The International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) is a United Nations convention that was adopted and opened for signature on December 21, 1965, and entered into force on January 4, 1969. The Convention commits its members to the elimination of racial discrimination and the promotion of understanding among all races. In addition, it also requires its parties to outlaw hate speech and criminalize membership in racist organizations. The adoption of the Convention was prompted by incidents of anti-Semitism around the world, which led the United Nations General Assembly to adopt a resolution condemning all manifestations and practices of racial, religious and national hatred as violations of the United Nations Charter and Universal Declaration of Human Rights. On March 24, 2017, the Human Rights Council resolved to commence negotiations on the draft additional protocol to the Convention criminalizing acts of a racist and xenophobic nature. As of January 2018, there are 179 states parties to the Convention.