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This bill defines antisemitism and makes it easier to prove when discriminatory conduct is motivated by antisemitism. It is an impactful piece of legislation that will ensure the safety of Jewish people and strengthen South Dakota’s anti-discrimination laws. We held a beautiful, moving signing ceremony for this bill in the Rotunda of our State Capitol in Pierre. Many prominent Jewish leaders attended, including Elan Carr, the CEO of the Israeli-American Council for Action, nationally renowned Jewish leader and founder of the Jacobson Society Dan Rosen, Rabbi and Director of the National Jewish Advocacy Center Dr. Mark Goldfeder, Rabbi Mendel Alperowitz of the Chabad Jewish Center of South Dakota, Renie Schreiber on behalf of Yinam Cohen, Consul General of Israel to the Midwest, and Jordan Cope from Stand With Us. A few of our special guests said some words about the impact this legislation will have for the Jewish people. You can view footage of the full bill signing ceremony here. There are a few other people to thank for their efforts in getting this bill passed and signed into law, including Representative Mike Stevens, Representative Rebecca Reimer, Dan Lederman, and Stephen Rosenthal. The prime sponsors of this bill, Representative Deutsch and Senator Mehlhaff, put in a lot of hard work with my office and with members of the Jewish community to make sure this is the best bill possible to stop antisemitism and hate. This bill puts the gold standard International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism into state law. I hope that more states across our great nation will follow this example that we are setting here in South Dakota. It is more important now than ever for our nation’s leaders to stand up and fight against antisemitism. We must always work to ensure the security of God’s chosen people.