Bornstein Holocaust center adopts IHRA Working Definition of Anti-Semitism

PROVIDENCE – On Dec. 16, the seventh night of Hanukkah, the board of the Sandra Bornstein Holocaust Education Center formally adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s Working Definition of Anti-Semitism.

The Holocaust center now joins the Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island and the Rhode Island Coalition for Israel in adopting the IHRA Working Definition, which is increasingly being accepted by governments, nonprofits, law enforcement and higher education around the world.   

The IHRA Working Definition creates a common international standard for judging whether speech or actions are anti-Semitic. The rationale behind it was to update the classic understanding of anti-Semitism to reflect modern behavior, and thus provide a tool for fighting anti-Semitic speech and behavior.

A key tenet of the Working Definition supports free speech by stating that criticism of Israel similar to what is leveled against any other country cannot be regarded as anti-Semitic. But along with older forms of Jewish hatred, it says that anti-Zionism – that is, an attack on Israel’s right to exist – is anti-Semitic.

In July 2019, The Jewish Agency stated: “We call on all world governments, national and international institutions, and NGOs [nonprofits] to adopt and implement this definition as a means of education, combating phenomena, and enforcement against hatred of Jews around the world.”

The Bornstein Holocaust center formed a special committee to research and evaluate the Working Definition. After several months of study, the group recommended its adoption. 

The board stated that it was proud to join the growing number of community organizations that have adopted the definition, and that it goes hand in hand with the center’s mission of Holocaust education.

The full text of the IHRA Working Definition can be read at: www.holocaustremembrance.com/resources/working-definitions-charters/working-definition-antisemitism.

Submitted by the Sandra Bornstein Holocaust Education Center.