City council takes symbolic stand against antisemitism
Las Vegas City Councilwoman Victoria Seaman discovered antisemitic graffiti in her ward late last year.
Seaman and her city colleagues are taking a symbolic action, passing a resolution last week to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) Working Definition of Antisemitism as an educational tool for local protection agencies.
Seaman, in a social media post on X, said her resolution “makes it clear that we will not tolerate bigotry in our city.”
The resolution was passed last week on the four-month anniversary of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas on Israel.
Seaman’s post continued to say the council’s action was a “powerful statement against hatred, showing solidarity with the Jewish community and a commitment to fighting antisemitism.”
The IHRA defines antisemitism as “a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews,” where “rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.”
Within this definition, the IHRA describes different examples of what it considers antisemitism, including “calling for, aiding, or justifying the killing or harming of Jews in the name of a radical ideology or an extremist view of religion” and denying the Holocaust.
Targeting Israel — which is considered a “Jewish collectivity” — can be considered antisemitic unless the criticism is “similar to that leveled against any other country,” it said.
The IHRA added that “Antisemitism frequently charges Jews with conspiring to harm humanity ... in speech, writing, visual forms and action, and employs sinister stereotypes and negative character traits.”
The city will use the definition to train city employees and law enforcement.
Las Vegas is the 91st U.S. municipal body to adopt the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism, the Combat Antisemitism Movement said.
“We are very proud that a keynote speaker from our North American Mayors Summit Against Antisemitism this past Fall, Councilwoman Victoria Seaman, was the driving force behind the City of Las Vegas adopting the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism,”
Sacha Roytman, CEO of the Combat Antisemitism Movement, said in a news release. “This will be a crucial tool for the city to identify and fight antisemitism citywide. In this time of rising antisemitism, Las Vegas and Councilwoman Seaman should be celebrated for standing up for their Jewish constituents and visitors.”
Since the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israel, the Anti-defamation League has reported an “unprecedented rise in antisemitic incidents.” There were more than 2,000 antisemitic occurrences reported from Oct. 7 to Dec. 11, “the highest number of incidents during any two-month period since ADL began tracking in 1979,” the ADL said in December.
During the same period in 2022, 465 incidents were recorded, marking a 337% increase year-over-year.
While many showed up to support the city council in passing this resolution, some had concerns about the IHRA’S “controversial” definition, fearing it has been weaponized to “wrongly label” any criticism of Israel as antisemitic.
Last April, more than 100 “civil society organizations” asked the United Nations to reject the IHRA’S Working Definition of Antisemitism, saying it “poses real harm to Jewish communities around the world” and may “chill and sometimes suppress nonviolent protest, activism and speech critical of Israel and/or Zionism.”
“As an expert for the American Jewish Committee wrote, the contemporary examples attached to the IHRA definition may be used as a blunt instrument to label anyone as an antisemite,” resident Dakota Heath said during public comment. “I ask the Las Vegas City Council to revise this language to give us a legal definition of antisemitism that has been given the due diligence that this decision deserves and can effectively work to educate against antisemitism.”
The adoption came less than a day after over 20 people showed up draped in Palestinian keffiyehs to the city’s recommending committee meeting to urge Mayor Pro Tem Brian Knudsen and the city council to call for a cease-fire in Gaza.
About 48 U.S. cities as of Jan. 31 have passed symbolic resolutions encouraging a halt to Israel’s bombardment of Gaza, six have passed resolutions broadly advocating for peace and at least 20 have passed resolutions condemning Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack.
As of Sunday, over 29,000 people (27,708 Palestinians and 1,410 Israelis) have been killed in the Israel–hamas war, according to The Associated Press
Figures from the occupied West Bank show that at least 309 people, including 102 children, have also been killed. Over 80% of the Palestinian population has been displaced due to Israel’s attacks, which “set off a massive humanitarian crisis,” The Associated Press reported.
On Sunday, Israel launched strikes on Rafah, the southernmost town in the Gaza Strip where 1.4 million people — many of whom fled their homes for safety — are densely packed. Those strikes coincided with an Israeli raid to rescue two of the remaining 100 hostages, according to The Associated Press.
Although the violence may be miles away, its impact has made waves around the globe, as anti-muslim and anti-palestinian hate has also been on the rise, according to the Council on American-islamic Relations (CAIR).
During the last three months of 2023, the Muslim civil rights group received 3,578 complaints — a 178% increase from the previous year. Most of those complaints were regarding employment discrimination, with hate crimes and incidents as well as education discrimination making up 13% of the complaints, CAIR said in a news release.
Almost every month since Oct. 7 has seen alarming incidents of violence against Palestinians. A 6-year-old Palestinian American child in Illinois was fatally stabbed over a dozen times alongside his mother — who was critically wounded at the time. In November, three college students of Palestinian descent were shot in Vermont during their Thanksgiving break, leaving one paralyzed from the chest down.
And most recently, advocates told The Associated Press a 23-year-old Palestinian American was attacked near the University of Texas in Austin while riding in a truck displaying support for Palestine. Austin police announced Wednesday that the stabbing met the criteria to be considered a hate crime.
A representative for the city of Las Vegas said that if a ceasefire resolution is created, it would first have to go through the recommending committee before being brought to the city council, which could take months.
“We have the power to be a beacon of compassion, proving that Las Vegas stands for justice, empathy and the well-being of our global community,” said resident Jessica Bosch — who was in support of a cease-fire resolution — during public comment Feb. 6. “Let us be remembered not just for the lights on the Strip, but for the compassion in our hearts and the positive change we bring to the lives of those who need it the most. The time for action is now and the legacy as a city that cares hinges in the balance.”