[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 110 (Wednesday, September 15, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9246-S9251]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CONTINUING THE FIGHT AGAINST ANTI-SEMITISM
Mr. VOINOVICH. Mr. President, I rise today to call attention to the
disturbing rise in anti-Semitism that the world has witnessed during
the last several years. I believe it is important that Senator Frist,
Senator Santorum and others have come together to highlight the urgent
need to take action to combat this serious problem.
As a public official and private citizen, I have had the opportunity
to visit the State of Israel on six separate occasions. I will never
forget the time that I spent at Yad Vashem in Jerusalem in 1980, and on
several other visits. Nor will the images that I saw at the Diaspora
Museum in Tel Aviv ever leave my mind. Those experiences truly brought
home to me the horrors of the Holocaust, and the role that anti-
Semitism played in leading to the Holocaust. I vowed that I would do
everything in my power to prevent this from ever happening again. Quite
frankly, as I have said before, this is something that I never thought
I would see again in my lifetime.
In May 2002, following a disturbing number of anti-Semitic incidents
in Europe, I joined members of the Helsinki Commission in a hearing to
examine the rise of anti-Semitic violence in Europe. I was shocked by
the reports that I heard. Today, the news is equally as disturbing.
Even during the last month, we have seen numerous acts of anti-
Semitism, which some of my colleagues will be referencing today. I will
also name a few:
In Paris, France, on August 14, 2004, anti-Semitic graffiti,
including a sign saying ``death to Jews'' and a swastika, was found
scrawled on a wall on the grounds of Notre Dame Cathedral;
In Wellington, New Zealand, on August 6, 2004, a Jewish chapel was
destroyed by fire and up to 90 Jewish headstones were pulled out of the
ground and smashed at a cemetery, on the outskirts of the nation's
capital;
In Calgary, Canada over the night of August 22, 2004, vandals sprayed
swastikas and anti-Semitic messages on a condominium complex a block
from the Calgary Jewish Center;
In the Czech Republic on August 10, 2004 more than 80 tombstones were
overturned at a Jewish cemetery; and
In Birmingham, United Kingdom, during the night of August 22, 2004,
sixty Jewish gravestones were destroyed in a local cemetery. Community
officials reported that stickers with the logo of a Neo-Nazi group were
found on some of the stones.
It is also important to stress that we are not exempt here in the
United States. At the end of March, the Anti-Defamation League released
a report on anti-Semitic incidents that took place in the United States
in 2003. In total, ADL counted more than 1,500 acts of anti-Semitism
here at home. According to their count, 25 of these incidents occurred
in my own State.
Last month, I met with a group of individuals in my home state to
discuss concern with growing anti-Semitism. There was general consensus
that this is, in fact, a problem in our own communities. Our
conversation underscored the need to do all that we can to make the
fight against anti-Semitism a priority in the United States, just as we
redouble our efforts to encourage other countries to take action.
We should recognize positive efforts underway to promote tolerance
and understanding, both at home and abroad. I am encouraged by action
that is taking place in Ohio to work toward this end. For instance,
last year, community leaders in Cleveland came together to form an
organization called ``Ishmael and Isaac.'' This program brings together
members of Ohio's Jewish and Muslim communities in an effort to raise
money for the medical needs of Israelis and Palestinians.
Other efforts to promote diversity and anti-bias education are
critical if we are to succeed in creating more accepting and tolerant
environments in cities and towns across the country. For instance, the
Anti-Defamation League's ``A World of Difference Institute'' provides
hands-on training and education programs that are used to promote
tolerance and counter messages of hate in schools and universities, as
well as corporations and law enforcement agencies in 29 cities in the
United States and 14 other countries. Such programs should continue,
and they deserve our full support.
We cannot be silent and stand on the sidelines as anti-Semitism
festers at home and abroad. At sunset today, Jewish people across the
world will begin the observance of Rosh Hashanah, marking the beginning
of a New Year. It is my sincere hope that in this new year, the United
States and members of the international community will make a renewed
effort to stamp out anti-Semitism wherever it exists.
In recent months, the United States has taken significant steps in
the fight against anti-Semitism. In April, Secretary of State Colin
Powell traveled to Berlin for a conference of the Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe--OSCE--dedicated to the fight
against anti-Semitism.
At that conference, 55 participating states of the OSCE pledged to
take action. During the conference, a strong declaration was agreed to,
which outlines steps that will be taken to address anti-Semitism. Mr.
President, I ask unanimous consent that this be printed in the
Congressional Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
Distinguished delegates,
Let me sum up the proceedings of this Conference in what I
would like to call ``Berlin Declaration''.
Based on consultations I conclude that OSCE participating
States,
Reaffirming the Universal Declaration on Human Rights,
which proclaims that everyone is entitled to all the rights
and freedoms set forth therein, without distinction of any
kind, such as race, religion or other status,
Recalling that Article 18 of the Universal Declaration on
Human Rights and Article 18 of the International Covenant on
Civil and Political Rights state that everyone has the right
to freedom of thought, conscience and religion,
Recalling also the decisions of the OSCE Ministerial
Councils at Porto and Maastricht, as well as previous
decisions and documents, and committing ourselves to
intensify efforts to combat anti-Semitism in all its
manifestations and to promote and strengthen tolerance and
non-discrimination,
Recognizing that anti-Semitism, following its most
devastating manifestation during the Holocaust, has assumed
new forms and expressions, which, along with other forms of
intolerance, pose a threat to democracy, the values of
civilization and, therefore, to overall security in the OSCE
region and beyond,
Concerned in particular that this hostility toward Jews--as
individuals or collectively--on racial, social, and/or
religious grounds, has manifested itself in verbal and
physical attacks and in the desecration of synagogues and
cemeteries,
1. Condemn without reserve all manifestations of anti-
Semitism, and all other acts of intolerance, incitement,
harassment or violence against persons or communities based
on ethnic origin or religious belief, wherever they occur;
2. Also condemn all attacks motivated by anti-Semitism or
by any other forms of religious or racial hatred or
intolerance, including attacks against synagogues and other
religious places, sites and shrines;
3. Declare unambiguously that international developments or
political issues, including those in Israel or elsewhere in
the Middle East, never justify anti-Semitism;
In addition, I note that the Maastricht Ministerial Council
in its Decision on Tolerance and Non-Discrimination, tasked
the Permanent Council ``to further discuss ways and means of
increasing the efforts of the OSCE and the participating
States for the promotion of tolerance and non-discrimination
in all fields.''In light of this Ministerial Decision, I
welcome the April 22 Permanent Council Decision on Combating
Anti-Semitism and, in accordance with that Decision,
incorporate it into this Declaration.
1. The OSCE participating States commit to:
Strive to ensure that their legal systems foster a safe
environment free from anti-Semitic harassment, violence or
discrimination in all fields of life;
Promote, a appropriate, educational programmers for
combating anti-Semitism;
Promote remembrance of and, as appropriate, education about
the tragedy of the Holocaust, and the importance of respect
for all ethnic and religious groups;
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Combat hate crimes, which can be fuelled by racist,
xenophobic and anti-Semitic Propaganda in the media and on
the Internet;
Encourage and support international organization and NGO
efforts in thee areas;
Collect and maintain reliable information and statistics
about anti-Semitic crimes, and other hate crimes, committed
within their territory, report such information periodically
to the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and human
Rights (ODIHR), and make this information available to the
public;
Endeavour to provide the ODIHR with the appropriate
resources to accomplish the tasks agreed upon in the
Maastricht Ministerial Decision on Tolerance and Non-
Discrimination;
Work with the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly to determine
appropriate ways to review periodically the problem of anti-
Semitism;
Encourage development of informal exchanges among experts
in appropriate fora on best practices and experiences in law
enforcement and education;
2. To task the ODIHR to:
Follow closely, in full co-operation with other OSCE
institutions as well as the United Nations Committee on the
Elimination of Racial Discrimination (UNCERD), the European
Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI), the
European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia (EUMC)
and other relevant international institutions and NGOs, anti-
Semitic incidents in the OSCE area making use of all reliable
information available;
Report its findings to the Permanent Council and to the
Human Dimension Implementation Meeting and make these
findings public. These reports should also be taken into
account in deciding on priorities for the work of the OSCE in
the area of intolerance; and
Systematically collect and disseminate information
throughout the OSCE area on best practices for preventing and
responding to anti-Semitism and, if requested, offer advice
to participating Stats in their efforts to fight anti-
Semitism;
This decision will be forwarded to he Ministerial Council
for endorsement at its Twelfth Meeting.
Mr. VOINOVICH. As this document makes clear, the OSCE, through its
Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights--ODIHR, will for the
first time monitor and report on acts of anti-Semitism. Moreover, the
OSCE will keep track of positive steps countries are taking to address
the problem. This will be high on the agenda at the OSCE Ministerial
this December, and, next spring, Spain will host a meeting to follow-up
on the specific recommendations made at the Berlin Conference, and to
exercise oversight of the progress ODIHR is making in complying with
the Berlin Declaration.
I have encouraged Secretary Powell to ensure that the United States
not only supports these efforts, but that we do all that we can to make
certain that the OSCE has the resources necessary to effectively do the
job that it has been called upon to do to monitor anti-Semitism. I have
been assured by our Ambassador to the OSCE, Stephan Minikes, that the
United States will in fact do all that it can to support the work of
the OSCE in this regard. Ambassador Minikes has also assured me that
the OSCE, with the help of the United States and other member
countries, has the funding it needs to begin this crucial work. It is
not enough to pass Declarations and to have tables. What we need to do
is give the organization that is supposed to get the job done, the
money and the resources.
While I had hoped to attend the Berlin Conference on anti-Semitism at
the invitation of Secretary Powell, I was unable to be at this historic
gathering due to pressing business here in the Senate. However, while
the conference was underway, an article that I co-authored with a
leading member in the fight against anti-Semitism in the German
Bundestag, Professor Gert Weisskirchen, ran in the Washington Post.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that this article, entitled
``Halting the New Hatred,'' be printed in the Congressional Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
[From the Washington Post, Apr. 28, 2004]
Halting the New Hatred
Two years ago members of Congress and the German Bundestag
launched a joint project that will come to fruition this week
in Berlin. More than 500 representatives from the 55-nation
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)
are meeting to formulate an action plan to tackle the growing
problem of anti-Semitism.
Today anti-Semitism is no longer directed solely against
Jews an individuals. ``Israel, in effect, is emerging as the
collective Jew among nations,'' writes Mortimer B. Zuckerman
in U.S. News & World report. The old conspiracy theories,
prejudices and ``world domination'' fantasies are emerging in
new guises and are exploiting the conflict between Israelis
and Palestinians.
While the ``old'' anti-Semitism sought to stigmatize Jews
as individual threats to local coexistence, the ``new'' anti-
Semitism seeks to stigmatize Israel as a collective threat to
global coexistence. At the core of the new anti-Semitism is
the ``Auschwitz Lie''--that the Holocaust was invented as an
excuse for Jews to converge on Palestine in order to oppress
Arabs and conquer the world.
In both its old and new forms, anti-Semitism is merely an
attempt to divert attention from the perpetrators' motives
for committing acts of violence and injustice. In fighting
anti-Semitism we must turn our attention toward strengthening
peace and justice. The real battle against anti-Semitism lies
ahead of us, and it will affect the foundations of our
democracies.
Globalization is bringing ideas, cultures and lifestyles
into contact--and sometimes conflict--with one another in new
and unusual ways. Our task is to determine how our political
systems can shape the outcome in a positive way. Will we be
tolerant enough to create space for differences, and allow
them to develop and flourish? Globalization means that we all
have a shared fate.
Anti-Semitism is a problem for every OSCE state, because it
seeks to break down the pillars of our societies: rule of
law, equality, decency, tolerance and faith. Its violence is
felt by all, regardless of faith. Its most diabolical
offspring is terrorism, a force that in its embrace of death
tears down everything in its path. Its aim is to destroy all
that is humane.
In Berlin we will build on last year's groundbreaking OSCE
conference in Vienna, where governments expressed their
willingness to take action. In Berlin we must concentrate on
specific steps to which governments and societies commit
themselves: collecting and analyzing data on hate crimes,
training police and educating children for tolerance, and
measuring the effectiveness of these steps. Rather than
asking if we can afford to take such steps, we should ask
whether we can afford not to when the costs of inaction are
so great.
We are not fighting anti-Semitism solely in order to
protect Jewish people, although the safety of any one group
is intrinsic to the safety of all. We are waging this battle
because we want to ensure that we do not again sink into
barbarity--and we will win this struggle. Democracy is
stronger than hate.
Mr. VOINOVICH. As we wrote then:
We are not fighting anti-Semitism solely in order to
protect Jewish people, although the safety of any one group
is intrinsic to the safety of all. We are waging this battle
because we want to ensure that we do not again sink into
barbarity--and we will win this struggle. Democracy is
stronger than hate.
Today, I continue to repeat this message. We cannot become complacent
in the fight against anti-Semitism. There is too much at stake.
I remain in close contact with the State Department to encourage our
highest-ranking diplomats to make the fight against anti-Semitism a top
priority in our bilateral relationships and interaction with
international organizations such as the OSCE, the European Union and
the United Nations.
At the end of last month, Under Secretary of State for Political
Affairs Marc Grossman sent me a letter, in which he outlined some of
the positive steps that our Government is taking to combat anti-
Semitism. This includes our work with the OSCE, as well as efforts
taken by United States Ambassadors and other officials in countries
throughout the world. This is a priority, now, for our Ambassadors all
over the world. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that a copy of
this letter be printed in the Congressional Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
Under Secretary of State
for Political Affairs,
Washington, August 24, 2004.
Hon. George V. Voinovich,
U.S. Senate.
Dear Senator Voinovich: This is to follow up our
conversation concerning the Department's efforts to combat
anti-Semitism.
This Administration recognizes that anti-Semitism is a
serious human rights problem and is strongly committed to
fighting it. We are taking the following steps to combat
anti-Semitism and related violence, using the range of tools
at our disposal to advance human rights standards and norms.
Reporting: Two annual reports (the ``International
Religious Freedom Report'' and the ``Country Reports on Human
Rights Practices'') describe in detail both the trend of
anti-Semitism throughout the world as well as the specific
anti-Semitism incidents that have occurred during the
reporting period. The Department formally reports on anti-
Semitism every six months. These reports are posted on
embassy websites for public
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dissemination. In our instructions for the 2004 Country
Report, we have made explicit the guidelines for reporting
acts of violence against Jewish people and Jewish community
institutions. Embassies have supplied detailed information on
the level of anti-Semitism in their host country.
Demarches and Interventions: Our embassies abroad regularly
press host countries on combating anti-Semitism, particularly
in Europe where anti-Semitism has increased significantly
during the past few years. Our ambassadors are very involved
in this effort. We also maintain close contact with the local
Jewish communities.
OSCE: The Department took the lead in convincing the OSCE
to sponsor two conferences on combating anti-Semitism (in
Vienna in June 2003, in Berlin in April 2004). Secretary
Powell participated in the Berlin Conference. As a result of
those conferences, the OSCE is implementing a process to
monitor and report in a consistent manner on anti-Semitism
incidents within the OSCE region.
These conferences were the first multilateral gatherings
devoted solely to this subject and also the first to deal
with anti-Semitism as a human rights issue. They have
substantially increased awareness of this serious problem and
the need to take strong steps to deal with it.
The United States also supports a third anti-Semitism
meeting, scheduled for 2005 in Spain, to assess
implementation by member states of the OSCE commitments.
Public Diplomacy: Department officers regularly address
this issue in speeches to foreign audiences, the American
public and in testimony before the Congress (see enclosure).
The issue of anti-Semitism was a core component of testimony
before the Congress on several occasions in recent months.
Holocaust Task Force: In 2003-2004, the United States
chaired the Task Force for International Cooperation on
Holocaust Education, Remembrance and Research. This group now
comprises 18 countries that promote understanding of the
Holocaust as a means to prevent a recurrence of the hatred
that resulted in that tragic event.
Speaking Out: Our Chiefs of Mission in Europe and Eurasia
are under specific instructions to be both vigilant and vocal
in denouncing anti-Semitism, and they do so.
Multilateral Efforts: The United States has been successful
in including anti-Semitism language in several resolutions of
the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR). We
will continue to press for inclusion of such language at the
UNCHR and elsewhere.
I hope this overview of Department of State efforts to
combat anti-Semitism is helpful to you. Please do not
hesitate to contact me if I can be of further assistance. We
want to work closely with you to end anti-Semitism.
Sincerely,
Marc Grossman.
____
The Department of State and Combating Anti-Semitism
The Department of State has been deeply involved in
combating anti-Semitism. Policy level officials most
frequently involved in our efforts to stem the tide of anti-
Semitism include the Secretary, Deputy Secretary, Under
Secretary for Political Affairs, the Assistant Secretary for
European and Eurasian Affairs, the Assistant Secretary for
Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, the Special Envoy for
Holocaust Issues and the Ambassador-at Large for
International Religious Freedom.
These officials regularly testify before the Congress and
make public speeches calling attention to anti-Semitism and
the need to combat it.
The Special Envoy for Holocaust Issues heads up the staff
level work on this issue and coordinates closely with U.S.
NGOs. He works particularly closely with the U.S. Ambassador
to the OSCE who has represented the United States in the
preparations for the separate OSCE conferences on anti-
Semitism in Vienna in June 2003 and in Berlin in April 2004.
The Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor produces
two annual reports (International Religious Freedom, Country
Report on Human Rights Practices), both of which include
extensive coverage of anti-Semitism and anti-Semitic
incidents.
Our ambassadors abroad and their staffs engage with host
countries on this issue. Ambassadors have mentioned their
concern about anti-Semitism in the host country during their
initial meetings with the Prime Minister. Our ambassadors
speak out forcefully and meet with visiting representatives
of American Jewish organizations to review anti-Semitism
trends.
Senior-level Department officials and officers travel from
Washington to our posts in Europe and Eurasia. They meet with
representatives of Jewish communities to discuss their
concerns first-hand and to demonstrate Washington's strong
interest.
The Vienna and Berlin OSCE conferences were largely the
result of efforts by the United States to have the OSCE focus
on anti-Semitism. Secretary Powell addressed the Berlin
conference.
The conferences and a decision by the December 2003
Ministerial Council led to the establishment of an OSCE
program to monitor and report on anti-Semitic developments in
the OSCE region. The Conferences also sensitized all of the
participants to the reality of the increased level of anti-
Semitism in Europe in recent years and also generated
considerable publicity on the issue.
The Department of State also works assiduously to include
this issue in resolutions of the United Nations and its
subsidiary bodies. In 2003, the U.S. delegation succeeded in
getting language on anti-Semitism into the UN Commission on
Human Rights resolution on the Elimination of All Forms of
Religious Intolerance. In 2004, the Department of State again
succeeded in getting mention of the issue in the resolution
on the Elimination of All Forms of Religious Intolerance and
also in the resolution on The Incompatibility between
Democracy and Racism.
Mr. VOINOVICH. Mr. President, the United States Government should be
commended for the good work that is being done to raise awareness
regarding growing anti-Semitism, both at home and abroad. However, our
work is not done.
Earlier this year, I introduced Senate Bill 2292, the Global Anti-
Semitism Review Act of 2004. This legislation requires the State
Department to enhance its reporting on anti-Semitism worldwide. It
requires the State Department to submit to Congress a report on anti-
Semitism this November. This report must include detailed information
for each country, including, first, a description of physical violence
against or harassment of Jewish people or community institutions, such
as schools, synagogues, or cemeteries, that occurred in that country,
and, second, the response of the government of that country to such
attacks;
What are they doing about that?
Third, actions by the government of that country to enact and enforce
laws relating to the protection of the right to religious freedom with
respect to Jewish people; and finally, the efforts by that government
to promote anti-bias and tolerance education.
Following the report this November, my legislation requires enhanced
reporting on anti-Semitism in two existing annual reports: the
International Religious Freedom Report and the Human Rights Report.
The Senate passed this critical legislation with strong, bipartisan
support on May 7, 2004. Twenty-four of my colleagues joined me as co-
sponsors. This underscores the high priority that the United States
Senate has given to the fight against anti-Semitism.
It is my sincere hope that the House of Representatives will soon
pass this legislation, so that we can see the President sign the Global
Anti-Semitism Review Act into law this year. We must do all that we can
to move toward the goal of zero-tolerance of anti-Semitism in the world
today. The United States must be the leader.
I want my colleagues to know that I made a vow back in 1982 that if
the ugly head of anti-Semitism rose, I would do everything in my power
to make sure that we cut it off.
I want my colleagues to know this is a passion with me, and I hope it
becomes a passion with them. It is important to the world, and it is
important to the United States of America.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Minnesota.
Mr. COLEMAN. Mr. President, let me start by thanking my colleague
from Ohio for his passion and for his commitment on this issue. As you
know, my colleague from Ohio is very tenacious when he digs into
something. It is easy in many ways, perhaps, for me to speak about
anti-Semitism. I am of the Jewish faith. It is a very personal issue
for me, but if we just talk about it, it is not enough.
I have been through Yad Vashem, which is the museum on the Holocaust
in Israel. And there is part of Yad Vashem that is dedicated to the
righteous gentiles, those not of the Jewish faith who showed great
courage and at times risked their lives and were outspoken in
opposition to the Holocaust and helped the Jewish people and other
victims of the Holocaust.
I have a deep and profound respect for my colleague from Ohio for all
that he has done. That passion is real. It is reflected in all he does,
and it is greatly appreciated by all of us concerned about this issue.
Mr. COLEMAN. Mr. President, over 200 year ago, it was written:
The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is
eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude is
at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of
his guilt.
Mr. Jefferson came up with the short version: Eternal vigilance is
the price of liberty.
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The message is clear and it is urgent. We need to be constantly on
the look out for hatred of any kind. And like the spouting of a
dangerous weed, we need to deal with it when it is small and before it
grows.
That is why a number of us have taken the floor to call attention to
a disturbing rise in incidents of anti-Semitism. This is not a fringe
expression of free speech. It is the leading edge of danger that has
appeared all too often in the last 2,000 years of human history.
One of the ironies of this subject lies in the word ``anti-Semitic.''
In common usage it means prejudice or bigotry against Jews. But when
you look up the root word ``Semite,'' you see it refers to members of
the Jewish and Arab peoples. Strictly speaking to be ``anti-Semitic''
could mean expressing hatred of Arabs.
That illustrates an important point. A statement of hatred against
any group of people should be abhorred by freedom loving people from
every group. Because hatred has a way of spreading and hurting people
all around its intended target.
As Dr. King wrote in his famous letter from the Birmingham jail,
``Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.''
Six million Jews were killed in Europe during the Holocaust. We vowed
we would never let it happen again.
But the new millennium has brought to Europe a wave of anti-Semitism
unlike anything we have seen since the 1930s.
In France, which is home to Europe's largest Jewish community--with
about 600,000--there have been and continue to be more anti-Semitic
attacks than elsewhere in Europe. Just last month the Jewish cemetery
in Lyon was spray-painted with swastikas, and other anti-Semitic
symbols. In Paris this spring, a 12-year-old girl coming out of a
Jewish school was attacked by two men who carved a swastika into her
face.
Excuses abound for the rise in European anti-Semitism: The changing
demography of Europe, as more Muslim immigrants arrive; anger about the
renewed Intifada between Israel and the Palestinians; anti-Americanism
or anti-globalism manifest as anti-Semitic behavior; and a resurgence
of Neo-Nazis and skinhead movements.
At the end of the day, though, there is simply no excuse. Anti-
Semitism takes many forms: defaming of Jewish cemeteries; arson of
synagogues and Jewish schools; Holocaust denial or inadequate Holocaust
education; biased media coverage; and graffiti that says
``Sharon=Hitler.'' This comparison is not only grossly unfair to the
Israeli Prime Minister, but more ominously minimizes what Hitler did
and stood for. Ominously in this country, we have seen bumper stickers
making similar comparisons with our President.
The winning entry in the British Political Cartoon Society's 2003
competition was a picture of Ariel Sharon eating the head of a
Palestinian baby with a burning city in the background. ``What's
wrong,'' reads the caption, ``you've never seen a politician kissing a
baby?''
This is not humor, this is hate.
Some will say, ``Surely a person can criticize the policies of the
Israeli government without being an anti-Semite?'' And the answer is of
course, yes.
But when criticism of Israel is so prevalent and one-sided, when
fully one-third of votes at the U.N. General Assembly criticize Israel
and Israel only, when a European public opinion poll finds Israel to be
considered the top threat to world peace--ahead of North Korea or Iran,
when a U.N. conference in South Africa on racism devolves into a
diatribe against Israel--and only Israel, when even non-violent
responses by the government of Israel to defend its citizens against
terrorism are disparaged, then you have a problem.
Natan Sharansky--a great man for his advocacy for the Soviet Jews and
today an Israeli government official--has talked about three ways to
determine whether criticism of Israel rises to the level of anti-
Semitism. He talks about three Ds: Demonization, double standards, and
delegitimization:
Demonization--when Israeli actions are blown so far out of proportion
that the account paints Israel as the embodiment of all evil;
Double Standards--when Israel is criticized soundly for things any
other government would be viewed as justified in doing, like protecting
its citizens from terrorism;
Deligitimization--a denial of Israel's right to exist or the right of
the Jewish people to aspire to live securely in a homeland.
When European criticism of Israel is so one-sided and so filled with
exaggeration, it reflects a broader bias. And while this kind of
criticism of Israel may not always equal anti-Semitism, it certainly
creates an atmosphere that tolerates and breeds anti-Semitism.
In recent years, Europe has seen a marked increase in anti-Semitism,
but Europe is not alone. Anti-Semitism abounds in the Middle East. It
abounds in the Nadrasas, the schools, that teach hate. We have our own
problems here in the United States, particularly on our college
campuses. And one of the deadliest acts of terror in South America
remains the 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish Community Center in
Argentina--a crime for which not one perpetrator has yet been brought
to justice.
The good news is that things in Europe have improved in the last
year, and the key to that improvement is leadership.
The Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe has held
important conferences on anti-Semitism. My colleague from Ohio has
talked about that, introducing into the Record some of the evidence of
the works which have drawn attention to anti-Semitism and those that
have led to the identification of anti-Semitism as a specific human
rights issue as well as a commitment to track anti-Semitic incidents in
order to build a better understanding of the problem.
French President Jacques Chirac, to his credit, has said when a Jew
is attacked in France, it is an attack on the whole of France. He is
right, not just because it is so morally repugnant to target any one
group for this kind of violence and hate but because Jews are the
canary in the coal mine. Remember, Hitler was not satisfied to simply
wipe out the Jews; he set his sights on the disabled, gypsies, Blacks,
and others.
Let me reflect about the situation in the United States, particularly
on our college campuses. College is supposed to be a place where young
people are exposed to diverse experiences and other peoples.
Tragically, anti-Semitism in America has found a home on college
campuses. There, anti-Semitism at times is fashionable and politically
correct. We can forget about diversity of opinion when it comes to
Israel.
On our campuses, anti-Semitism looks like virulently anti-Israel
professors of Middle Eastern studies; harassment of Jewish students;
pro-Palestinian rallies have crossed the line into anti-Semitism, with
slogans like ``Hitler did not finish the job;'' fliers around campuses
depicting Palestinian children slaughtered according to Jewish rites
under American license; vandalism of Hillel buildings at Rutgers in
September of this year, at UC Berkeley in the winter of 2002, at the
University of Colorado in March of 2002 and again in September of that
year.
The poster behind me is of a photograph taken at Cornell University:
Weapons of mass destruction. Leader is a war criminal. U.N. resolution
occupies foreign countries, with a notation ``bomb Israel.''
It crosses the line. This is not about free speech. This is about
hate. This is not something we should see on college campuses, but we
do, far too often. That is unfortunate. That is wrong.
A professor at UC Berkeley presented the following course description
for a poetry class:
The brutal Israeli military occupation of Palestine
[ongoing] since 1948, has systematically displaced, killed,
and maimed millions of Palestinian people. And yet from under
the brutal weight of occupation, Palestinians have produced
their own culture and poetry of resistance . . . This class
takes as a starting point the right of Palestinians to fight
for their own self-determination.
That is for a poetry class. And the posting ends with the suggestion,
``Conservative thinkers are encouraged to seek other sections.''
In 2001 to 2002, anti-Semitic incidents at college campuses increased
to a worrisome 24 percent, according to the Stephen Roth Institute at
Tel Aviv University.
I read an account of a Berkeley student, Micki Weinberg, who was
walking
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to campus September 12, 2001, the day after the horrific attacks on our
Nation. At the entrance to the campus there were huge sheets of blank
paper spread out at an impromptu memorial for students, faculty, and
others to write thoughts. He saw a message written in big letters.
Micki Weinberg set out to add his own thoughts, until he saw one
message written in big letters: ``It's the Jews, stupid.''
In closing, I return to the idea that hatred against Jewish people is
everyone's concern. I was in Israel a couple weeks ago. The vision that
this President has and so many have had is Israel living side by side
with a Palestinian state, people free to live their lives and raise
their families and grow up with the sense of safety and security. That
is what it is about. Safety and security is a prelude to peace and
people living together, but the level of hatred, which in the end is a
denial of the existence of Israel, simply goes too far. That level of
hatred is spread throughout Europe. It has spread to college campuses.
It is wrong.
The Reverend Martin Niemoller was a Lutheran pastor living in Germany
in the 1930s. His words should be taken to heart by all:
First they came for the Communists, and I didn't speak up,
because I wasn't a Communist. Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak up, because I wasn't a Jew. Then they came
for the Catholics, and I didn't speak up, because I was a
Protestant. Then they came for me, and by that time there was
no one left to speak up for me.
We have seen genocide in Europe. We have seen it in Rwanda. We are
seeing it today in Sudan. We need to speak up against hatred wherever
it rears its head because it literally threatens everyone. The question
is, How do we get the hate genie back in the bottle? The genie is out.
There is too much hatred. We see it all around us. We see it certainly
in what we are seeing today with anti-Semitism. We are seeing it on the
American political scene. We have to get the genie of hate back in the
bottle. We can do it by educating. We can do it by strengthening our
families. We can do it by strengthening our faith, by doing what we are
doing today, speaking out on the floor in the hallowed Halls of this
great institution and telling the people of this country and telling
the people of this world that anti-Semitism is wrong, that we must do
all in our power to speak out and make sure it stops. And when it does,
the world will be a safer and better place.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oregon.
Mr. SMITH. Mr. President, I am pleased to be in the Senate today with
my colleague, Norm Coleman. Norm is one of my esteemed new colleagues
and can speak with considerable insight on the issue of anti-Semitism,
as he hails from the Jewish faith and genealogy. I honor him for being
down here speaking about an issue that has been a cancer in the human
soul for a long time, and that is anti-Semitism.
I learned at my mother's knee to fight against bigotry and
discrimination. I am not Jewish. I was born into the Mormon faith to
Mormon parents who in our history knew something of persecution. In
fact, many of my Jewish families are surprised to learn that
extermination orders have actually been ordered before, even before the
pogroms that have beset the tribes of Judah. They were once issued by a
Governor of Missouri on the Mormon pioneers, and they set about
exterminating them and drove them literally from what was then the
United States.
So as a young boy, I had an interest in history. I would watch
newsreels of what had recently happened in Germany to the Jewish
people. I had a particular sensitivity to that and, again, learned from
my mother to befriend the children of Israel.
But what besets the human heart in the form of anti-Semitism is
ancient in its origin, even prophesied in Jewish history and Scripture.
This morning, as I contemplated Rosh Hashanah, which is the new year,
the beginning of the world in the Jewish calendar, I turn to a verse of
Scripture that I remember reading many times throughout my life, and
that is in the 49th chapter of Genesis where the prophet Jacob is
giving blessings to his twelve sons. We know the names of Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob, and Jacob had four wives. His first wife was Leah,
and Leah bore him a number of sons, but one of them was named Judah.
The blessing that Jacob gave to Judah is very instructive. He says:
Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand
shall be in the neck of thine enemies; thy father's children
shall bow down before thee.
Judah is a lion's whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art
gone up: he stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old
lion; who shall rouse him up?
The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver
from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall
the gathering of the people be.
If you can break down that language, you will understand that Judah
was a leader among the sons of Jacob, and in this patriarchal blessing
he was given a leadership role, and he was to be, and his descendants,
something of a thorn in the neck of his enemies.
The Torah is full of promises, predictions, prophecies of the
Diaspora, of the affliction of the Tribe of Judah. Indeed, there are
places in the Torah where it says that all nations will be turned
against Israel. The question for us, as human beings and as Americans,
is, do we turn against Israel?
I have regarded it as one of the important cornerstones of American
foreign policy, that since the Holocaust in the Second World War, the
American Nation has stood by the Tribe of Judah in the form of the
State of Israel, defended its right to exist, and been an ally to it in
its darkest days.
The feelings of anti-Semitism in this world, they ebb and they flow.
But I would suggest to you, and all listening, Mr. President, that
anti-Semitism is something of a barometer of the human heart. And when
we have those feelings, we are on the wrong side. We need not have
those feelings. We must not have those feelings because if too many
Americans do, the American Nation will join other nations who turn on
the State of Israel and the Tribe of Judah.
So, for me, I guess you can discern from my remarks this is a
principle of faith, it is a belief that I hold deeply, that part of my
public service has, as a cornerstone, friendship to the Jewish people.
So as I contemplate what is happening in the world today, as nations
turn against Israel again, I am determined to push back. And I am
determined to speak out against vicious lies that have been told for
centuries against the Jewish people. I would like to share a few of
them with you.
I touched briefly upon the depravity of the Second World War, that
resulted in the misery and death of 6 million Jews. Yet that spirit
that led to such a policy exists in some places even still.
Unfortunately, it exists in many of the lands of the Middle East.
Let me give you a few examples.
In November and December of 2002, Egypt aired on state television a
series based on the forged and notorious anti-Semitic tract, the so-
called ``Protocols of the Elders of Zion.'' The ``Protocols of the
Elders of Zion'' is a fraudulent document that reported the alleged
proceedings of a 19th century conference of Jews during which they
discussed plans to overthrow Christianity and control the world. It has
been proven a fraud time and again. Yet some governments of civilized
nations continue to propagate this heinous lie.
The Saudi Government daily newspaper Al-Riyadh, in a March 2002
article titled ``The Jewish Holiday of Purim,'' charged that Jews used
the blood of non-Jewish youngsters in preparing their pastries for the
Purim holiday.
To be precise, the columnist writes:
Before I go into the details, I would like to clarify that
the Jews' spilling human blood to prepare pastry for their
holidays is a well-established fact, historically and
legally, all throughout history. This was one of the main
reasons for the persecution and exile that were their lot in
Europe and Asia at various times.
That is a hideous lie. Yet it is reported in a newspaper in Saudi
Arabia.
Also reported in this same paper, Al-Riyadh, a Saudi Crown Prince
remarked to a gathering of leading government officials and academics
in Jeddah that ``Zionists'' and ``followers of Satan'' are to blame for
recent terrorist attacks in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in particular,
a May 1 terrorist attack on foreign oil workers in the city of Yanbu
that killed 6 people and injured 25.
This was done by al-Qaida, not the Jews. Yet a Crown Prince of Saudi
Arabia felt to blame it on the Jews. Specifically, the Crown Prince
said: ``Zionism is behind everything.''
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Another issue, a journal titled ``The Muslim Soldier,'' which is
published by the Religious Affairs Department of the Saudi Armed
Forces, recently contained an article claiming:
The majority of revolutions, coups d'etat, and wars which
have occurred in the world, those that are occurring, and
those that will occur, are almost entirely the handiwork of
the Jews. They turned to [these methods] in order to
implement the injunctions of the fabricated Torah, the
Talmud, and the ``Protocols [of the Elders of Zion],'' all of
which command the destruction of all non-Jews in order to
achieve their goal--namely, world domination.
Again, these are disgusting lies that are propagated supposedly by
Syria's people.
The author of an article in an Egyptian Government daily titled ``The
Lie About the Burning of the Jews'' defended his piece on Egyptian
television by saying:
This article was scientific research, which relied on many
European and American sources concerning this lie, one of the
lies upon which the State of Israel was established--the lie
about the burning of the Jews in the Nazis' ovens.
I have been to those ovens. I have been to Auschwitz. I have seen the
pictures. I have seen the ashes. Any representation like that must be
refuted in places like this.
And in Syria, according to the State Department's 2003 International
Religious Freedom Report, the:
Government primarily cites tense relations with Israel as
the reason for barring Jews from government employment and
for exempting them from military service obligations.
Despite the fact that state-sponsored anti-Semitism is more prevalent
in the Arab world, it unfortunately exists in other countries as well.
In certain states of India, schools are required to use textbooks that
condone Nazism, including detailing its achievements and omitting any
reference to Nazi extermination policies or concentration camps.
In Belarus, anti-Semitic literature is sold in government buildings
and in stores directly connected with the Belarusian Orthodox Church.
The fact that this kind of hatred exists in the hearts of some people
is something that we unfortunately are unable to control. But what we
can do, what we must do, is express our distaste and indeed our
revulsion that governments around the world feel it is appropriate to
promote such hatred.
At the G-8 summit in Sea Island, Georgia, this June, President Bush
reached out to our allies to establish a Partnership with the Broader
Middle East and North Africa in an effort to advance freedom,
democracy, and prosperity in the region. I support the President's
approach for peace in the Middle East, and I believe it will only occur
if the countries at stake are working together.
So I ask, if governments are actively supporting anti-Semitism and
even, at times, the destruction of the Jewish state, how will they be
able to convince their populations that peaceful coexistence with
Israel is an appropriate course of action? How will they expect their
children to live in harmony with their Jewish peers? How will they ever
reconcile their malevolent views of the Jewish people?
State-sponsored anti-Semitism around the world is a sinister fact
with potentially devastating consequences. We must work tirelessly to
highlight its insidious nature at every opportunity. And there are many
friends in the Jewish community who ought to be thanked for their
efforts to try to stem the tide of anti-Semitism: Specifically, Jess
Hordes and Abe Foxman at the Anti-Defamation League for their work on
this vital front as well as many of my colleagues here who stand in the
Senate to bring attention to this issue.
Anti-Semitism cannot take root unless it starts in our hearts
individually. If it starts in our hearts individually, it goes to our
homes, our neighborhoods, our schools, and then it hits into our
governments. That America never be one of those governments turned
against Israel is my hope and my prayer.
I yield the floor.
Mr. BUNNING. Mr. President, as the Senate prepares to adjourn for the
Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah, I would like to address a recent rise
in anti-Semitic events abroad.
In the 50 years since the atrocities committed against the Jewish
people in Europe during World War II, we have seen other occasional
incidents of anti-Semitism. While anti-Israelism and anti-Semitism are
regrettably still commonplace in the Middle East, recent events in
France and Indonesia have shown us these feelings of intolerance are on
the rise internationally.
Israel has a unique position in the modern world. Its cities and
landmarks are sacred to Christian, Jewish, and Muslims cultures. And
today, as throughout much of recorded history, it is a land struggling
to find peace. Yet despite the conflicts of history and culture, Israel
has had the courage to stand strong with the United States of America
as an ally in the war on terror and a pillar of strength in an unstable
region.
Anti-Semitism, racism, and bigotry all serve to undermine the efforts
of peace loving people throughout the world. These misguided prejudices
are chains that hold us back from compromise and harmony. The people of
America, Europe, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia should not accept
the anti-Semitism that has become all too prevalent in the world. As we
work toward peace it is important that people from all nations approach
international relations with an open mind.
I am pleased that my colleagues in the Senate have brought attention
to the growing problem of anti-Semitism in the world today. As several
of our colleagues celebrate the Jewish New Year this coming week, let
us all take the time to think about ways we can promote understanding
and acceptance.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The minority leader.
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