WASHINGTON – American Civil Liberties Union sent a letter Today, we strongly urge the Senate to continue blocking S. 4127, the Antisemitism Awareness Act, which threatens to censor political speech critical of Israel on college campuses under the guise of addressing antisemitism.

“Instead of addressing antisemitism on campus, this misguided legislation would punish protected political expression,” he said Jenna Leventoff, ACLU senior policy counsel. “At a time when enforcement of civil rights on campuses could not be more critical, this bill risks politicizing these vital protections by censoring legitimate political speech critical of the Israeli government. The right to criticize government actions is the most basic protection provided by the First Amendment, and this includes the actions of foreign governments. “The Senate must continue to block this bill and protect free speech.”

The bill, passed by the House of Representatives in May despite bipartisan opposition, directs the Department of Education to consider an overly broad definition of antisemitism that includes protected political speech when investigating allegations of discrimination under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. The ACLU has it. warned This could pressure colleges and universities to restrict speech by students and faculty that criticize the Israeli government and its military operations for fear of the university losing federal funding.

Courts have ruled that applying the IHRA definition of antisemitism to harassment policies likely violates the First Amendment. In October 2024, the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas ruled: Students for Justice in Palestine / Abbott An executive order directing all institutions of higher education in Texas to update and enforce free speech policies on campus to address anti-Semitic speech and enforce the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism likely violates the First Amendment. The judge found that “the inclusion within (the IHRA’s definition of antisemitism) constitutes viewpoint discrimination” because it makes the expression of certain content punishable. Moreover, as the ACLU’s letter to Congress makes clear, federal law already prohibits anti-Semitic discrimination and harassment by federally funded organizations, and the Antisemitism Awareness Act is not needed to protect Jewish students from discrimination.