{"id":307722,"date":"2026-10-16T05:10:15","date_gmt":"2026-10-16T05:10:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/307722\/"},"modified":"2026-10-16T05:10:15","modified_gmt":"2026-10-16T05:10:15","slug":"pennsylvania-governor-will-sign-ihra-definition-bill-when-it-passes-legislature-state-senator-says-israel-jewish-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/307722\/","title":{"rendered":"Pennsylvania governor will sign IHRA definition bill when it passes legislature, state senator says – Israel & Jewish News"},"content":{"rendered":"

(Oct. 15, 2026 \/ JNS)\n <\/p>\n

Pennsylvania state senator Judy Schwank thinks that Gov. Josh Shapiro will sign her bill defining antisemitism using the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance\u2019s working definition if lawmakers get it to his desk.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we can get it through both bodies and get it to the governor\u2019s desk, he will sign it,\u201d she told JNS.<\/p>\n

Schwank, former dean of agriculture and environmental sciences at Delaware Valley College, told JNS that she introduced the bill knowing that there is not enough time to pass it this session.<\/p>\n

But she wanted to \u201cplant the seed and try to get it to grow,\u201d after the state\u2019s attorney general said in September that he would use the IHRA definition in his office. That made \u201cthe topsoil a little deeper,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI will be reintroducing it,\u201d the Jewish Democratic lawmaker told JNS. \u201cI\u2019m going to keep trying, and even if we can\u2019t get it passed, keeping it in the forefront and talking about it is also important.\u201d<\/p>\n

Schwank introduced<\/a> SB 1489 on Oct. 13. The measure would establish a definition in state statute based on the IHRA working definition. It was referred to the state Senate\u2019s state government committee.<\/p>\n

Schwank, who co-chairs the Pennsylvania Jewish Legislative Caucus, said that she prefers legislation to a gubernatorial executive order, because passage of a law would demonstrate lawmakers\u2019 commitment to confronting Jew-hatred.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Pennsylvania<\/p>\n

Pennsylvania state senator Judy Schwank, a Democrat, speaks, as Gov. Josh Shapiro joined the Pennsylvania Jewish Coalition and bipartisan leaders from the General Assembly for the coalition\u2019s Civic Commemoration of the Holocaust. Credit: Senate Democratic Caucus, courtesy of Judy Schwank.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is strictly about antisemitism as we Jews experience it,\u201d she said. \u201cIt does not stymie speech.\u201d<\/p>\n

Schwank said that adopting the definition would help people who are reporting hate-motivated criminal incidents to law enforcement.<\/p>\n

Her push to define antisemitism in state law comes from her involvement as a board member at her Conservative congregation, Kesher Zion Synagogue, in the Reading area.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve had security guards posted outside the synagogue,\u201d she said. \u201cThere was a security guard right outside the sukkah.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat message does that send to our kids?\u201d Schwank said. \u201cThey\u2019ve grown up with this.\u201d<\/p>\n

Schwank grew up in Squirrel Hill, where she attended many events at the Tree of Life Congregation, which a gunman attacked in 2018, killing 11 people. Security increased at her synagogue after the massacre, and again after Oct. 7.<\/p>\n

The legislator told JNS that synagogues have benefited from a security funding measure passed in her state, which highlights the importance of passing legislation like hers to protect the Jewish community.<\/p>\n

Schwank told JNS that the need to identify Jew-hatred is particularly pressing in areas outside Pennsylvania\u2019s largest Jewish population centers, where authorities may not recognize how an incident affects a small Jewish community.<\/p>\n

Her district in Berks County is one such place. Former synagogues have become churches or other buildings, she said, as Jewish communities shrink. \u201cThat\u2019s something that\u2019s happening throughout the state,\u201d she told JNS.<\/p>\n

Her daughter and two granddaughters moved to Boulder, Colo. \u201cThey have armed security guards at their Reform synagogue,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

There has been increased security there after a man attacked people who marched on behalf of Israeli hostages in Boulder in June 2025, killing a Jewish woman and injuring others. The man was allegedly motivated by his hate for Jews and Zionists.<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe very strongly that Israel is our homeland. It is the Jewish homeland,\u201d Schwank told JNS.<\/p>\n

She said that she wishes the Israeli government had done a better job sharing details about the horrors of Oct. 7 with the world.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know that they will need us and all Jews throughout the world to continue to support them in maintaining that homeland for all of us,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"(Oct. 15, 2026 \/ JNS) Pennsylvania state senator Judy Schwank thinks that Gov. Josh Shapiro will sign her…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":307723,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[28,30,29],"class_list":["post-307722","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-pennsylvania","tag-pennsylvania","tag-pennsylvania-headlines","tag-pennsylvania-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/307722","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=307722"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/307722\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/307723"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=307722"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=307722"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=307722"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}