Source: United States Senator for Oklahoma James Lankford
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK- Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and Representatives Kathy Manning (D-NC-6) and Chris Smith (R-NJ-4), co-chairs of the Senate and House Bipartisan Task Forces for Combating Antisemitism, respectively, applauded news of the release of the first-ever national strategy to counter antisemitism. Lankford and Rosen led 125 members of Congress to advocate for a unified, national strategy to combat antisemitism in December 2022.
“I’m glad the Biden Administration responded to the urging of members of the Senate and House Bipartisan Taskforces for Combatting Antisemitism and released an unfortunately, necessary national strategy to counter antisemitism,” said Lankford. “Any practical effort by any administration to curb the rising tide of antisemitism here and abroad can be helpful to address the increase in antisemitism and ensure we protect the right of all people to freely live their faith without fear. I am grateful for the partnership of Senator Rosen, Representative Manning, Representative Smith, and the officials in the Administration who worked on this strategy. We must stand united against anti-Jewish statements and violent acts wherever we see them.”
“Jewish communities across our country are experiencing an alarming increase of antisemitic attacks and incidents. We need a coordinated, whole-of-government approach to addressing anti-Jewish bigotry, and that’s why I pushed the Administration to put together a national strategy to counter antisemitism in all its forms,” said Rosen. “With this unified strategy, which includes specific actions for the federal government to undertake, we are going to effectively utilize the full force of the United States government to root out antisemitic hate across our nation.”
“The alarming rise of antisemitism poses a threat to Jewish communities and to American values. I welcome the release of the National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism; it is an important first step in coordinating our government’s effort to eradicate this particularly pernicious form of discrimination,” said Manning. “I applaud President Biden for his leadership in developing this whole-of-government approach and I look forward to continuing to work with the administration and both parties in Congress to combat antisemitism and protect the Jewish community.”
“There are many good things about the plan—above all I welcome the attention it pays to community/physical security, to the problems of getting better reporting and law enforcement responses to antisemitic violence and harassment, and to Holocaust education,” said Smith. “Some of the most vicious and harmful antisemitism is incitement to violence and hatred of Israel. In 2004, Natan Sharansky testified at a hearing I chaired that while Israel should not be above criticism, that antisemitism tries to ‘hide behind the veneer of legitimate criticism of Israel.’ Sharansky said that employing the 3D test—demonization, double standards and delegitimization—is useful in exposing antisemitism. When antisemites spew their hatred, one of the principal duties of an elected official is to stand publicly and emphatically with the intended victim.”
As a co-founder of the Senate Bipartisan Task Force for Combating Antisemitism with Rosen in 2019, Senator Rosen has been at the forefront of the fight against antisemitism. Last Congress, Lankford and Rosen’s bipartisan Never Again Education Act was signed into law, establishing a federal fund through the US Holocaust Memorial Museum to provide teachers with resources and training necessary to teach students the important lessons of the Holocaust.
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