WASHINGTON (EJP)—American Jewish groups and members of Congress are pressuring U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to appoint a US Special Envoy to monitor and combat anti-Semitism, a position that will be unstaffed by July 1 due to budgetary cuts.
The post was mandated by an act of Congress in 2004.
Tillerson asserted earlier this month that in lieu of a dedicated envoy, “all diplomats would be educated enough to work against anti-Semitism.”
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) organized a conference call this week with the two special envoys who held the position during the Obama administration, Hannah Rosenthal and Ira Forman.
The position has been empty since the end of Forman’s term five months ago.
During the conference call, ADL emphasized the vital importance of ongoing U.S. monitoring of anti-Semitism around the world and why having this office is vital to ensuring America’s diplomatic commitment to playing a leadership role in confronting anti-Jewish hatred and bigotry overseas.
Forman talked about how the US pushed for a global definition of anti-Semitism – which changed the global discourse on the issue and highlighted when criticism of Israel crosses the line and becomes anti-Semitic.
“United States leadership encouraged other countries to appoint their own special envoys on anti-Semitism,” he noted, warning that an American reversal on this issue will send a bad “global message.”
Forman said the special envoy’s office had worked in recent years to protect Jews’ rights to perform brit milah (circumcision ceremonies) and produce kosher meat, as well as fighting against attempts in Eastern European countries to honor people who murdered Jews and cooperated with the Nazis during the Holocaust.
Last March, 167 members of Congress, both Democrats and Republicans, wrote a letter emphasizing the need for U.S. global leadership in fighting anti-Semitism.