The French Senate adopted, in its first reading, a bill to “strengthen the legal and regulatory framework for combating antisemitism in higher education.”
A recent Senate mission also concluded that there had been a “resurgence” of an “antisemitic climate” in universities, following a highly publicised incident at Sciences Po.
Senators Pierre-Antoine Lévi and Bernard Fialaire, who were already rapporteurs for this mission, have transcribed several of the recommendations made during the summer into this bill.
The first article of the bill explicitly incorporates raising awareness of the fight against antisemitism and racism into the educational missions of schools and higher education institutions. The scope of this awareness campaign has also been expanded to include all discriminatory acts that occur at universities, as discussed in committee and later in the plenary session. Until now, the Education Code only referred to the “fight against discrimination” in higher education and the teaching of “respect for the individual, their origins, and their differences” in curricula “at all stages of schooling.”
The bill also mandates compulsory training on these issues for student representatives, staff involved in collecting reports of antisemitic acts, and those engaged in disciplinary procedures.
Article 2 proposes expanding the scope of “equality and diversity” missions, which are currently limited to gender equality, to include “the fight against racism and antisemitism, as well as the prevention and treatment of acts of violence, discrimination, and hatred.” These missions will also be required to implement a “reporting system” for acts committed within institutions. Additionally, a “qualified referent” must be appointed to ensure the implementation of these provisions.
Any staff member aware of an antisemitic, racist, discriminatory, violent, or hateful act “within the institution or affecting its functioning” will have an “obligation” to report it “without delay” to the referent.
The proposed bill clarifies the grounds on which disciplinary action can be taken, adding antisemitic and racist acts, discrimination, violence, and all forms of hatred.
It also refers to a decree in the Council of State to clarify the investigative powers of university presidents in disciplinary procedures. The rapporteurs aim to “facilitate the identification of individuals responsible for online antisemitic speech by allowing the cross-referencing of their phone numbers with administrative lists,” they explained in a summary of their work.
