State leaders stand up for antisemitism hate crime bill

By ALEXANDER POPP alex@appenmedia.com

ATLANTA — State lawmakers and leaders from Georgia’s Jewish community stood tighter under the gold dome Wednesday, Feb. 22 to support House Bill 30, which creates a standard definition for antisemitism under Georgia law.

According to state Rep. John Carson (R-Marietta) who co-sponsored the bill with Rep. Esther Panitch (D-Sandy Springs), HB 30 would have Georgia adopt the internationally recognized definition of antisemitism and strengthens protections for those who might be affected by discrimination and hate crimes.

The bill has received wide bipartisan support from state lawmakers and passed out of the house judiciary committee Tuesday, Feb. 21.

“I'm here because I believe that this is right, this is moral, and this is just the right thing to do for people that are constantly being persecuted,” Carson said at a press conference held Wednesday at the capitol.

This bill comes after Panitch and hundreds of other residents in Sandy Springs, Dunwoody and other Georgia communities discovered that antisemitic flyers had been delivered to their homes overnight on Feb. 5.

The flyers sparked an immediate public outcry from community members and leaders statewide, including

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp.

In the weeks since, law enforcement officials announced that the individuals responsible for the flyers have been identified, but will face no charges because the flyers did not contain threats or other actionable language.

“After conducting a thorough investigation and discussing this with the District Attorney’s Office and City Solicitor's Office there's no charge we can make against them,” Dunwoody Police Chief Billy said Feb. 13. “It’s a free speech issue.”

Panitch, who was one of the first people to raise an outcry when the flyers were first discovered, said that despite misinformation campaigns claiming the contrary, the “disgusting” language in the flyers is not what HB 30 is aimed at combatting.

“There is no doubt antisemitism is on the rise,” she said. “We need every tool in our toolbox and this bill defines antisemitism, to be clear, it does not restrict speech.”

The definition of antisemitism which HB 30 will create, will only come into play once an unlawful, criminal or discriminatory act has occurred.

“Right is right and wrong is wrong,” she said. “That’s all we want, we don’t want anything special, we just want to be treated just like every other minority.

Lawmakers expect HB 30 to go to the Georgia House floor for a full vote sometime next week, Carson said.

Tara Tucker

Paras