Legislation providing protection for public school students from antisemitic acts moved one step closer to becoming law on Feb. 16 when it passed in the Missouri House of Representatives. House Bill 2061 was approved by the full house by a vote of 109 to 21. The vote also reflected nine members absent with leave and 19 votes of “present.”
HB 2061 is sponsored by Rep. George Hruza, R-St. Louis County, the only Jewish member of the Missouri legislature. During a Jan. 12 press conference at the Jewish Student Union Staenberg House, Hruza explained that the bill would provide Jewish students with safeguards by creating guidance for schools to identify situations that meet the test of antisemitism. It would do so by using the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance working definition of antisemitism.
During a Missouri House Emerging Issues committee hearing the same day as the JSU Staenberg House event, more than 75 testimonies were submitted supporting HB 2061. Many were submitted by Jewish students who had personally experienced antisemitism. Opposing testimony during the hearing suggested the bill could limit freedom of speech. However, Hruza said during the JSU Staenberg House event that was not the case.
“Nowhere in the bill does it say that you can’t have your own free speech,” Hruza said. “There are no restrictions on free speech, even hateful speech. If you want to go out on Delmar Boulevard and shout all kinds of terrible things, like ‘from the river to the sea,’ which really means extermination of all the Jews between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, that’s fine. When you go to a Jewish student and say, ‘you can’t pass here,’ that is what the bill is trying to address.”
A new survey released on Feb. 17 by the American Jewish Committee and Hillel International showed four in 10 Jewish college students reported experiencing antisemitism during their time in school, with 55% saying they have felt uncomfortable or unsafe at a campus event because of their Jewish identity. Hruza said he was not surprised by those findings.
“It shows how important it is for us in Missouri to take a stance against antisemitism,” Hruza said. “HB 2061 is one such method because those numbers are totally unacceptable. And I think we’ve got to make sure that our Jewish students know that we have their back.”
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The passage of HB 2061 would help address this trend, according to Danny Cohn, president and CEO, Jewish Federation of St. Louis.
“Antisemitism is no longer confined to the fringes of society, and Jewish students continue to encounter it in very real ways,” Cohn said. “The passage of this legislation in the Missouri House represents a step toward clearer standards and stronger accountability when antisemitic incidents occur in our schools and universities.”
Cohn said the Jewish Federations of North America and other organizations support the use of the IHRA working definition of antisemitism.
“It is an internationally recognized standard and a practical tool that helps policymakers, educators, and administrators identify antisemitism, distinguish it from protected speech, and respond consistently and appropriately,” he said.
During the JSU Staenberg House event, Hruza pointed to an Anti-Defamation League survey that reflects the normalization of antisemitism.
“It showed that 57% of Jews consider that antisemitism is a way of life now, and it’s part of their normal routine,” he said. “Half of Jewish students hide their Jewish identity. That is not acceptable. This is a country where you have freedom of expression, but you also have freedom of life, liberty and happiness. Well, you can’t have much happiness when people yell at you, prevent you from doing things, and paint a swastika on your locker door.”
If passed into law, Hruza said schools that don’t take action to address documented cases of antisemitism could be subject to a Title VI violation of the Civil Rights Act, which would potentially result in termination of federal financial assistance.
The next step for HB 2061 is a reading in the Missouri Senate, then referral to committee for hearings, just as it did in the House. Upon successfully completing that process, the bill would require passage on the Senate floor. The governor would then have 16 days to sign the legislation, veto it, or allow it to become law without a signature. The final day of the Missouri legislature 2026 session is May 16. Hruza said passage in the House early in the legislative session is significant because senators serve on multiple committees and there are many bills on the docket for hearings.
“I think we’ve prepared the way,” Hruza said “we have a handler in the Senate for the bill. We have support of many of the senators for the bill, so I do feel quite optimistic that we’ll be able to get this moved through and get it to the governor’s desk.”
