WASHINGTON (JTA) – A bipartisan slate of 125 lawmakers from both houses is calling on the Biden administration to adopt a “whole of government” approach to combating antisemitism.
The chairs of Congressional Task Forces to Combat Antisemitism sent a letter to President Joe Biden on Tuesday, demanding action from officials from multiple agencies including the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Justice, FBI, State Department. , the White House, the Department of Education and the US Holocaust Memorial Museum.
The letter calls for the creation of “an inter-agency task force led by an officer at the assistant secretary rank or higher” and it cites an FBI report saying antisemitic hate crimes increased by 6% in 2020 Was.
“Since many different agencies play an important role in combating anti-Semitism, closer coordination is needed to share best practices, data and intelligence; identify gaps in efforts; streamlining overlapping activities and roles; and execute an integrated national strategy,” the letter said.
the letter arrives a day before round table conference on antisemitism The White House convened to bring together top administration officials with Jewish organizational leaders, and a week after the Department of Homeland Security released a counterterrorism advisory bulletin on the threats facing Jewish, LGBTQ and migrant communities. “persistent and deadly danger,
The chair of the task force in the US House of Representatives is Cathy Manning, a Jewish Democrat from North Carolina, and Chris Smith, a Democrat from New Jersey. The chairs in the Senate are Jackie Rosen, a Jewish Democrat from Nevada, and James Lankford, an Oklahoma Republican.
