determining that harassing conduct amounts to actionable discrimination; or
• diminish or infringe upon rights protected under other provisions of law.
It further clarifies that nothing in the bill shall be construed to “diminish or infringe upon any right protected
under the First Amendment.”