The U.S. House of Representatives passed a controversial, bipartisan bill through a 320-91 vote on May 1. Known as the “Antisemitism Awareness Act,” H.R. 6090 was written in response to the courageous encampments that have sprung up on college campuses throughout the U.S.and across the globe.

There are several House members who have serious reservations about H.R. 6090, especially some progressive Democrats. Jerry Nadler is one of the most outspoken critics of the new bill. Nadler, who is Jewish and represents a district in New York City with one of the largest Jewish populations in the U.S., called out the hypocrisy of the bill and its supporters.

Nadler publicly commented: “If my Republican colleagues were serious about antisemitism, they would have spoken up after neo-Nazis in Charlottesville chanted: ‘Jews will not replace us,’ If my Republican colleagues were serious about antisemitism, they would have spoken up when President Trump declared that there were ‘very fine people on both sides’ of that rally.” (The Nation, May 3)

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Many activists at the encampments, including many among the thousands who have been arrested, are Jewish. One of the leading organizations to participate in the encampments is Jewish Voice for Peace. Passover was celebrated at many, if not all, of the pro-Palestinian encampments, and Seder dinners were also prepared. Seder dinners at encampments featured grape juice in lieu of wine, to respectfully honor the demand that the encampments remain alcohol-free. Jewish students at Columbia and other encampments invited non-Jewish participants to join them.

As an expression of solidarity with their Palestinian siblings, many Jewish activists have sported keffiyehs, while images on social media have shown Jewish activists wearing kippahs (skull caps, also called yarmulkes) with watermelon designs. Watermelons are symbolic of Palestinian solidarity, because they feature the colors of the Palestinian flag.

During a Seder dinner at Yale University, one of the event organizers, 22-year-old Yale student Miriam Levine, proudly told the crowd: “Tonight, we stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people, not in spite of our Judaism but because of it. Tonight we proclaim that our liberation is intertwined.” (New York Times, April 22)

The bourgeois media have been silent about the presence of Jewish activists at the encampments. Instead, they falsely claim that pro-Palestinian protesters at the encampments are “attacking” Jewish students. There have been reports of pro-[Zionist] provocateurs making racist and anti-Jewish statements, but once again, the corporate press does not find those stories to be newsworthy.