Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By admin on February 8, 2020

Washington, DC Congressman Bill Keating, Chairman of the Europe, Eurasia, Energy and the Environment Subcommittee of the Foreign Affairs Committee, introduced a resolution reaffirming the need to combat anti-Semitism in Europe. This resolution comes a week after Chairman Keating held a hearing on the rise of anti-Semitism and hate in Europe with numerous notable witnesses including Dr. Alfred Mnzer, who is a Holocaust survivor.

According to the Keating Resolution:

Said Congressman Keating:

Last week, we recognized International Holocaust Remembrance Day, a day marking the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. But 75 years later, it is incumbent upon us to acknowledge that anti-Semitism and hate did not begin with Adolf Hitler and it did not end after the Holocaust. Never before have I been in or chaired a hearing like the one in our Subcommittee last week. The unity, the sharing of stories, and the genuine interaction between the Members and our witnesses was so powerful because combatting anti-Semitism and ensuring that crimes against humanity like the Holocaust never happen again is something that brings us all together.

We must also acknowledge that it is not just in Europe that we are seeing the disturbing trends in anti-Semitism and xenophobia, but in the United States as well. Because we cannot wait until it is too late and because discrimination is a scourge we cannot ignore, we must do the difficult work of changing laws and policies as well as the language we use so that innocent people are not killed and harassed because of who they are. We must also meaningfully engage communities, civic leaders, and educators to bring about critical change at the grassroots level. And we must do it together because our strength lies in our partnership to root out this evil. In that respect, the role of our State Departments Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism has been so critical in our governments efforts towards one day eliminating anti-Semitism in the world by serving as a point person and coordinating force behind these efforts. I hope that going forward the US Special Envoy will be able to work closely with similar counterparts across Europe. This resolution reaffirms our commitment to working together and will serve as a further springboard for our work on this issue in the Subcommittee.

A copy of the Keating resolution, which is supported by the American Jewish Committee and the Anti-Defamation League, is below.

To watch last weeks hearing, please click on this link. This witnesses at the hearing were:

1. Dr. Alfred Mnzer

2.Mr. Ira Forman

3. Ms. Christie J. Edwards

4.Robert Williams, Ph.D.

5. Rabbi Andrew Baker

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVESMr. KEATING submitted the following resolution; which was referred to theCommittee on lllllllllllllllRESOLUTIONReaffirming the need for transatlantic cooperation to combatanti-Semitism in Europe.Whereas anti-Semitism in Europe is widespread and increasingaccording to many studies, including those conductedby the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights,the Pew Research Center, and media outlets;Whereas 89 percent of Jews living in Austria, Belgium, Denmark,Germany, France, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands,Poland, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdomfeel anti-Semitism has increased over the past decade;Whereas 85 percent of European Jews consider anti-Semitismto be the biggest social or political problem in theircountry;VerDate Mar 15 2010 16:43 Jan 30, 2020 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 C:USERSMMCROTTYAPPDATAROAMINGSOFTQUADXMETAL7.0GENCKEATIN_04January 30, 2020 (4:43 p.m.)G:M16KEATINKEATIN_049.XMLg:VHLC1302013020.276.xml (750573|8)2Whereas 28 percent of European Jews experienced anti-Semiticharassment at least once during the last year;Whereas 34 percent of European Jews avoid visiting Jewishevents or sites because they do not feel safe;Whereas 79 percent of European Jews have said they do notreport anti-Semitic incidents, with 48 percent giving thereason that nothing would have changed had they doneso;Whereas Congress passed the Combating European Anti-Semitism Act in 2018 to require increased Departmentof State reporting on the scope and severity of anti-Semitismin Europe;Whereas many European governments and the EuropeanUnion have adopted the International Holocaust RemembranceAlliance working definition of antisemitism;Whereas 38 percent of European Jews have considered emigratingbecause they did not feel safe as Jews in Europe;Whereas one-third of 7,000 Europeans surveyed said theyknew just a little or nothing at all about the Holocaust;andWhereas the global rise in anti-Semitism should be cause forserious concern on both sides of the Atlantic: Now, therefore,be it1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives2 (1) reaffirms the strong transatlantic alliance3 between the United States and Europe and our long4 history of addressing shared challenges;VerDate Mar 15 2010 16:43 Jan 30, 2020 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 C:USERSMMCROTTYAPPDATAROAMINGSOFTQUADXMETAL7.0GENCKEATIN_04January 30, 2020 (4:43 p.m.)G:M16KEATINKEATIN_049.XMLg:VHLC1302013020.276.xml (750573|8)31 (2) recognizes the need for the United States2 and Europe to work together to combat anti-Semi

3tism;4 (3) calls on all European governments to take5 all necessary measures to ensure the safety and se6curity of Jewish communities;7 (4) recognizes the European Commission and8 the Organization for Security and Cooperation in9 Europe have taken action to increase education and10 inclusion and to criminalize anti-Semitic crimes and11 Holocaust denial;12 (5) encourages European leaders to provide ro13bust political leadership to reassure Jewish commu14nities and to speak out against manifestations of15 anti-Semitism and other forms of intolerance across16 the political spectrum;17 (6) encourages European governments to en18sure that school curricula include education about19 the Holocaust, modern-day anti-Semitism, and inclu20sive antibias training, and to mandate hate crime21 prevention and response training into law enforce22ment education; and23 (7) calls for increased cooperation and partner24ship to address the scourge of anti-Semitism.

See the original post:

Congressman Keating Introduces Anti-Semitism Resolution - Cape Cod Today

Category: Holocaust Denial
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