According to Twitchy's own Aaron Walker, and legal expert:
… right now under the civil rights act of 1964, if you are motivated by the belief that Jews killed Christ and this has something to do with Jews who live today, that is anti-Semitism with or without this amendment and if you act on it, you are likely to face liability in your company.
While it is definitely true that the 'Christ-killer' slur has been used by antisemites to attack Jews, it's also not unreasonable for Christians to be concerned that the right combination of lawyer and left-leaning judge could interpret a completely innocent action to be discrimination under Title VI because a person stated basic Christian teaching publicly at some point.
This is, frankly, a specific instance of the larger problem of 'hate crime' legislation. It puts the state in the position of mind-reading rather than punishing acts.
Again, either of these statements
can be used (and are) in an antisemitic manner (think, 'CHRIST IS KING, JEW!!!'), but they are innocent enough outside that context.
So how did we get here and whose 'fault' is it?
The bill is
H.R.6090 - Antisemitism Awareness Act of 2023. Yes, 2023. This has been in the works for some time.
What the bill actually does is make the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) Working Definition of Antisemitism the definition of antisemitism used when evaluating Title VI cases. The 'contemporary examples of antisemitism' listed in this definition include the exact text that has caused such an uproar:
Using the symbols and images associated with classic antisemitism (e.g., claims of Jews killing Jesus or blood libel) to characterize Israel or Israelis.
This is not a new definition. It is the definition from 2016 that has been used for this purpose by the Department of Education since 2018. This bill seeks to make it the legal definition for investigating Title VI violations, across the board.
This definition, however, has already been used for this purpose because President Trump decreed it to be so with
Executive Order 13899 (Combating Anti-Semitism). The text of President Trump's Executive Order is very similar to the text of H.R. 6090, including the reference to the 'contemporary examples of antisemitism'.
So, who let this happen to us? President Trump and Congress, and there's no reason to believe either intended to criminalize Christianity. Both were attempting to address rising antisemitism and were largely opposed by leftist groups who often criticize Israel.
That's a lot of background, but what do we make of the bill? Well, opinions will vary, but clearly, many conservatives are concerned about the potential for abuse against people's First Amendment rights.
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