Proponents of Georgia antisemitism bill hope to have IHRA definition recognized

Georgia could become the 32nd US state to pass a duo of bills legally defining antisemitism according to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition when its legislative session starts next week. 

The bills known as HB's 30 and 144 passed through the House of Representatives early last year but failed to make it through the Senate. 

Georgia's upcoming legislative session runs from January 8 through March 28. 

Esther Panitch, a first-term Democratic lawmaker and the only Jewish member of the state legislature, told The Jerusalem Post she introduced the bills before her house was targeted with antisemitic fliers shortly after she won her election. 

Panitch said her colleagues stood beside her to denounce antisemitism, but she noticed a division among her peers with accepting the world's "gold standard definition of antisemitism."

Panitch said she was confronted with antisemitic tropes.

"It was horrifying and I realized then we had a problem. I addressed it with my leadership team," Panitch said. "Then fast-forward to October 7."

Not protective enough for Jewish people

According to Panitch, the current hate crime statute is not protective enough for Jewish people.

"Just like any hate crime, it's up to the prosecutor. This just gives prosecutors a tool to use as a definition," Panitch said. "The statue says state agencies shall consider this as the definition for antisemitism. It's a guide, it's not a 'check the box.'"

Renee Kutner, Chief Operating Officer of the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta, said the federation supports these bills. 

"We have worked closely with several of our partners in Atlanta who do more legislative work to help support their passage, and we attended sessions last year to voice our support," Kutner said. "It is our hope that Georgia will pass an appropriate antisemitism bill this year."As Lt. Governor, Burt Jones, a Republican, acts as president of the Senate and is charged with bringing forth legislation to the floor. 

Jones' office would not provide any comment about the upcoming legislative session and directed The Post to a statement from Jones' office on November 29. 

"I condemn Hamas’s terrorist attack and the wave of anti-Semitic acts and speech we have seen in our country since then. This is unacceptable and this hatred and hostile way of thinking will not be tolerated, especially in our universities and places of learning," Jones said in the statement. "I unequivocally stand with Israel, our Jewish Community and look forward to working with the Senate and House to get House Bill 30 passed and signed into law.”

According to Panitch, she's mainly working to dispel criticism from more progressive members of her party that the bills will criminalize or hinder free speech. 

In a statement to The Post, the Georgia chapter of the Council of American Islamic Relations said it stands firmly against all kinds of religious bigotry. 

"We recognize that both anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim activity is on the rise in Georgia and must be confronted," Azka Mahmood, CAIR-Georgia executive director said in the statement. 

"As a civil rights organization, we believe that bills that promote the adoption of the non-legally binding IHRA definition of antisemitism impedes Americans' First Amendment rights. We remain concerned that the conflation of criticism of the state of Israel with antisemitism curbs free speech and chills legitimate critique of Israel. Further, such measures dilute the meaning of antisemitism and do not address or reduce the threat to our Jewish brothers and sisters," according to the statement. 

Panitch said she's disappointed that people across the political spectrum who she's been allies with in the past have not stood with her in support.

Though Georgia's Jewish community is supportive, Pantich said she's going through Jewish and non-Jewish communities alike to combat misinformation about the bills. 

Panitch said she's never seen her community so unified on one particular political issue, from Republican and Democrats to Reform and Orthodox Jews. 

"I have a lot of friends [in the legislature], I've cried on their shoulders when it has gotten really bad," Panitch said. "But it is deeply personal to me. I will be the only one it affects, the law could be applied because of an act taken against me. No one wants it to be used. Hopefully this law is never used."