TULSA, Okla — Members of the Jewish community in Oklahoma worked to get two bills passed and signed by the governor, condemning antisemitism.
Jacob Parra is a member of the Jewish Community Relations Committee who helped with the formation of the bills.
He said a lot of work behind-the-scenes took place.
“I hope this is a step in the right direction,” he said. “It was a lot of taking time to explain these bills and to resolve concerns that maybe our voting members had.”
The two bills were passed by the state legislature and signed by Governor Stitt.
One billdefines antisemitism, and the other specifically outlines what actions are condemned in higher education facilities, K-20.
The multiple-page document states discrimination based on race, ethnicity, national origin, sex, disability, religion or marital status is not allowed.
Rennie Cohen is a law student at the University of Oklahoma and helped advocate for the passage of these bills.
“Oklahoma has a really strong religious community, and Jews are part of that," he said. "This is a state where religious freedom and religious liberty is very important, and by assisting one community in allowing ourselves to practice our religion freely, we hope other people will be allowed to practice their religion freely as well.”
However, these bills have received some backlash.
2 News Oklahoma has covered the story closely in the past:
Combating hate or attacking free speech? Tulsa rep introduces antisemitism bill
When the bills were first introduced, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) opposed the bills.
The organization stated the bills would falsely equate criticism of Israel with antisemitic discrimination.
The bill adopts the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) definition of antisemitism, reading:
“Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.”
The ACLU argued that free speech could be impacted by this bill, especially on college campuses regarding criticism of the Israeli government.
According to this article published by The Israel Times, the lead author of the definition, Kenneth Stern, also stated that the definition should not be codified into law.
The article goes on to say that Stern said the definition could be misconstrued and used to silence pro-Palestinian speech on campuses.
Even with these opposing views, Tulsa’s Jewish American Federation Executive Director, Joe Roberts, said he’s proud to have been part of the team that worked to get the bill passed.
"There's always an undercurrent of antisemitism," he said. “It does send a very clear message that we take it seriously in Oklahoma, that this is a place where we want our Jewish communities to thrive.”
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