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Categorizing Antisemitism

AMCHA Initiative categorizes antisemitism in the following manner:

1) Targeting Jewish Students and Staff - Incidents that directly target Jewish students on campus or other Jewish members of the campus community for harmful or hateful action based on their Jewishness or perceived support for Israel:

  • PHYSICAL ASSAULT – Physically attacking Jewish students or staff because of their Jewishness or perceived association with Israel.
  • DISCRIMINATION - Unfair treatment or exclusion of Jewish students or staff because of their Jewishness or perceived association with Israel.
  • DESTRUCTION OF JEWISH PROPERTY - Inflicting damage or destroying property owned by Jews or related to Jews.
  • GENOCIDAL EXPRESSION – Using imagery (e.g. swastika) or language that expresses a desire or will to kill Jews or exterminate the Jewish people.
  • SUPPRESSION OF SPEECH/MOVEMENT/ASSEMBLY – Preventing or impeding the expression of Jewish students, such as by removing or defacing Jewish students’ flyers, attempting to disrupt or shut down speakers at Jewish or pro-Israel events, or blocking access to Jewish or pro-Israel student events.
  • BULLYING - Tormenting Jewish students or staff because of their Jewishness or perceived association with Israel.
  • DENIGRATION - Unfairly ostracizing, vilifying or defaming Jewish students or staff because of their Jewishness or perceived association with Israel.

2) Antisemitic Expression - Language, imagery or behavior deemed antisemitic by the U.S. State Department definition of antisemitism, or wholly consistent with that definition:

  • HISTORICAL (ANTISEMITISM) - Using symbols, images and tropes associated with historical antisemitism, including by making “mendacious, dehumanizing, demonizing, or stereotypical allegations about Jews as such, or the power of Jews as a collective-especially but not exclusively, the myth about a world Jewish conspiracy or of Jews controlling the media, economy, governments, or other societal institutions” (U.S. State Department).
  • CONDONING TERRORISM (AGAINST ISRAEL OR JEWS) - Calling for, aiding or justifying the killing or harming of Jews.
  • DENYING JEWS SELF-DETERMINATION - Denying Israel the right to exist or promoting the elimination of Israel as a Jewish state.
  • DEMONIZATION OF ISRAEL - Using symbols, images and tropes associated with classic antisemitism to characterize Israel, Israelis, Zionism or Zionists, such as claiming that Israelis are evil or blood-thirsty and deliberately murder children or that Zionism is white supremacy, or delegitimizing Israel by insinuating that Israel is an illegitimate state and does not belong in the family of nations.

3) BDS Activity (for more information about BDS and antisemitism, click HERE)- These incidents contain the following activities:

  • CALLS FOR BDS - Promoting BDS verbally or by writing, signing or publicizing resolutions, petitions, statements or op-eds calling for BDS
  • BDS VOTES - Considering, discussing or voting on resolutions calling for BDS.
  • BDS EVENTS - Holding events which promote BDS.
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