“‘They moved it this year by stealth,’ said Lara Friedman, president of the Foundation for Middle East Peace (FMEP) and a Jewish Currents contributing writer… ‘This is not legislation that makes it a hate crime to criticize Israel,’ Friedman said. ‘It is legislation mandating that the IHRA definition becomes one of the considerations taken into account when looking into whether or not a crime committed has a hate crime component.’ The legislation could enhance a defendant’s punishment, should they be found to have crossed the IHRA’s line on antisemitism. Courts will be required to use the IHRA definition when considering aggravating factors in criminal convictions.”