Antisemitism measure headed to Gov. Mike Kehoe after Missouri House passes it

Kurt Erickson, St. Louis Post-Dispatch on Apr 9, 2026

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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Schools and universities in Missouri would have to create policies barring antisemitic harassment under legislation heading to Gov. Mike Kehoe’s desk.

In action Thursday, the Missouri House approved House Bill 2061, which the Senate broadened on Wednesday with provisions aimed at safeguarding free speech.

The initial House measure had drawn First Amendment concerns because of its adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism, which labels some criticism of Israel as antisemitic.

Under the reworked Senate plan, approved in the House on a 100-17 vote, schools would have flexibility to choose other definitions of antisemitism.

Rep. George Hruza, R-Des Peres, who sponsored the measure, called the Senate changes “helpful.”

“The intent of this bill is that we don’t have discrimination of any form,” said Hruza, who grew up in communist Czechoslovakia and whose mother survived the Holocaust.

Rep. Bridget Walsh Moore, D-St. Louis, was among those voting “no,” arguing that current law already protects free speech.

“I’m not going to participate in talking points,” Moore said.

Rep. Elizabeth Fuchs, D-St. Louis, also voted “no,” saying it could hamper the free speech rights of teachers as they discuss events like the current war in the Mideast.

The legislation also creates a process for reporting and investigating discrimination and harassment. The House version outlined procedures for tracking only antisemitic incidents, but the Senate plan opens the policy to discrimination against all races and ethnicities.

Under the measure, if a student feels a school inadequately addressed an incident, an employee at the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education or the Coordinating Board for Higher Education would investigate the complaint and give the school 30 days to redress the grievance.

If state officials decide a school failed to address an incident adequately, they can report the matter to the federal Department of Education and the Department of Justice.

Antisemitic incident at schools and universities also would be publicized in an annual report.

About 45,800 Jewish people live in Greater St. Louis, according to a March 2025 study by the Brandeis University's Cohen Center for Jewish Studies. The study found about half — 51% — reported avoiding certain activities out of fear of antisemitism.