South Carolina H 5591: Jewish American Heritage Month

Bill Text

2025-2026 Bill 5591 Text of Previous Version (Apr. 28, 2026) - South Carolina Legislature Online 

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026

Bill 5591

Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter

(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

A house RESOLUTION

TO 
DECLARE THE MONTH OF MAY 2026 AS "JEWISH AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH" IN SOUTH 
CAROLINA AND TO CALL UPON ALL CITIZENS TO COMMEMORATE THIS OCCASION BY 
APPROPRIATELY CELEBRATING THE CONTRIBUTIONS THAT THE JEWISH COMMUNITY'S 
HISTORY, HERITAGE, AND CULTURE HAVE MADE TO THIS NATION AND TO THE STATE OF 
SOUTH CAROLINA.

Whereas, Jewish immigrants to America, ever since their first arrival 
to our shores in the seventeenth century, have played a central role in the 
creation, growth, freedom, prosperity, and strength of the United States of 
America; and

Whereas, the biblical and contemporary history of the Jewish people 
and the enduring values of the Jewish faith were vital sources of inspiration 
for the founding of the United States, the Civil Rights movement, America's 
global leadership in the cause of freedom, Americans' commitment to social 
justice, and many of our nation's most central tenets; and

Whereas, South Carolina boasts one of the earliest Jewish 
congregations in the South, with Jews first settling in the port city of 
Charleston in the late seventeenth century. Charleston emerged as one of the 
leading centers of American Jewish life during the nineteenth century, and for 
the first two decades of the twentieth century, the city was home to the 
largest Jewish community in the United States; and

Whereas, Jewish Americans have made significant contributions to the 
arts, entertainment, science and technology, government, business, culinary 
traditions, and other fields in the United States. Jewish Americans have played 
an important role in shaping American culture; and

Whereas, for forty-three years, every President of the United States 
has declared a period of time for celebrating the contributions to the United 
States of the Jewish community's history, heritage, and culture, and since 
2006, the month of May has been presidentially declared to be Jewish American 
Heritage Month, pursuant to a bipartisan resolution of the United States 
Congress; and

Whereas, incidents of antisemitic violence and rhetoric are still 
prevalent in the nation and in South Carolina, and educational initiatives are 
critical in order to combat bigotry; and

Whereas, it is appropriate to acknowledge and promote awareness of 
the myriad invaluable contributions of Jewish Americans in South Carolina and 
across the United States and to extend to them the respect and camaraderie 
every American deserves. Now, therefore,

Be it resolved by the House of 
Representatives:

That the members of the South Carolina House 
of Representatives, by this resolution, declare the month of May 2026 as 
"Jewish American Heritage Month" in South Carolina and call upon all citizens 
to commemorate this occasion by appropriately celebrating the contributions 
that the Jewish community's history, heritage, and culture have made to this 
nation and to the State of South Carolina. 

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This web page was last updated on April 28, 2026 at 12:43 PM