Eretz Israel is our unforgettable historic homeland...The Jews who will it shall achieve their State...And whatever we attempt there for our own benefit will redound mightily and beneficially to the good of all mankind.(Theodor Herzl, DerJudenstaat, 1896)
We offer peace and amity to all the neighbouring states and their peoples, and invite them to cooperate with the independent Jewish nation for the common good of all. The State of Israel is ready to contribute its full share to the peaceful progress and development of the Middle East.(From Proclamation of the State of Israel, 5 Iyar 5708; 14 May 1948) With a liberal democratic political system operating under the rule of law, a flourishing market economy producing technological innovation to the benefit of the wider world, and a population as educated and cultured as anywhere in Europe or North America, Israel is a normal Western country with a right to be treated as such in the community of nations.... For the global jihad, Israel may be the first objective. But it will not be the last.(Friends of Israel Initiative)
Showing posts with label Antisemitism in the British Labour Party. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Antisemitism in the British Labour Party. Show all posts
Like retired newsreader Peter Sissons splendidly before him (in 2011, to be precise), BBC broadcaster John Humphrys, whose final presentation of the Today program on Radio 4 was last Thursday, has (in his serialised memoirs in the Daily Mail) slammed the leftwing bias of his longtime employer, likening Corporation bigwigs to "out-of-touch Kremlin commissars".
Although he denies that a leftwing conspiracy exists, he recalls the sombre disbelieving mood at the BBC when Brexiteers won the 2016 Referendum, and he asserts that the BBC is takes care not to offend "fashionable pressure groups – usually from the liberal Left, the spiritual home of most bosses and staff".
Humphrys' choice of final Today program interviewees has had Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign chief getting his sporran in a twist:
And some of his camp followers too:
Now, regarding this, at Labour's party conference in Brighton, Chief Mick states:
To this kind of reception from some of his followers:
And this kind of further comment from himself:
An aside by the estimable British international politics academic Dr James Vaughan:
Also at the conference, a vile piece of defamation headed "A Racist Endeavour":
'Thousands of Labour members were handed a shocking pamphlet openly
comparing Israel to Adolf Hitler's Nazis ahead of a debate on Palestine ...
An article on the front page of
the booklet by Hampstead and Kilburn Labour Party official
Moshe Machover stated it was a "well established fact" that "Israel is a
racist state."
The same piece - which calls for the
"de-Zionisation of Israel" - then makes a clear attempt to link Israel
with Nazism by selectively quoting from academic sources.
.... Mr Machover writes that some of the "harshest
condemnation of Israel's racism" were "recognised experts on the history
of fascism and Nazism."
He then writes of what he calls
a "shocking comparison with Nazism" made by Hebrew University Professor
Zeev Sternhell of statements made in Israel's Knesset by two right-wing
politicians.
Continuing this theme, Mr Machover, who successfully
fought expulsion for Labour over his links to the Communist Party of
Great Britain, refers to a 2017 article by Professor Daniel Blatman, who
wrote that the "deputy speaker Bezalel Smotrich's admirations for the
biblical genocidaireJoshua bin Nun leads him to adopt the values that resemble those of the German SS."
Tel
Aviv-born Mr Machover has a previous history of using academic quotes,
particularly from Israel, to support his extreme anti-Zionist position.
He
concludes by writing: "Uprooting colonialist racism requires a change
of regime, decolonisation - which in the case of Israel means
de-Zionisation."
Labour delegates debated a motion on Palestine during Tuesday afternoon's session at conference.
During
the debate, one member of the pro-Corbyn Jewish Voice For Labour group
was loudly cheered as she claimed she was speaking for Jews who had
never experienced antisemitism.
Vanessa Stilwell, of Dulwich and West Norwood CLP, said Jeremy Corbyn was "the most anti-racist leader this party has ever had".
Referring
to the situation in Gaza, the Labour activist stumbled as she attempted
to detail allegations of Israeli attacks in Gaza.
Ms Stilwell is
the wife of Glyn Secker - the Labour activist suspended over his 'Jews
in the gutter' speech at a Palestine demo, which was exposed by the J[ewish] C[hronicle]
in May.
But despite a few cries of 'Free Palestine' from the
stage, the debate was largely overshadowed by the continuing divisions
over the party's position on Brexit.
In her keynote speech, Emily
Thornberry, the shadow foreign secretary, accused Israeli PM Benjamin
Netanyahu of trying to create an "apartheid state" in Israel.
She
also referred to the crisis in Gaza - but appeared to make a deliberate
effort to stop too much focus on Israel/Palestine in a more general
speech about Labour internationalism.'
Let's leave tireless Corbynista-watcher Gillian Lazarus with the last word on this odious muck:
But on the Labour Jew-baiting David Collier's latest article is a must-read.
Sheffield, Yorkshire. Famous, once upon a time, for manufacturing cutlery. Not so famous for being the home town of the BBC's appalling little Israel-bashing squirt Jon Donnison.
Olivia Blake (pictured left, and below holding a Palestinian flag) is Labour councillor for the Walkley, Netherthorpe and Upperthorpe wards in Sheffield.
She's deputy leader of Sheffield Council and Labour's
candidate for the parliamentary seat of Sheffield Hallam.
She's on record as saying “I fully support the work of Jeremy Corbyn ... to rid our party of antisemitism...."
(Yes, you read that correctly!)
But along with the rest of the Labour-dominated city council she evidently thinks that the council has a mandate over and beyond its obligation to keep roads free of potholes, to ensure rubbish is collected on time, and to collect rates.
For Sheffield Council has made a foray into the realm of foreign policy. Not foreign policy in general, but foreign policy aimed at undermining the State of Israel. And aspiring MP Olivia thinks that's a really grand idea.
As outlined here (with a photo, different from the one above, showing Olivia raising the flag) Sheffield Council's recognition of "Palestine" as a sovereign state
came after Sheffield Labor Friends of Palestine gathered nearly 20,000 signatures on a petition calling on the city council to recognize Palestine.
Labor Friends of Palestine, who supported this move, said they will pass on this decision to the British Parliament to discuss it in September.
Palestine's ambassador to the United Kingdom, Hussam Zomlot, welcomed the move and praised the Sheffield Labor Friends of Palestine for their efforts to get their city to recognize Palestine and raise its flag.
He said this support is not only symbolic, but rather is a step toward British recognition of Palestine, which he said is long overdue and a duty for Britain which participated in the tragedy of the Palestinian people with the infamous Balfour Declaration of 1917 that promised a homeland for the Jews in Palestine totally disregarding its indigenous Palestinian population.
Julie Pearn, of the Sheffield Labor Friends of Palestine, played a big role in winning this recognition. “The time for recognition is long overdue. The state of Palestine is already recognized by 138 other nations," she said two weeks ago at a rally outside Sheffield Town Hall.
“We believe public recognition of the Palestine state by the council would be a powerful and influential statement of solidarity which we hope other councils will envy."
Council[l]or Olivia Blake, deputy leader, also said then that “Sheffield is just one city but we can make this symbolic gesture and hope to put pressure on government to do likewise.”
Meanwhile, further mischief is afoot, on the part of the British Trade Union Movement, with which Corbyn and the Corbynistas are of course hand-in-glove.
Inter alia:
A PSC Trade Union Conference: Developing Palestine as a core issue for UK trade union members to grow the international solidarity movement.
Supported by Unite the Union, UNISON, GMB, NEU, ASLEF, UCU, RMT, FBU, TSSA, CWU and TUC.
This conference will feature Palestinian and UK speakers, and provide the space to explore new avenues and provide tools for trade unionists to further our solidarity work for Palestine.
The collective rights of the Palestinian people are under unprecedented assault. The Palestinians need our solidarity now more than ever, and the trade union movement is a crucial part of building lasting solidarity with the Palestinian people. We need to take forward solidarity campaigns, including BDS, to pressure Israel into complying with international law and the universal principles of human rights.
Featured sessions include the situation of Palestinian workers under occupation, how to take BDS action, how we can make a stronger case for Palestinian rights, and the ways we can build on the existing solidarity work by Trade Unions in the UK.
This conference is designed for trade unionists who want to further their solidarity work, to make further progress for Palestine in their unions and beyond.
Join us to skill up, to learn from each other, to hear from inspiring speakers, to attend seminars and to build the power of Palestine solidarity across the UK trade union movement. [Emphasis added]
It's known as "rich Jew antisemitism", the vile stereotype that all Jews are rich, that all Jews covet money.
It's exemplified by the woman in these screengrabs.
She appears in the following video from a London pro-Corbyn event last year at about 4:13 taunting a young pro-Israel Jewish demonstrator with the assertion that all he and his kind care about is money, "silver and gold".
There are other antisemites in the video as well, so have a look if you would know the mindset of the Corbynista enemy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPeAF0YTNOo
It's "rich Jew antisemitism" that, under the over of "anti-Zionism", propels so much of the antisemitism seen among Corbyn admirers today, the sort of people who joined the Labour Party when the rules were changed to give rank and file members in the vote for the party's leadership, and which thrust the old class warrior into the top job.
In the Jewish Chronicle, a report about the British Labour Party leadership's despicable attitude towards the antisemitism in a once honourable party.
Inter alia:
' Jewish Labour members were "in tears" after [Shadow Home Secretary] Diane Abbott llowed a motion calling on the party to “firmly reject” accusations of institutional antisemitism to pass at a local meeting.
Patrick MoĆ»le, a member of the Hackney North and Stoke Newington Constituency Labour Party (CLP), tweeted an image of the “utter disgrace of a motion”, which was passed by 45 votes to 35, with 14 abstentions on Thursday evening....
The motion read:
“This CLP notes with increasing alarm the acceptance of the ‘fact’ that the Labour Party is ‘institutionally antisemitic’ by not only the media, but the right wing of the PLP [Parliamentary Labour Party].
It is distracting people’s attention away from the calamitous consequences of the Tory government’s continuing austerity and its disastrous handling of the Brexit issue as it nears the 29 March deadline.
It is a scandal that we are allowing ourselves to be branded as a racist party. Furthermore, we call upon the NEC [National Executive Committee] to release a statement firmly rejecting the accusation that Labour is in any way ‘institutionally racist’, making it clear that Labour and its current leader have a proud record of fighting racism and will continue to do so.” ...'
Meanwhile, in the Sunday Times, Liverpool MP Luciana Berger, who recently left the party owing to its antisemitism, tells interviewer Rachel Sylvester 'about the toxic culture in the partyunder Jeremy Corbyn -- and the horrific antisemitism she has endured'.
Snippets (hat tip: international politoics academic James Vaughan on Twitter):
and
I'm reminded of this passage in Bret Stephens's review in the New York Times (30 January 2019) of Professor Deborah Lipstadt's book Antisemitism: Here and
Now:
'.... Anti-Semitism, to
adapt a phrase, is the hate that dare not speak its name, and Lipstadt
is at her best when she removes the guises under which it travels....
[A]nti-Zionism ... pretends that one can malign Israel as a
uniquely diabolical and illegitimate state, guilty of Nazi-like
atrocities, and still be acquitted of anti-Semitism. The leading Western
voice for this view is the British Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn,
who has repeatedly joined hands with virulent anti-Semites who share his
pro-Palestinian, anticapitalist views — all the while insisting that he
opposes racism. Lipstadt makes short work of that defense.
“Is Jeremy Corbyn an anti-Semite?” she asks.
“My
response would be that that’s the wrong question. The right questions
to ask are: Has he facilitated and amplified expressions of
anti-Semitism? Has he been consistently reluctant to acknowledge
expressions of anti-Semitism unless they come from white supremacists
and neo-Nazis? Will his actions facilitate the institutionalization of
anti-Semitism among other progressives? Sadly, my answer to all of this
is an unequivocal yes. Like Trump, Corbyn has emboldened and enabled
anti-Semites, but from the other end of the political spectrum.”...
Two letters: ratbags versus realists regarding Corbynista antisemitism.
But first, a not irrelevant archival find by University of Aberystwyth international politics academic Dr James Vaughan, regarding Labour Party policy in not-so-far-off days of yore:
Okay, then, this letter by as-a-Jew leftists to the Guardian, 21 February:
"You report (19 February) that a number of implacably anti-Corbyn MPs have left the Labour party alleging a failed “approach to dealing with antisemitism”, with Luciana Berger criticising Labour for becoming “sickeningly institutionally racist”.
We are Jewish members and supporters of the Labour party concerned about the current rise of reactionary ideologies, including antisemitism, in Britain and elsewhere across Europe.
We note the worrying growth of populist rightwing parties, encouraging racism, Islamophobia and antisemitism. In Britain the far right is whipping up these prejudices, a threat that requires a resolute and energetic response. But instead we have seen a disproportionate focus on antisemitism on the left, which is abhorrent but relatively rare.
We believe that the Labour party under the progressive leadership of Jeremy Corbyn is a crucial ally in the fight against bigotry and reaction. His lifetime record of campaigning for equality and human rights, including consistent support for initiatives against antisemitism, is formidable. His involvement strengthens this struggle.
Labour governments introduced both the anti-racist and human rights legislation of the 20th century and the 2010 Equalities Act. A Labour government led by Jeremy Corbyn will be a powerful force to fight against racism, Islamophobia and antisemitism.
It is in this context that we welcome the Labour party’s endorsement of freedom of expression on Israel and on the rights of Palestinians. Labour is correct to recognise that while prejudice against Jewish people is deplorable, criticism of Israel’s government and policies can and must be made. We urge all who wish to see an end to bigotry and racism, and who seek a more just society, to give their support to the Labour party."
'We write in response to the letter you published on 21 February, asserting that Jeremy Corbyn was a crucial ally in the fight against bigotry and reaction and that a Labour government would be a powerful force against antisemitism.
The signatories to that letter plainly feel the need to rely on their Judaism to bolster its content. This may be because they consider it to be some protection from the view that many of your readers would otherwise take when reading their assertions, but it is essentially irrelevant. The vast majority of the UK Jewish community has made its view of Mr Corbyn clear. So too has the public in various opinion polls. He is not trusted on antisemitism, first because he has not acted against it and because his own actions are, at least, concerning. Second, because those claiming to speak about antisemitism in his name do so without reproach or disassociation.
The Labour party has, previously, been a force for good in promoting anti-racism, as the authors acknowledge. Sadly, that is no longer the case. It has never been the case, anywhere, that a party which could not root out antisemitism from its midst, tolerated those accusing Jews of manufacturing it, and lost the trust of the Jewish community, ever governed fairly, decently or competently. Antisemitism is corruption, and corruption spreads.
We also disagree with the authors’ apparent belief that the ability to criticise Israel is critical to the debate on antisemitism. The Labour party’s adoption of the IHRA definition marks its acceptance of the fact that criticism of Israel must not involve antisemitism, and that there is a wide range of acceptable criticism that does not. The discredited argument that antisemitism is invented by Jews to protect Israel is antisemitic. So is criticism of Israel outside the IHRA guidelines and definition. Both of these things should be outwith the scope of mainstream, tolerant debate.
Suggesting a permissible link between the Labour leadership’s attitude to British Jews and Israel is both wrong and shameful. There is no basis to refuse to reproach or reject the antisemites we refer to above. The leadership’s failure to do so makes Jews part of the “few”, who the Labour party expressly reject.
That Labour is so mistrusted on the issue is uncomfortable and sad. But it must be said. And in saying it, we do not speak as Jews, but as citizens of this country. Antisemitism is not a Jewish problem. It is a problem for Jews.'
Following news that seven Labour MPs (and now an eighth, Joan Ryan, who in a devastating indictment of Corbyn has made his failure to deal with antisemitism in the party central to herdefection) have left the party and formed their own Independent Group, "the oldest hatred" rears its ugly Medusa's head.
No surprise to Labour Against Antisemitism, aware as it is of the loathsome sentiments engendered in the party under Corbyn:
See, for instance, the comments that greet this report. (Bonus: a chance to see Gorgeous George!)
Conservative candidate Robert Largan deploring vile comments encouraged by this MP's malice:
And then there's this (hat tip: Jonathan Hoffman in a Facebook post). Tim Llewellyn, of course, used to be a BBC correspondent.
And on Twitter via an extreme anti-Israel activist, this:
Interesting tweets regarding the latest developments in Labour ranks from international relations academic Dr James Vaughan:
The Times of London (19 February):
And (hat tip: Jonathan Hoffman) at the instigation of Mrs May's government, in order to embarrass Corbyn, the House of Commons (20 February) will debate [update: has debated] the topic "Antisemitism in modern Society"!
In London on 25 January, at a demonstration by Inminds supporting the American-Iranian Teheran-based Press TV journalist Marzieh Hashemi (born Melanie Franklin), who was held in a US prison on a visit to her homeland, a Brummie (?)-accented call for Muslims to emulate Da Lobby or "be picked off one by one":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zq_Tkxpw0gw
North of the Border Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign chief Mick Napier inveighs on Facebook against India
and poses a question to which I'm sure 99 "Zionists" (of all creeds and none) out of 100 could give an immediate accurate answer
and is met with Muslim activist Ibrahim (born Brian) Hewitt with enthusiam:
That so-called "Trojan horse" wily old Mick refers to is the Stand Up to Racism organisation, whose conference just held in Glasgow:
leaving the Zionist entity's foes unhappy:
As for the Glasgow Friends of Israel, they're unfazed:
A bunch of lefties, mainly media studies academics, have signed this delightful letter to the Grauniad, defending Corbyn against charges of, yeah, you know what.
Well, they would say that, wouldn't they?
And how superbly they prove Jonathan Freedland's point! (See box below)
'We believe that significant parts of the UK media have failed their audiences by producing flawed reports that have contributed to an undeserved witch-hunt against the Labour leader [Jeremy Corbyn] and misdirected public attention away from antisemitism elsewhere.’ Photograph: Thierry
We have long had serious concerns about the lack of due impartiality and accuracy in the reporting of allegations of antisemitism against Jeremy Corbyn and the Labour party. The recent report by the Media Reform Coalition examining coverage of Labour’s revised code of conduct on antisemitism shows that we are right to be concerned.
The research examined over 250 articles and broadcast news segments and found over 90 examples of misleading or inaccurate reporting. In relation to the IHRA definition of antisemitism that was at the heart of the dispute, the research found evidence of “overwhelming source imbalance” in which critics of Labour’s code of conduct dominated coverage, with nearly 50% of Guardian reports, for example, failing to include any quotes from those defending the code or critiquing the IHRA definition. Moreover, key contextual facts about the IHRA definition – for example that it has only been formally adopted by eight countries (and only six of the IHRA member states) – were consistently excluded.
The researchers conclude these were not occasional lapses in judgment but “systematic reporting failures” that served to weaken the Labour leadership and to bolster its opponents within and outside of the party.
It is of course entirely appropriate and necessary for our major news outlets to report on the horrors of antisemitism, but wrong to present it as an issue specific to the Labour party.
In covering the allegations that Labour is now “institutionally antisemitic”, there have been inaccuracies, clear distortions and revealing omissions across our most popular media platforms. We believe that significant parts of the UK media have failed their audiences by producing flawed reports that have contributed to an undeserved witch-hunt against the Labour leader and misdirected public attention away from antisemitism elsewhere, including on the far right, which is ascendant in much of Europe.
Prof Annabelle Sreberny Soas, University of London
See how she blows? Here's the prof on video, at a Jewish Voice for Labour demo in London, blaming "a manipulative Israeli propaganda outfit" for instigating perceptions of antisemitism in Corbyn's party:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxjpK2ZC3FU
Prof Greg Philo University of Glasgow
An inveterate knocker of Israel. With fellow-signatories to the present letter Loach, Fenton, Miller, Petley and Berry, as well as a gaggle of other Israel-demonisers,was one of the original signatories to this mind-boggling petition beginning:
'We are concerned at the very partial nature of BBC reporting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. While some reporters have shown great bravery in war zones, much home-based journalism lacks context and is unable to report the Palestinian perspective. The attacks on Gaza are presented by Israel and the BBC as being directed at militants, while for Palestinians they are an extension of military rule and collective punishment by a brutal apartheid state....'
Prof David Miller Bristol University
His Facebook buddies include such Israel-haters as Tony Greenstein, Mick Napier, Stephen Sizer and Ben White. (That's fellow-signatory Tom Mills in the first pic below)
Prof Julian Petley Brunel University
Petley, like a few of the other signatories (Hickel, Cushman, possibly Berry) were among the numerous signatories to this letter, which alleged, in February last year:
'The spike in far-right antisemitic incidents on UK campuses that you report (UK universities urged to act over spate of antisemitic stickers and graffiti, 18 February) seems to reflect the increase in xenophobia since the Brexit vote. Yet the government has “adopted” the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism, which can be and is being read as extending to criticism of Israel and support for Palestinian rights, an entirely separate issue, as prima facie evidence of antisemitism.
This definition seeks to conflate criticism of Israel with antisemitism.Now Jo Johnson, the government minister whose brief includes universities, has written to Universities UK asking for this definition to be disseminated throughout the system. His letter specifically mentions Israeli Apartheid Week (a worldwide activity at this time of year since 2005) as a cause for concern. The response has been swift. Late last week, in haste and clearly without legal advice, the University of Central Lancashire banned a meeting that was to be addressed by journalist Ben White as well as by academics. The university statement asserted that the meeting on “Debunking misconceptions on Palestine” contravened the definition of antisemitism recently adopted by the government, and would therefore not be lawful.
Meanwhile, the Campaign Against Antisemitism, a body set up during the Israeli assault on Gaza in 2014, cites this definition in asking its supporters to “record, film, photograph and get witness evidence” about Israeli Apartheid Week events; and “we will help you to take it up with the university, students’ union or even the police”. These are outrageous interferences with free expression, and are direct attacks on academic freedom.
As academics with positions at UK universities, we wish to express our dismay at this attempt to silence campus discussion about Israel, including its violation of the rights of Palestinians for more than 50 years. It is with disbelief that we witness explicit political interference in university affairs in the interests of Israel under the thin disguise of concern about antisemitism.'
Stephen Cushion Cardiff University
Unlike many, not overtly or obsessively anti-Israel, it would seem.
Jason Hickel Goldsmiths, University of London
Einar Thorsen Bournemouth University
Among his tweets:
Jenny Manson Jewish Voice for Labour
Watch her at the launch of Jewish Voice for Labour, and note (also at the beginning) the adulation greeting Ken Loach's arrival:
