Protesters on U.S. campuses are inciting violence, terror, and antisemitism, said Israeli politician Simcha Rothman.
"Freedom of speech is important in both sides of the ocean: in the U.S. and in Israel. But many, many times people misuse the idea of freedom of speech," Rothman said Thursday during an appearance on Newsmax's "The Chris Salcedo Show."
"For example, the main example, I think most countries — even countries of this very strong protection of freedom of speech — criminalized is the incitement to terror.
"What we see here in campuses is not a speech of criticism. It's not a speech of trying to create a better society in the view of the person who speaks. It's an incitement to violence, to terror and antisemitism. ... It's like shouting 'fire' in a crowded theater. It creates almost immediately a violent response.
"So anything can be misused — especially any law concerning speech. But also, the freedom of speech idea might be misused to incite for terror or to hurt Jews and through antisemitic or terror incitements," he added.
The U.S. House passed legislation Wednesday that would establish a broader definition of antisemitism for the Department of Education to enforce anti-discrimination laws, the latest response from lawmakers to a nationwide student protest movement over the Israel-Hamas war.
The proposal, which passed 320-91 with some bipartisan support, would codify the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition of antisemitism in Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, a federal anti-discrimination law that bars discrimination based on shared ancestry, ethnic characteristics, or national origin. It now goes to the Senate, where its fate is uncertain.
Action on the bill was just the latest reverberation in Congress from the protest movement that has swept university campuses. Republicans in Congress have denounced the protests and demanded action to stop them, thrusting university officials into the center of the charged political debate over Israel's conduct of the war in Gaza. More than 33,000 Palestinians have been killed since the war was launched in October, after Hamas staged a deadly terrorist attack against Israeli civilians.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
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Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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