TRS 685 Antisemitism and the Law

This course considers antisemitism and the law (mostly in the United States). We will first consider the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism, along with two other definitions: the Jerusalem Declaration and the Nexus definition. While the IHRA definition is the one most used, the question is whether it has legal enforceability. A central question is the relation of antisemitism to anti zionism. We will also consider President Trump's use of that definition in his Executive Order related to antisemitism. Of course, we will consider treatment of Holocaust denial, group libel and hate laws in both Europe and the United States. And we will consider the development of American case law concerning who is a jew and antisemitism. Other legal issues such as kosher laws, child custody and divorce laws may be raised. Further, we will look at Title VI of the Civil Rights Laws as related to K-12 and university education and antisemitism. Grading will be based on two short papers (4-5 pages), class presentations, class participation and a final short (6-7 pages) integrative paper. For those wishing to fulfill one part of the upper-level writing requirement (qualifying course paper), the three credit option is available.

Cross Listed Courses

TRS 741B & LAW 741B