LONDON, England –The Jewish Community in Britain has proclaimed “enough is enough“. The perceived anti-Semitism in the Labour Party has reached such a level, that British Jewry has demanded that the situation be addressed. For the famously reticent British Community, this must be almost unprecedented.
Why the situation is so important, is that the Labour Party is not some fringe organisation, but the British equivalent of the Democrats. It is likely to be the governing party in the future, maybe even in the next year or so. Perceived anti Semitism in its ranks is therefore a real threat .
The problem arose three years ago, when the Party members voted Jeremy Corbin as the leader. Corbyn has been a left wing rebel for decades, and has a devoted following. The crisis of Capitalism since 2008 has created a backlash on the left and the right, with some justification one may think.
His political opinions often appear to suggest a worldview that people of my generation remember well, when in the 1980’s we had to live through extreme left wing agitation. There was a famous Miners Strike, massive Trade Union agitation in the car manufacturing industry, in the docks etc. Dustmen and burial workers were on strike, and electrical blackouts were commonplace. In fact, it helped being Jewish, because we always had candles in the house, which helped in the blackouts!
Anyway, under Corbyn’s leadership, the extreme left have largely come to control the Labour Party, and unfortunately they are very hostile to Israel. In a very modern form of anti Semitism, their hostility is expressed on Facebook and Twitter, but that’s how so many people communicate nowadays .This situation has rumbled on for a couple of years, and the Labour Party seems unwilling or unable to do anything to clamp down on the problem. Committees appointed to look into anti Semitism in the Party, have largely been considered to be a whitewash.
For example, leading Labour members have expressed views that Hitler supported Zionism; that the Holocaust didn’t happen; that Israel should be uprooted and planted in USA etc. The last week has seen more symptoms, with revelations that Corbyn opposed the removal of a classic Nazi style mural in London, and a newspaper revelation that Corbyn belonged to several vicious Facebook groups.
This ongoing situation led to the leading Jewish organisations holding a protest march outside Parliament last week. After the protest, Corbyn made matters worse by having a Seder night with a fringe group called “Jewdas”, which calls for the destruction of Israel. One tweet from this group, which was unknown before now, apparently states “ Israel is a steaming pile of sewage which needs to be properly disposed of “. Corbyn himself claims that he is not anti semitic, and be that as it may, there is no doubt that many of his supporters are, and he reflects their worldview.
Aggravating the situation, is the fact that many Labour Party members come from countries where anti Jewish feeling is rampant, and who don’t understand the difference between Israel and Diaspora Jewry.
The newspapers and television news, are devoting a great deal of coverage to the issue.
The problem is that some people using the anti Semitism issue to attack Corbyn, are not traditionally known to having been friendly with the Jewish Community. It is gratifying that so many people are defending the Jews, but it means that some are using the issue for their own ends. As a result, the Labour activists can proclaim the whole situation is just a political device to undermine Corbyn.
Therefore the Jewish Community has become caught up in the general political struggle, indeed it has currently become the main political topic. It is unfortunate, and not a pleasant position to be in. It is never good news when the “Jews” become the centre of publicity. However enough is enough, and if one doubts the potential seriousness of opinions on Facebook and Twitter , perhaps you should try to read the prescient book J by Howard Jacobson.
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Levy is a freelance writer and businessman residing in London. He may be contacted via lloyd.levy@sdjewishworld.com