Indiana House GOP revives bill to fight antisemitism on campuses. Will it pass the Senate?

Indiana House Republicans brought back a bill this year that defines antisemitism and condemns it as religious discrimination in education. But the question is whether the legislation, a priority bill for House Republicans, will make any movement in the Senate in 2024.

House Bill 1002, filed by Rep. Chris Jeter, R-Fishers, moved through the chamber’s education committee Wednesday with a unanimous vote. The bill is the same legislation Jeter filed during the 2023 session, which unanimously passed the House but died in the Senate. 

Senate Pro Tempore Rodric Bray, R-Martinsville, said Thursday he expects the bill will come to the Senate and the chamber will look at it, especially in light of the Israel-Hamas war that erupted in early October. Last session the bill was referred to the Senate's education and career development committee, but did not get a hearing. The ongoing conflict in the Middle East may increase interest in the bill this year, Bray said.

“If it comes over here, we’re going to take it extremely seriously,” he said. 

Since October, national conversation has risen about antisemitism, especially on college campuses. A congressional hearing in December on antisemitism in higher education led to a backlash against three university presidents regarding their answers about whether calling for the genocide of Jewish people violates school conduct policies. The presidents of Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania both resigned in the weeks following the hearing. 

In Indiana, Republican U.S. Rep. Jim Banks in November wrote a letter to Indiana University President Pamela Whitten seeking information about reports of antisemitism on campus. 

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Jeter on Wednesday told the House education committee that the bill does not tell individuals what they can or cannot do or say. 

“It is simply a reflection of our values as a state when it comes to teaching our youth and our students,” Jeter said.

House committee unanimous

Members of the House education committee on Wednesday heard hours of testimony on House Bill 1002, from individuals including rabbis, Jewish college students and pro-Palestine college students. The Indiana Jewish Community Relations Council has also publicly urged support for House Bill 1002.

Under House Bill 1002, the state would use the working definition of antisemitism developed by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, the U.S. State Department and the U.S. Department of Education in 2016. It provides examples of antisemitism, stating that antisemitism is a “perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews."

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Leaders of Jewish congregations and students at universities around the state urged support of the bill, saying defining antisemitism would make it easier for people to fight it. 

"The overarching problem has been that the state of Indiana does not currently have a strong and clear definition of antisemitism and it is not specifically identified or called out as a problem and something that we stand behind prohibiting or stopping in our state," Rabbi Sue Silberberg, executive director of the Indiana University Hillel, told the education committee. "We need this bill desperately."

House Bill 1002 specifies that antisemitism does not extend to "criticism of Israel similar to that leveled against any other country." But critics of House Bill 1002 said they were concerned about using the IHRA definition, which includes, among examples of antisemitism, the statement that "the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor."

Syed Saeed, president of the Indiana Muslim Advocacy Network, said the examples in the IHRA definition combine antisemitism with protests against Israeli policies.

Other Republican state leaders have indicated interest in the bill. House Speaker Todd Huston, R-Fishers, on Monday said he expects a positive result for the legislation again in his chamber this year. 

Gov. Eric Holcomb told IndyStar Wednesday he would review House Bill 1002 in the coming weeks as it moves through the legislative process. Holcomb said he met on Wednesday with Consul General Yinam Cohen of Israel, who attended the governor’s State of the State address Tuesday. 

“These are things that are on the top of many minds,” Holcomb said on the antisemitism legislation. “But it will be important as it works its way through the House and Senate to see where it finally arrives before whatever comes to my desk.” 

After the education committee vote Wednesday, House Bill 1002 is expected to return to the full chamber.

Contact IndyStar's state government and politics reporter Brittany Carloni at brittany.carloni@indystar.com or 317-779-4468. Follow her on Twitter/X @CarloniBrittany.