The General Assembly overwhelmingly passed legislation Thursday defining antisemitism and incorporating it into Georgia’s hate crimes law. The state Senate approved the bill 44-6 after a nearly two-hour debate. The Georgia House of Representatives followed in a 129-5 vote.

The House had passed a similar version of the legislation last year, only to have it die in the Senate. Since then, however, incidents of antisemitism have been on the rise across Georgia, sparked by the massacre of Israeli civilians by Hamas militants and its aftermath this past October.

State Senator Colton Moore (R-Trenton) joined with five Democrats in opposing the bill; the only Republican in the senate to do so.  Opposition to the bill was voiced by the hand full of senators as being because the bill would limit free speech and, in their opinion, critics of Israel’s government could be singled out for a hate crime.