House overwhelmingly passes resolution that equates anti-Zionism with antisemitism

Washington DC - The US House on Tuesday overwhelmingly voted to equate anti-Zionism with antisemitism as Israel continues its brutal siege on Gaza.

Representatives Cori Bush (l.) and Rashida Tlaib were two of only 13 Democrats – and 14 members of the House – to vote against a resolution equating anti-Zionism with antisemitism.
Representatives Cori Bush (l.) and Rashida Tlaib were two of only 13 Democrats – and 14 members of the House – to vote against a resolution equating anti-Zionism with antisemitism.  © Drew Angerer / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP

The lower chamber passed Republican Representative David Kustoff's H.Res.894, with 92 members voting present and only 14 voting against.

The resolution, which denounces acts of anti-Jewish hate in the US and around the world, includes language which "clearly and firmly states that anti-Zionism is antisemitism."

The only Democratic representatives to vote against the resolution were Jamaal Bowman of New York, Cori Bush of Missouri, Gerald Connolly of Virginia, Chuy García of Illinois, Raúl Grijalva of Arizona, Pramila Jayapal of Washington, Summer Lee of Pennsylvania, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Delia Ramirez of Illinois, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, and Bonnie Watson Coleman of New Jersey.

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They were joined by Republican Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky.

Israel accused of war crimes and genocide

Critics of the resolution have pointed out that anti-Zionism involves rejecting the actions of the Israeli government and its settler-colonial policies, not the Jewish faith or people. Many Jewish people identify as anti-Zionist, which does not make them antisemitic.

The resolution comes as more than 16,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's US-backed assault on Gaza, described as a genocide by many international human rights experts.

At the same time, the US is seeing a rise in Islamophobic attacks and hate speech targeting Muslims, Palestinians, and Arabs.

Cover photo: Drew Angerer / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP

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