So far, the bill has been supported by 168 Democrats and 67 Republicans.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFRep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) participates in a House Education and Labor Committee Markup on the H.R. 582 Raise The Wage Act, in the Rayburn House Office Building on March 6, 2019 in Washington, D.C(photo credit: MARK WILSON / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / AFP)
Congresswoman Ilhan Omar has co-sponsored a bill that aims to establish a federal fund to support Holocaust education.The bill, known as the Never Again Education Act, was first introduced in the House of Representatives at the end of January by Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Elise Stefanik (D-NY)."We are at a dangerous moment in time. Antisemitism is on the rise around the world and here at home, and the memory of the Holocaust is fading for far too many Americans," Maloney noted. "We can combat this by making sure we teach our students, tomorrow's leaders, about the horrors of the Holocaust. It is simply not enough to condemn hateful, violent attacks against the Jewish community – we need to be proactive, we need to take action."Omar signed onto the bill on July 19, according to the official website for US federal legislative information.So far, the bill has been sponsored by 168 Democrats and 67 Republicans.At her first term in Congress, Omar has established herself as a rising star in the left camp of the Democratic party. However, her use of antisemitic tropes on more than one occasion has sparked outrage, turning her in a controversial figure. She has also often been a target of harsh attacks by US President Donald Trump and his supporters.Two days before co-signing the Never Again Education Act, Omar put forth a new 'pro-boycott' resolution in Congress "affirming that all Americans have the right to participate in boycotts in pursuit of civil and human rights at home and abroad, as protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution."While the resolution did not mention the acronym BDS, it was perceived by many as a response to an anti-BDS resolution.So far, Congresswomen Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib and Ayanna Pressley, who are often associated with Omar, have not co-sponsored the Never Again Education Act.Earlier this month, a group of four senators – Marco Rubio and Kevin Cramer from the Republican Party, and Jacky Rosen and Richard Blumenthal from the Democratic Party – introduced an equivalent of the Never Again Education Act also in the Senate. The bill would establish a federal fund "to provide teachers with resources and training necessary to teach our students the important lessons of the Holocaust," they announced in a statement.
Support for the Never Again Education Act has been expressed, among others, by the World Jewish Congress, which has invited its followers to write a letter to their representative to ask them to help approve the resolution.Omri Nahmias contributed to this report.
