(RNS) — Amid increasing attacks on U.S. Jews and institutions, two U.S. senators introduced a sweeping, bipartisan bill on Tuesday (May 19) aimed at combating antisemitism.
But the Jewish American Security Act, if passed, could also help other religious institutions. Its key provision is a $1 billion investment in security resources for the federal Nonprofit Security Grant Program, which is open to all faiths. That program is currently funded at about $300 million annually.
On Monday, two teenagers shot and killed three people at the Islamic Center of San Diego, the largest mosque in San Diego County. That attack comes two months after a man rammed a pickup truck into Temple Israel, a Reform synagogue in West Bloomfield Township, Michigan. The assailant was killed and the building suffered extensive damage.
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Jewish organizations have been working for months on a bill that would tackle antisemitism, and on Tuesday, the Senate bill was formally introduced by Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., and Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev.
The bill would also require the U.S. Department of Education to develop new regulations to combat antisemitism in colleges and order social media companies to disclose their content moderation policies in handling of antisemitic content online.
A companion bill is expected to be introduced soon in the House.
The Senate bill has wide backing …