Kenneth Stern Interviewed on ABC Radio National Breakfast in Australia

Kenneth Stern, director of the Bard Center for the Study of Hate, was interviewed on ABC Radio National Breakfast in Australia about the working definition of anti-Semitism, for which he was the lead drafter, and how it has since been weaponized. In 2004, Stern was the primary drafter of this definition, which was adopted in 2016 by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance. “It was designed primarily in the aftermath of the second intifada and the collapse of the peace process, and we started seeing—in Europe in particular—attacks on Jews,” said Stern, who goes on to explain how the definition came to incorporate Israel and the issues that can arise when states adopt such definitions as part of government policy. Jillian Segal, Australia's special envoy on combating anti-Semitism, has cited this definition in calls to cut funding to universities, arts bodies, and public broadcasters that fail to combat hate by that working definition, which opponents say can prevent legitimate criticisms of Israel and suppress freedom of speech. “When you make things a free speech fight, that’s a problem,” Stern continues.

Post Date: 07-16-2025