South Carolina’s only Jewish state lawmaker wants the state to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism, with antisemitism rising at an alarming rate in the United States and in South Carolina.
According to ADL data for 2022, antisemitism rose 193 percent compared to the year before in the state.
“It’s glaring that this has become an increasingly important issue,” Rep. Beth Bernstein (D–Richland) told WCSC.
Bernstein, who is the only Jewish member of the South Carolina General Assembly, has introduced a bill to add the IHRA definition to state law.
Bill H.4042 would mandate that the state consider the definition when determining if anti-discrimination policies or laws were violated.
“In hiring, in HR, human resources, it could be used now for state employees,” Bernstein said.
The Charleston Jewish Federation’s Brandon Fish told the news outlet that antisemitism in South Carolina has spread to all parts of society.
“This rise is visible in graffiti in our K-12 schools, incidents on college campuses, organized antisemitic flyering of hundreds of homes in Horry County, South Carolina, harassment in public and antisemitic rhetoric on social media,” he said.
Bernstein urged the state to pass a hate crime bill currently under consideration, noting that the impact of her proposal would be limited on its own.
“I’m very hopeful that we will be a state that will pass hate crimes and we’ll not be the only state that does not have any hate crime legislation on its books,” Bernstein said.
South Carolina is currently one of only three states without any hate crime laws. The others are Arkansas and Wyoming.
(Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of the Seventh Day of Passover in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)