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Posted by Melanie Nathan, May 24, 2024

Office of the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism Hosts Symposium on Effective Action to Confront Online Antisemitism

Reports as follows: On May 23, U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism Ambassador Deborah Lipstadt hosted a Symposium to Combat Online Antisemitism. The Symposium convened technology executives, NGOs, and government representatives to foster collaborative thinking about effective action against surging online antisemitism.

The forum was an enriching and productive exchange of ideas across the three sectors. Participating technology companies included Google, Meta, Microsoft, TikTok, and X. Special Envoys for Combating Antisemitism from Canada and Israel took part in the symposium, along with the Deputy Chief of Mission for Germany. Six NGOs from around the world, including the American Jewish Committee, Anti-Defamation League, World Jewish Congress, Center for Countering Digital Hate, Cyberwell, and Decoding Antisemitism also participated. Senior White House officials, including Neera Tanden, Chair of the Domestic Policy Council and Domestic Policy Advisor to the President, and Anne Neuberger, Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technologies, delivered opening remarks. Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources, Richard Verma, delivered concluding statements.

Participating technology companies volunteered to consider taking independent actions to address antisemitism on their respective platforms, including establishing dedicated expert positions on policy teams, implementing antisemitism training for key personnel, and increasing transparency by publicly reporting on trends in antisemitic content.

The Symposium was the first of its kind. Collaborative efforts like these can be catalysts for forging legacies of innovation and shared values, driving positive change.

From Melanie Nathan: Is it too far gone? The extensive antisemitism online is endemic. It is an epidemic of hate.  The U.S. First Amendment and individual freedoms comes at a high price and relinquishes the interests of minorities and the collective good. Maybe it is time for an Amendment that extends exceptions beyond “inciting violence” to actual hate speech. Yet at this point I am not sure even that could be defined. …