While Israel is at war and political attempts to prevent the IDF from receiving cooperation are growing-from the UN to Italy to Capitol Hill-at least in Tennessee there was a moment of true sanity and support this week.
The Tennessee General Assembly’s passage of House Bill 1446 / Senate Bill 1663, known as the “Recognizing Judea and Samaria Act," is a measure that affirms the historic and cultural significance of the Jewish People’s ancestral homeland and is a much-needed pushback against continuous attempts to deny the eternal Jewish connection to the Land of Israel.
Along with the Israeli Defense Forces, perhaps no group of Israelis draws the attention of Israel’s critics as frequently as the so-called Jewish "settlers", and these lawmakers in Nashville are standing against that.
The legislation, which at the time of this writing now awaits the governor’s signature, directs Tennessee state agencies to use the historically rooted term “Judea and Samaria" in official government materials rather than the modern term “West Bank." The bill passed both chambers of the legislature with strong support, reflecting a clear commitment to truth, history, and the idea that the Jewish People have always had their roots in the Land of Israel.
This important legislation recognizes what history, faith, and scholarship have long affirmed: that Judea and Samaria are central to the Jewish story and identity. Tennessee lawmakers should be applauded by pro-Israel Americans of all faiths for standing firmly in support of historical accuracy and for rejecting language that obscures the deep and ancient ties of the Jewish People to their homeland.
The term “West Bank" was created by Arab propagandists to de-emphasize the area’s inherent Jewishness and to disassociate the land from the State of Israel. “East Jerusalem" was similarly coined.
The term “East Jerusalem" is artificial, used by supporters of the Arab cause in their propaganda to make it appear as though that part of the city is an intrinsically Arab area that Jews are illegally entering. In reality, there are Jewish neighborhoods throughout the eastern, western, northern, and southern parts of Jerusalem. It is tragic when American politicians and news outlets play along and use such geographically inaccurate and politically loaded language because it is a betrayal of the truth.
The new Tennessee law stems from the understanding that terminology matters. As outlined in the bill, the term “West Bank" originated in the mid-20th century and has been viewed by supporters of the legislation as a political construct that diminishes the region’s biblical and historical identity. By contrast, “Judea and Samaria" reflects millennia of Jewish history and heritage.
Supporters of the measures have correctly emphasized that recognizing these historic names is not merely symbolic but a reaffirmation of shared Judeo-Christian values and a commitment to combating efforts to erase or distort Jewish historical connections to the land.
All friends of Israel should be grateful to the Nashville legislators who demonstrated moral clarity and leadership in advancing this bill. At a time of growing misinformation and rising antisemitism, actions like this send a powerful message: truth matters, history matters, and the bond between the Jewish People and their homeland will not be denied.
Moshe Phillips is national chairman of Americans For A Safe Israel, AFSI, (www.AFSI.org), a leading pro-Israel advocacy and education organization.