Language in the Service of Lawfare: The “Working Definition of Antisemitism” of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance

Abstract

The “Working Definition of Antisemitism” of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) has been adopted by the European Parliament and numerous national and local bodies worldwide. Although the document describes itself as “non-legally binding,” it has been characterized as a “quasi-law, in which capacity it exercises the de facto authority of the law, without having acquired legal legitimacy” (Gould, Law, Culture and the Humanities, 1–34, 2018:1). This chapter subjects the IHRA definition to scrutiny via Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), examining not only its language but also its origins, its social and political context, and its implications for freedom of speech. Its authors’ objectives can be described as “lawfare”—the use of the law for political ends—in which this text is a linguistic weapon.