United with Israel

One cannot defeat that which they are unwilling to define.”

By JNS.org

In recent weeks, 10 states have advanced a proclamation or executive orders acknowledging International Holocaust Remembrance Day with each proclamation officially recognizing the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism.

The states that have already issued proclamations include Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia, Wyoming and Nevada. Virginia plans on issuing an executive order.

The proclamations are a result of a joint advocacy effort by Christians United for Israel (CUFI), Jewish Federations of North American (JFNA), the American Jewish Committee and the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations.

一个人无法击败他们不愿定义的东西。” 通过 JNS.org 最近几周，有 10 个州提出了承认国际大屠杀纪念日的公告或行政命令，每个公告都正式承认国际大屠杀纪念联盟 (IHRA) 对反犹太主义的工作定义。 已经发布公告的州包括阿拉巴马州、阿肯色州、爱达荷州、俄克拉荷马州、田纳西州、犹他州、西弗吉尼亚州、怀俄明州和内华达州。弗吉尼亚计划发布行政命令。 这些公告是以色列基督徒联合会（CUFI）、北美犹太人联合会（JFNA）、美国犹太人委员会和美国主要犹太组织主席会议共同倡导的结果。

The proclamations come on the heels of a smaller group of states issuing proclamations last year at Chanukah time.

“We encourage the use of the IHRA definition in educational and training programs on issues relating to discrimination and anti-bias compliance. In order to effectively combat antisemitism, it is imperative to adopt the consensus definition of antisemitism—the IHRA definition—following the lead of over 30 countries, and more than 1,000 organizations and universities across the world,” said Conference CEO William Daroff.

CUFI founder and chairman Pastor John Hagee agreed, saying the wave of executive statements shows that leaders are taking the need to acknowledge the IHRA definition seriously.

“One cannot defeat that which they are unwilling to define—and from Washington to the state capitals, the IHRA definition is being acknowledged and appropriately utilized,” he said.

“In the wake of increasing acts of antisemitism, staying silent is not an option, and we are grateful to governors across the country who are standing up and speaking out on this vital issue,” Hagee added. “Over the next year, we will work with our partners to advance similar measures and do everything in our power to stem the rising tide of antisemitism that is sweeping across our country.”

这些公告是在去年光明节时间发布公告的一小部分州之后发布的。

“我们鼓励在有关歧视和反偏见合规问题的教育和培训计划中使用 IHRA 定义。为了有效打击反犹太主义，必须在全球 30 多个国家和 1000 多个组织和大学的领导下，采用反犹太主义的共识定义——IHRA 定义，”会议首席执行官威廉·达罗夫 (William Daroff) 说。

CUFI 创始人兼主席 John Hagee 牧师对此表示赞同，他说行政声明的浪潮表明领导者正在认真对待承认 IHRA 定义的必要性。

“人们无法击败他们不愿意定义的东西——从华盛顿到各州首府，IHRA 的定义正在得到承认和适当利用，”他说。

“随着反犹太主义行为的增加，保持沉默不是一种选择，我们感谢全国各地的州长站出来就这个重要问题发表意见，”哈吉补充说。 “在接下来的一年里，我们将
与我们的合作伙伴一起推进类似的措施，并尽我们所能阻止席卷我国的反犹太主义浪潮。”

Adam Teitelbaum, executive director of the JFNA’s Israel Action Network, said that promoting the IHRA definition is a top public-policy priority for the organization.

“The alarming rise of antisemitism requires multiple tools to ensure Jews feel safe and secure and having a unified definition helps make that possible,” he said. “It is especially meaningful to see so many states take action on the 77th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, a day when the world is memorializing the horrors of the Holocaust.”

While the U.S. State Department, as well as numerous countries, have accepted the IHRA definition of antisemitism, some lawmakers and organizations, such as J Street and Americans for Peace Now, have pushed for an alternative definition found in the Jerusalem Declaration on Antisemitism, which critics say excuses many common left-wing attacks on Israel and Zionism as not antisemitic. This definition has not gained much traction outside of academic circles.

“It’s clear that any competing definitions, which seem to say a lot without saying anything, have been rejected by the American people and their leaders,” said Hagee.

JFNA 以色列行动网络执行董事 Adam Teitelbaum 表示，推广 IHRA 定义是该组织的首要公共政策优先事项。

“反犹太主义的惊人崛起需要多种工具来确保犹太人感到安全和有保障，而统一的定义有助于实现这一目标，”他说。 “看到如此多的国家在奥斯维辛解放 77 周年之际采取行动尤其有意义，这一天全世界都在纪念大屠杀的恐怖。”

虽然美国国务院以及许多国家已经接受了 IHRA 对反犹太主义的定义，但一些立法者和组织，如 J Street 和 American for Peace Now，已经推动了《耶路撒冷反犹太主义宣言》中的替代定义，该定义批评人士说，许多左翼对以色列和犹太复国主义的常见攻击为非反犹主义辩解。这个定义在学术界之外并没有引起太大的关注。

“很明显，任何相互竞争的定义，似乎说了很多但什么也没说，已经被美国人民及其领导人拒绝，”哈吉说。