Toronto (July 14, 2021) – Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center (FSWC) welcomes a new set of recommendations to combat online antisemitism provided by the Inter-Parliamentary Task Force to Combat Online Antisemitism in a report released today.

In its Fall 2020-Spring 2021 Interim Report, the Task Force – which consists of legislators in Israel, Canada, the U.S., the U.K. and Australia, as well as FSWC President and CEO Michael Levitt, former Member of Parliament – provides an array of preliminary recommendations, including: the adoption of a clear definition of antisemitism by national, state/provincial, local governments as well as social media providers; reforms to enhance the transparency of the procedures of social media platforms, such as how content is removed and what tools are used to direct users to certain sites or redirect users away from hate and/or harms; and new efforts to include antisemitism as a form of disinformation within the wider conversation about online extremism.

The report also details the various technological and social media experts and civil society organizations the Task Force met with, including FSWC and other Jewish groups.

“An international task force committed to combatting antisemitism during such a critical time is extremely important and very welcome,” said FSWC President and CEO Michael Levitt. “This is just the beginning, and we look forward to seeing these recommendations being adopted and more actions being taken by governments and social media platforms to help combat antisemitism in the online world.”