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Anti-Semitism and Freedom of Speech on College Campuses
(The Hill) Shannon Gilreath - Incidents of anti-Semitism have risen alarmingly over the past two years. According to FBI statistics, there were more hate crimes against Jews in 2015 than against any other religious group. Anti-Jewish assaults rose by more than 50% from 2014. Anti-Semitic harassment seems to be acutely problematic on U.S. college campuses, with over half of all Jewish students polled indicating that they'd witnessed or directly experienced acts of anti-Semitism at their colleges or universities. A 2016 study showed a 45% increase in campus anti-Semitism. One common tactic is to use criticism of Israel as a tool to target and marginalize Jewish students. The Anti-Semitism Awareness Act (AAA) of 2016 is a bi-partisan solution to this problem. Passed by the Senate on Dec. 1, 2016, the AAA directs the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) to use the U.S. State Department's definition of anti-Semitism when evaluating hostile environment complaints under Title VI. The State Department provides a clear definition of anti-Semitism, including helpful examples that will make OCR evaluation of complex complaints easier. The writer is Professor of Law at Wake Forest University.