A bill that would define antisemitism on college campuses and in schools now has Indiana lawmakers working to address a simple question.
If a student or professor maligns the state of Israel, could that person be called antisemitic?
The original version of House Bill 1002 implied yes, they could be. Many Jewish students and professors supported that version of the bill, but others said it would limit free speech about Israel.
The latest version of the bill lost that language, and that changed everything. Now everyone who originally supported the bill is against it, and those who were against the bill now support it.
“This has essentially gutted the bill we wrote, and now leaves Jews without equal protection,” Allon Friedman, president of the Jewish American Affairs Committee of Indiana, which helped write the original bill, said in a Senate committee hearing Wednesday, Feb. 21. “This is essentially abandonment of the Indiana Jewish community and unwittingly rewards our enemies.”
Malkah Bird, a member of Jewish Voice for Peace Indiana, told Mirror Indy that antisemitism should not be conflated with anti-Zionism. She supported the amended bill because she said it still supports the free speech criticism of Israel while protecting against threats to Jewish people.
“This is still a bill that defines antisemitism,” said Bird, who is Jewish.
The Senate Committee on Education and Career Development advanced the bill to the full floor Wednesday, but lawmakers said conversations about it would be ongoing over the next few days.
The call to define antisemitism
Much of the rest of HB 1002 is fairly noncontroversial. It would define antisemitism as “a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews” and detail who may be targets of antisemitism. That working definition was coined by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance in 2016.
[Our Documenters notated a meeting between those of Jewish and Muslim faith]
The bill is a revival of legislation from last year that passed the House but died in the Senate. It moved through the House again this year with widespread, bipartisan support.
Rep. Chris Jeter, R-Fishers, who’s carrying the bill, said he chose to file the legislation again because of a rise in antisemitism in the U.S. amid the Israel-Hamas war.
Instances of antisemitism on college campuses have increased since Oct. 7, according to the Anti-Defamation League. The ADL recorded that 73% of Jewish college students had experienced or witnessed antisemitism since the beginning of this school year.
Similar language to HB 1002 has been adopted by governments and organizations across the world, as well as in 33 U.S. states.
But Indiana would appear to be bucking the trend by removing mention of Israel.
Borislav Tarasenko testifies over House Bill 1002. Credit: Jenna Watson / Mirror Indy 
Maya Wasserman wears a necklace that reads “bring them home – now!” which refers to Israeli hostages in Gaza. Credit: Jenna Watson / Mirror Indy 
Yaqoub Saadeh, an IUPUI senior and president of the school’s Middle Eastern Student Association, testifies over House Bill 1002. Credit: Jenna Watson / Mirror Indy 
People listen to discussion over House Bill 1002 outside the Senate chamber. Credit: Jenna Watson / Mirror Indy 
Rep. Chris Jeter, author of House Bill 1002. Credit: Jenna Watson/Mirror Indy 
Rabbi Sue Silberberg testifies over House Bill 1002. Credit: Jenna Watson / Mirror Indy 
Daniel Segal, a member of Jewish Voice for Peace Indiana, testifies over House Bill 1002. Credit: Jenna Watson / Mirror Indy 
Allon Friedman, president of the Jewish American Affairs Committee of Indiana, testifies over House Bill 1002. Credit: Jenna Watson / Mirror Indy
The changes to the bill removed reference to a list of examples of antisemitism from the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, the majority of which referenced Israel.
In his opening comments before the Senate education committee this week, Jeter said he supported the changes to the bill.
“I think there was some issue with some of those examples,” he said. “Anytime we do lists in bills and legislation, it gets a little iffy.”
The view between college students
The disparate opinions of two Indiana college students show how the bill’s changes caused a rapid shift in support.
Losing the mention of Israel bothered Maya Wasserman, a 22-year-old senior at Indiana University Bloomington.
She told Mirror Indy that Jewish people cannot be separated from Israel — her mom is Israeli, and she has family and friends in Israel.
“Zionism is the right for the Jewish people to exist in their ancestral homeland,” Wasserman said. “Being against Jews having a right to exist in their homeland is being against Jews having a right to exist. And so, at the end of the day, antisemitism is anti-Zionism.”
Wasserman said that without the examples of antisemitism in the original bill, the bill won’t protect Jewish students.
Yaqoub Saadeh, a 21-year-old IUPUI senior and president of the school’s Middle Eastern Student Association, opposed the bill when it still included language about Israel. He removed his opposition following the amendment.
Saadeh, whose family hails from Palestine, feared the bill as originally written would have stifled freedom of speech on campuses.
He also worried it would increase Islamophobia and anti-Arab sentiment, which has also been on the rise post-Oct. 7, according to the Center for American-Islamic Relations. He said he believes that he should be able to speak out against Israel without being called antisemitic.
“The conflation between Zionism and Judaism is the biggest issue here,” he said.
What’s next for the bill?
House Bill 1002 advanced through the Senate education committee 12-0, and will next head to the full Senate.
Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray, R-Martinsville, told reporters Thursday, Feb. 22, that while he appreciated the impassioned testimony from members of the Jewish community, he believes the bill will work even with the changes.
“We want to make a strong statement (against antisemitism),” Bray said, “and we feel like this is it.”
Correction: An earlier version of this story misnamed the organization responsible for the working definition of antisemitism. It’s the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance.
This story has also been updated to include Rep. Chris Jeter’s correct city. He is from Fishers.
Claire Rafford covers higher education for Mirror Indy in partnership with Open Campus. Contact Claire at claire.rafford@mirrorindy.org or follow her on X/Instagram @clairerafford.
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