NJ must try to again to adopt antisemitism definition
By: David Levy
Your Turn
Guest columnist
..... "Why are you so disappointed?"
.....
"Would it even rally make a difference?"
..... "Why do you need this?"
..... "Why are New Jersey's Jews so upset?"
.....
Those are just some of the questions I was asked as the most recent session of the New Jersey Legislature gaveled to a close in January. [2026] For the Jewish community across the state, the end of that session brought not closure but a deep and lingering sense of disappointment.
..... After years of advocacy and multiple hearings, legislation recognizing the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance Working Definition of antisemitism passed through committee, but it was not brought to the floor of the Assembly or state Senate for a final vote. What should have been a moment of progress instead became one of profound frustration and hurt.
..... American Jewish Committee's just-released State of antisemitism in America 2025 Report helps explain why this moment landed so painfully. while 45% of U.S. adults reported having seen or heard antisemitism in 2025, there is a striking 23-precentage-points gap between American Jews (93%) and the general public (70%) in seeing antisemitism as a least something of a problem in the United States.
..... Greater awareness of the IHRA definition could help narrow that gap.
..... The IHRA definition is the most widely accepted and adopted toll for defining and identifying antisemitism worldwide and throughout the Jewish community. Recognizing antisemitism is the first necessary step to combating it, and New Jersey's adoption of this tool would have immeasurably strengthened our state's efforts to protect our Jewish communities.
..... When the Legislature declined to bring the IHRA measure to a vote, the reaction from the Jewish community was deeply personal. Rabbis, Jewish professionals and community members were left feeling abandoned.
..... For many, this was not simple about a bill; it was about whether their lived experiences, safety concerns and fears were being taken seriously by those elected to represent them.
.....
As that sense of abandonment settled in, questions came about why the reaction was so emotional. I a world paying attention, the answer should be obvious. We are living through a time of escalating antisemitic violence and intimation.
.....
Last year, [2025] we reeled from the killing of Israeli Embassy staffers Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky outside an AJC event at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, DC, and the arson attack on the home of Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, while he and his family slept during the first night of Passover. There was also the mass murder of Jews celebrating Hanukkah in Australia. Closer to home, antisemitic incidents in Jersey City, Bloomfield, South Orange and Lakewood made the cause for concern undeniable.
..... Even more than seven years after the massacre of 11 people at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, there remains a pressing need for education and leadership. The overwhelming majority of Jews in America see antisemitism as a serious and growing problem that demands action.
..... A JC's report says nine in 10 Jews fell less safe as a Jewish person in America as a result of the attacks in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and Washington, DC, as well as the firebomb of a march in Boulder, Colorado, in support of hostages who were being held in Gaza, An 82-year-old woman died in that incident.
..... More than half of American Jews have changed their behavior because of antisemitism, even avoiding wearing things that identify them as Jewish, and roughly three in 10 presort being directly targeted by an antisemitic incident in the past year, Perhaps most troubling, 18% of Jews say that in the past 12 months [2026] they have felt uncomfortable or unsafe in a social setting simply because they are Jewish.
.....
No American should have to question whether it is safe to be themselves in public. No one should feel compelled to hide who they are to feel secure. And no neighbor should feel unwelcome or unsafe at a social gathering because of their identity. Yet that is the everyday reality for many in the Jewish community.
..... While much of the country may move on after another synagogue is attacked or a Jewish gathering is targeted, Jews cannot. Each incident leaves a lasting mark, reinforcing fear and eroding trust, especially when leaders fail to act.
..... Antisemitism is not a Jewish problem alone. It is a corrosive force that weakens our entire society. confronting it requires a whole-of-society approach, and elected officials have a responsibility to lead with courage and conviction. The debate over recognizing a clear definition of antisemitism was never about symbolism; it was always about understanding and action.
..... Now. with new leadership in place,
New Jersey stands at a crossroads. It is in the hands of Governor Mikie Sherrill and the leaders of the Assembly and Senate to turn last year's [2025] disappointment into this year's [2026] vision of hope, with an action plan grounded in ensuring that every community member can live openly, safely and without fear.
..... Rabbi David Levy is director of American Jewish Community's New Jersey regional office.