Anti-Palestinian Racism is coming to America and a campus near you. But what is it, why now, and why is it so dangerous?
APR is the latest evolution of anti-Zionism, rebranded in the language of civil rights and anti-racism. It uses “progressive morality” to silence dissent, intimidate Israel’s defenders, and shield Palestinians and their allies from criticism, even when they glorify Hamas or excuse antisemitism.
Framed as a new category of discrimination against Palestinians, their narratives, and their advocates, APR has been aggressively promoted since 2022, first in Canada and now across North America and Europe. Far from protecting human rights, APR is the latest weapon designed to delegitimize Israel and stigmatize its supporters.
Its proponents claim it targets discrimination that “silences, excludes, erases, stereotypes, defames, or dehumanizes Palestinians and their narratives.” In practice, however, APR functions as a tool of political censorship, punishing dissent and suppressing debate.
IHRA vs APR
Unlike the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism, which has been endorsed by more than 40 nations, the US State Department, and hundreds of universities, APR is not meant to clarify the boundary between legitimate debate and bigotry. The IHRA definition affirms that criticism of Israel is legitimate, but it draws a red line at demonization, double standards, and the denial of Israel’s right to exist. APR does the opposite: It turns nearly any defense of Israel into “racism.”
Call for Gaza’s demilitarization? Racist. Affirm Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state? Racist. Say no genocide is occurring in Gaza or that there was never a state of Palestine? Racist. Cite Palestinian rejectionism, terrorism, or antisemitism? Racist. Wave an Israeli flag or affirm Jewish indigeneity in the Levant? Racist. Under APR, virtually every expression of support for Israel becomes a racist act.
This inversion is not new. In 1975, the United Nations declared Zionism to be racism. In the 2000s, the BDS (Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions) movement swept across campuses, branding Israel an apartheid state. APR now borrows the language of critical race theory and social-justice activism to recast Zionism itself as structural oppression and racism.
What makes APR especially dangerous is its claim to moral authority. Classical anti-Zionism was political. APR disguises itself as a universal fight against racism, indicting anyone who challenges Palestinian narratives as irredeemably racist. It flips the IHRA playbook on its head, shifting victimhood from Jews under attack to Palestinians portrayed as the sole victims of “racism.”
Calling out racism
The timing is revealing. Since Hamas’s October 7 massacre, Jews have been attacked on campuses, in public squares, and on city streets. Yet APR reframes Palestinians as the only victims of racism while treating Jews as oppressors. Proponents dismiss the surge in antisemitism with a shrug, suggesting that “Zionists had it coming.”
The trend is spreading quickly. At York University, APR is formally defined as a “distinct form of racism.” At Stanford and Berkeley, faculty resolutions and student events have labeled opposition to Hamas as “racist.” In city councils from Toronto to Seattle, anti-racism resolutions now include APR while excluding antisemitism. NGOs like Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the Council on American-Islamic Relations echo this narrative, accusing Israel of “genocide” while cloaking anti-Zionism in the mantle of human rights.
APR also exploits Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion frameworks. While DEI initiatives were meant to address historic injustices, many have been co-opted to portray Zionism as colonialist or privileged. In such environments, defending Jewish identity or Israel’s legitimacy is not a viewpoint but a bias to be corrected.
If left unchallenged, APR will reshape public discourse, empower hostile NGOs, and normalize antisemitism in schools, governments, and even corporations. Policymakers must act now. Congress, state legislatures, and school boards should ensure anti-racism curricula are not hijacked to advance anti-Israel ideology. Universities should adopt the IHRA definition of antisemitism and resist attempts to elevate APR. Civil society must demand equal standards, where Palestinians are held accountable for terror and incitement just as Israelis are for policy decisions.
The stakes could not be higher. Anti-Zionism has always adapted to survive, and APR is its newest disguise. Racism is always wrong, but labeling something as racism doesn’t make it so. Only by rejecting APR and standing firmly behind the IHRA can we protect Jewish communities, defend Israel’s legitimacy, and preserve America’s moral clarity.
Betsy Berns Korn is the chair of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations. She served as president of AIPAC from 2020-2023 and then as chair of the Board of AIPAC from 2023-2025. She is also a member of the AJC’s Board of Governors and the Israel Economic Forum.
Dr. Eric Mandel is the senior security editor of The Jerusalem Report and director of MEPIN, the Middle East Political Information Network. He regularly briefs members of Congress, their foreign policy aides, and the State Department.