| South Dakota Gov. Noem Signs IHRA Antisemitism Definition into Law |
| מושל דרום דקוטה נועם חתמה על הגדרת האנטישמיות של IHRA לחוק |
Dear friends,
On March 6th, 2024, South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem signed into law a bill adopting the IHRA definition of antisemitism.
IHRA is important for Jewish civil rights because it establishes that anti-Jewish bias can include anti-Israel bias.
IAC for Action led the development of the model legislation used in South Dakota and was proud to work with Governor Noem, the Governor’s General Counsel Katie Hruska and bill sponsors Rep. Fred Deutsch and Sen. Jim Mehlhoff to resource this effort and we are grateful for their leadership and heartfelt commitment to combating antisemitism.
35 states have endorsed the IHRA definition. South Dakota is the 12th state to incorporate it into law.
IAC for Action’s executive director, Joe Sabag, said, “By passing HB 1076, South Dakota has sent an important message, not just within the state, but across the United States, that every form of antisemitism is unacceptable. Without the IHRA definition, our community has suffered a civil rights deficit, where perpetrators of antisemitic discrimination would target Jews and Jewish institutions and then hide behind the false pretense that they were motivated by anti-Israel politics and not anti-Jewish bigotry. South Dakota’s passage of HB 1076 is an important step forward in a national effort to deal with the current antisemitism crisis we are facing. IAC for Action is grateful to the South Dakota Legislature, and to bill sponsors Rep. Fred Deutsch and Sen. Jim Mehlhaff, and to Governor Noem and her General Counsel Katie Hruska for their leadership. We are also grateful to attorney Dr. Mark Goldfeder of the National Jewish Advocacy Center for his integral role in helping draft and resource this bill, and to the South Dakota Jewish community for their strong advocacy: Stephen Alperowitz, Rabbi Mendel Alperowitz of the Chabad Jewish Center of South Dakota, Dan Lederman and Dan Rosen.”
Thank you all for your support in the ongoing effort to enact meaningful legislation across the country to defend our community from antisemitism.
– IAC for Action