Emory University launches new academic center intended to counter rising antisemitism

The Emory Policy Institute on Countering Antisemitism was founded and is led by Ambassador Deborah Lipstadt, a University Distinguished Professor, Holocaust historian, and former US special envoy.

Emory University launched a new academic center earlier this month focused on developing practical, government-level strategies to combat rising antisemitism.

The Emory Policy Institute on Countering Antisemitism, known as EPICA, was founded and is led by Ambassador Deborah Lipstadt, a University Distinguished Professor, Holocaust historian, and former US special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism under the Biden administration.

Funded by private donations, the institute is designed to bridge rigorous academic scholarship with public policy, operating under the belief that anti-Jewish hatred poses a fundamental threat to democratic societies.

Reflecting on her transition back to academia after nearly three years in diplomacy, Lipstadt told The Jerusalem Post, “When I finished at the State Department, a number of people, both from within universities and from the world of diplomacy, said to me, ‘Deborah, you have a unique perspective on the issue of antisemitism, anti-Zionism, and Jew hatred, which is a term I prefer nowadays, in that you bring to it decades of scholarly experience, you also bring to it a face-to-face encounter in the lawsuit that you faced with David Irving, and you’ve now been in the diplomatic world for close to three years, so you understand how diplomacy works, what governments can do and what governments can’t do, what are the limits, what are the possibilities. Don’t just squander that or write a book and think that’s enough.’ So I turned to Emory University, Emory College, and they were enthusiastic about my building something that would address this issue, that would involve students as well, but also have a research element.”

EPICA to include undergraduate fellowship program

The institute’s core mission centers on conducting interdisciplinary research, facilitating public dialogue, and training the next generation of policy leaders. A key component of EPICA’s educational programming is an undergraduate fellowship starting in January 2027.

The fellowship will allow third- and fourth-year students in good standing to engage directly with policymakers, participate in study trips to Washington, DC, and complete summer internships on Capitol Hill and at policy think tanks.

Student fellows will produce research related to the Global Guidelines for Countering Antisemitism, an international framework introduced by Lipstadt in a 2024 speech in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and endorsed by dozens of countries and multilateral organizations.

The framework includes recommendations for governments and international bodies, including adopting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism as a framework.

Institute will support ongoing fight against antisemitism 'virus'

Lipstadt emphasized to the Post that the institute deliberately chose the word “countering” instead of “combating,” explaining that “combats would just suggest a winner, and I don’t think that there’s a winner in this.” Instead, she views the initiative as supporting an ongoing fight against a virus that extends far beyond immediate horizons.

“It’s a counter-effort, it’s an ongoing fight,” Lipstadt noted. “This is a virus that mutates and lives long beyond and beyond anywhere we can look at today.”

Lipstadt stated that through the institute’s efforts, “I would hope that the research that would come out, that the students’ experience, that the work that they will do, would compel increasing numbers of universities to take this issue seriously.”

Lipstadt added that addressing governments also means looking broadly at institutional policies.

“When I say governments, I’m not just talking about federal governments, but even universities, how can they address this? How can they counter this? How can they recognize that this is a dangerous and serious issue? And so that’s what we will be working on,” Lipstadt concluded.