[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6421 Introduced in House (IH)]
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114th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 6421
To provide for the consideration of a definition of anti-Semitism for
the enforcement of Federal antidiscrimination laws concerning education
programs or activities.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 1, 2016
Mr. Roskam (for himself, Mr. Deutch, Mrs. Lowey, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, Mr.
Engel, and Mr. Israel) introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for the consideration of a definition of anti-Semitism for
the enforcement of Federal antidiscrimination laws concerning education
programs or activities.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Anti-Semitism Awareness Act of
2016''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (referred to
in the section as ``title VI'') is one of the principal
antidiscrimination statutes enforced by the Department of
Education's Office for Civil Rights.
(2) Title VI prohibits discrimination on the basis of race,
color, or national origin.
(3) Both the Department of Justice and the Department of
Education have properly concluded that title VI prohibits
discrimination against Jews, Muslims, Sikhs, and members of
other religious groups when the discrimination is based on the
group's actual or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic
characteristics or when the discrimination is based on actual
or perceived citizenship or residence in a country whose
residents share a dominant religion or a distinct religious
identity.
(4) A September 8, 2010, letter from Assistant Attorney
General Thomas E. Perez to Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
Russlynn H. Ali stated that ``[a]lthough Title VI does not
prohibit discrimination on the basis of religion,
discrimination against Jews, Muslims, Sikhs, and members of
other groups violates Title VI when that discrimination is
based on the group's actual or perceived shared ancestry or
ethnic characteristics''.
(5) To assist State and local educational agencies and
schools in their efforts to comply with Federal law, the
Department of Education periodically issues Dear Colleague
letters. On a number of occasions, these letters set forth the
Department of Education's interpretation of the statutory and
regulatory obligations of schools under title VI.
(6) On September 13, 2004, the Department of Education
issued a Dear Colleague letter regarding the obligations of
schools (including colleges) under title VI to address
incidents involving religious discrimination. The 2004 letter
specifically notes that ``since the attacks of September 11,
2001, OCR has received complaints of race or national origin
harassment commingled with aspects of religious discrimination
against Arab Muslim, Sikh, and Jewish students.''.
(7) An October 26, 2010, Dear Colleague letter issued by
the Department of Education stated, ``While Title VI does not
cover discrimination based solely on religion, groups that face
discrimination on the basis of actual or perceived shared
ancestry or ethnic characteristics may not be denied protection
under Title VI on the ground that they also share a common
faith. These principles apply not just to Jewish students, but
also to students from any discrete religious group that shares,
or is perceived to share, ancestry or ethnic characteristics
(e.g., Muslims or Sikhs).''.
(8) Anti-Semitism remains a persistent, disturbing problem
in elementary and secondary schools and on college campuses.
(9) Jewish students are being threatened, harassed, or
intimidated in their schools (including on their campuses) on
the basis of their shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics
including through harassing conduct that creates a hostile
environment so severe, pervasive, or persistent so as to
interfere with or limit some students' ability to participate
in or benefit from the services, activities, or opportunities
offered by schools.
(10) The 2010 Dear Colleague letter cautioned schools that
they ``must take prompt and effective steps reasonably
calculated to end the harassment, eliminate any hostile
environment, and its effects, and prevent the harassment from
recurring,'' but did not provide guidance on current
manifestation of anti-Semitism, including discriminatory anti-
Semitic conduct that is couched as anti-Israel or anti-Zionist.
(11) The definition and examples referred to in paragraphs
(1) and (2) of section 3 have been valuable tools to help
identify contemporary manifestations of anti-Semitism, and
include useful examples of discriminatory anti-Israel conduct
that crosses the line into anti-Semitism.
(12) Awareness of this definition of anti-Semitism will
increase understanding of the parameters of contemporary anti-
Jewish conduct and will assist the Department of Education in
determining whether an investigation of anti-Semitism under
title VI is warranted.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
For purposes of this Act, the term ``definition of anti-
Semitism''--
(1) includes the definition of anti-Semitism set forth by
the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism of the
Department of State in the Fact Sheet issued on June 8, 2010,
as adapted from the Working Definition of Anti-Semitism of the
European Monitoring Center on Racism and Xenophobia (now known
as the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights); and
(2) includes the examples set forth under the headings
``Contemporary Examples of Anti-Semitism'' and ``What is Anti-
Semitism Relative to Israel?'' of the Fact Sheet.
SEC. 4. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION FOR TITLE VI OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF
1964.
In reviewing, investigating, or deciding whether there has been a
violation of title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d
et seq.) on the basis of race, color, or national origin, based on an
individual's actual or perceived shared Jewish ancestry or Jewish
ethnic characteristics, the Department of Education shall take into
consideration the definition of anti-Semitism as part of the
Department's assessment of whether the alleged practice was motivated
by anti-Semitic intent.
SEC. 5. CONSTITUTIONAL PROTECTIONS.
Nothing in this Act, or an amendment made by this Act, shall be
construed to diminish or infringe upon any right protected under the
First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.
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