Just days after returning from a landmark anti-Semitism summit he helped establish in Vienna, Congressman Chris Smith, R-Hamilton, today ushered through the House a sweeping resolution that calls upon lawmakers, law enforcement officials, and educators to amplify their efforts to counter violence and hatred against the Jewish People and Faith.

    Smith, who serves as Chairman of the Commission for Security and Cooperation in Europe (Helsinki Commission) and as Vice Chairman of the House International Relations Committee, has made eliminating human rights abuses, particularly anti-Semitism, a key component of his foreign policy agenda.

    Last year, he authored an international resolution at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Parliamentary Assembly that called upon all 55 member nations of the OSCE, including the United States and Canada, to take significant actions against anti-Semitism.

    That resolution has spurred several nations to act and has resulted in summits in both the United States and abroad, including last week’s session in Vienna attended by Smith, former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, and the leaders of several U.S.-based groups that fight anti-Semitism.  Smith’s efforts have also resulted in Germany’s agreeing to host an anti-Semitism conference next year in Berlin, the former center of Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Germany.

    “Anti-Semitism is a deadly disease of the heart that leads to violence, cruelty, and unspeakable acts of horror,” Smith said.  “While we are well aware of the hate crimes and cowardly acts of violence committed by Hamas and like-minded murderers in Israel, what is new is the enormous surge in anti-Semitic acts and the resurgence of hatred for Jews through anti-Semitic acts in Europe, the United States, and Canada.”

    “My resolution recognizes this alarming and dangerous trend, condemns this scourge, and calls on each of the 55 nations that make up the OSCE, including the United States, to take concrete steps to eradicate anti-Semitism,” Smith said.

    “Specifically, my resolution calls upon all nations to aggressively investigate, prosecute, and punish incidents of anti-Semitic violence, discrimination, and destruction of property.  It also calls for an increased focus on education, including Holocaust-awareness efforts, to counter anti-Semitic stereotypes and attitudes so the next generation of European leaders is not ensnared into a cycle of hatred,” he added.

    Additionally, the Smith Resolution asks all Members of Congress to raise this issue with other foreign lawmakers and heads of states they deal with and urges policy makers in other nations to take similar concrete actions to address anti-Semitism.