Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Georgia Strengthens Hate Crimes Law Against Antisemitism in Landmark Legislation sparked by Hamas

The General Assembly overwhelmingly passed legislation Thursday defining antisemitism and incorporating it into Georgia’s hate crimes law. The state Senate approved the bill 44-6 after a nearly two-hour debate. The Georgia House of Representatives followed in a 129-5 vote.

The House had passed a similar version of the legislation last year, only to have it die in the Senate. Since then, however, incidents of antisemitism have been on the rise across Georgia, sparked by the Oct. 7 massacre of Israeli civilians by Hamas militants and its aftermath. The bill allows prosecutors to seek enhanced penalties when crimes have been committed because the victim is Jewish.

Jeff has delivered morning news at WUGA Radio for more than a decade. He was among a team at CNN that won a George Foster Peabody Award in 1991 for an educational product based on the fall of the Soviet Union. He also won an Edward R. Murrow Award from Radio Television Digital News Association in 2007 for producing a series for WSB Radio on financial scams. Jeff is a graduate of the Babcock Graduate School of Management at Wake Forest University (MBA) and holds a BS in Business Administration from Campbell University, both in North Carolina.
Related Content