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President Biden Announces New Plan To Combat Antisemitism
US President; Joe Biden has announced the US government’s most ambitious and all-encompassing initiative to combat prejudice, hatred, and violence against Jews.
During a recorded speech at the White House, Mr. Biden said the first US National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism sends a “clear and forceful message” that “in America, evil will not win, hate will not prevail”, and “the venom and violence of antisemitism will not be the story of our time”.
Months in the making, the strategy has four basic goals: increasing awareness and understanding of antisemitism, including its threat to America, and broadening appreciation of Jewish American heritage; improving safety and security for Jewish communities; reversing the normalization of antisemitism and countering antisemitic discrimination; and building “cross-community” solidarity and collective action to counter hate.
Generally speaking, Jewish organizations have praised the US administration’s efforts.
Amy Spitalnick, CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, said: “Jewish safety is inextricably linked to the safety of other communities and the health and vibrancy of our multiracial democracy.
“As we see antisemitism and extremism increasingly normalized in our politics and our society, the urgency of this framework is even more clear.”
The plan also requests assistance from the US Congress, state and municipal governments, tech corporations and other private organizations, religious leaders, and others in the fight against anti-Semitism.
A “zero tolerance” policy against antisemitic material on IT companies’ platforms is demanded. The US Holocaust Memorial Museum has promised to open a research center for education.
It is expected of professional sports leagues and clubs to use their influence and platforms to promote awareness. The White House Public Engagement Office will ask members of the public to share their experiences supporting Jewish, Muslim, or other non-Christian communities.
Although Jews make up just over 2% of the population overall, Doug Emhoff, who is married to US vice president Kamala Harris, stated at the White House that in 2022, hate crimes against Jews accounted for 63%, or over two-thirds, of all religiously motivated hate crimes in the United States.
“I know the fear. I know the pain. I know the anger that Jews are living with because of this epidemic of hate,” said Mr. Emhoff, the first Jewish spouse of a US president or vice president. He has become the administration’s point person on combating antisemitism.
Mr. Emhoff, a former entertainment attorney in California, claimed he had no idea that this issue would become “my cause” as the second gentleman of the United States, “but now, more than ever, we must all rise to the challenge and meet this moment”.
He said the plan will save lives. “We are committed to making sure that everyone can live openly, proudly, and safely in their communities,” Mr Emhoff said. “It’s on all of us to put an end to the visceral hate we are seeing across our nation. We cannot normalize this.”
As a demonstration of the administration’s support for the strategy, Mr. Emhoff was flanked by White House Domestic Policy Advisor; Susan Rice, Homeland Security Adviser; Liz Sherwood-Randall, and Ambassador Deborah Lipstadt, the special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism.
Ms. Harris entered the auditorium covertly for a brief period of time to observe her husband from the rear of the space and gave him a thumbs-up before leaving.
A survivor of the deadliest anti-Semitic attack in US history, the 2018 Pittsburgh massacre at the Tree of Life synagogue, applauded the plan.
11 worshipers were slain in the incident, but Rabbi Jeffrey Myers who survived said: “I am proud that our leaders understand the urgency and importance of countering antisemitism comprehensively, but grieve the levels of antisemitism in the country that required the need for a plan in the first place.”
On Thursday, the process of choosing a jury for Robert Bowers’ trial came to an end. On Tuesday, testimony is anticipated to start. Mr. Biden stated in his speech that hate does not vanish but rather hides unless given oxygen.
He spoke about the tragic white supremacist demonstration that took place in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017, noting how the attendees’ antisemitic shouts inspired him to run for president in 2020.
“Silence is complicity,” the president declared.
