Antisemitism now defined in NC law, after Gov. Cooper signs bipartisan bill
Gov. Roy Cooper signed a bipartisan bill Monday defining antisemitism under state law.
The SHALOM Act, sponsored by House Speaker Tim Moore and passed by both the House and Senate in overwhelmingly bipartisan votes, uses the definition of antisemitism adopted by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance in 2016. (The bill’s name invokes the Hebrew word for “peace,” also used to say “hello” and “goodbye.”)
“Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews,” the alliance’s working definition states. “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.”
Critics have said the definition and a list of accompanying examples are too broad and could chill constitutionally protected speech, like criticism of Israel.
One of those examples, which the alliance states could constitute antisemitism when “taking into account the overall context,” is “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.”
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle rejected the notion that the bill would infringe on free expression and touted it as a necessary tool to educate the public and combat a rise in antisemitic incidents.
The law states that the definition is adopted “as a tool and guide for training, education, recognizing, and combating antisemitic hate crimes or discrimination and for tracking and reporting antisemitic incidents in this State.”
It also states that the law “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 North Carolina.”
Antisemitism on the rise
“Defining antisemitism is important to stopping it, and this new law helps do that as antisemitic incidents are on the rise,” Cooper said in a statement. “While we protect the right to free speech, this legislation helps to make our state a more welcoming, inclusive and safe place for everyone.”
Some Democrats who voted for the bill also expressed concerns during debate on the Senate floor last week, asking why Republicans hadn’t taken up legislation they had repeatedly filed to address hate crimes and harmful rhetoric against Jewish people but also other groups, including Muslims.
One of those bills Democrats have tried to advance in vain, and attempted to add to the SHALOM Act as an amendment last week, would require the State Bureau of Investigation to maintain a database tracking hate-crimes.
Sen. Mujtaba Mohammed, a Charlotte Democrat who proposed that amendment, said “it was certainly surprising to me to see the party of Trump, Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, and others (who) have tirelessly worked to dismantle diversity and inclusion efforts” in the state’s agencies and education institutions “suddenly express concern about racism, and bigotry, and protecting people from hate.”
In response, Sen. Bobby Hanig, a Currituck County Republican who filed a similar version of the bill last year, said no Democrats approached him about amending the bill as it moved forward this session.
The Senate approved the bill in a near-unanimous 45-2 vote Wednesday. The House passed the bill 105-4 in early May.
The bill stalled in the Senate for nearly two months after it was sent over by the House, until it was approved by two committees that held votes within just over an hour of each other last Wednesday, ahead of a vote by the full Senate later that day.
Cooper on Monday also signed another bill, approved by lawmakers unanimously, that, among other things, makes a number of technical changes to the state’s revenue laws.
