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Labour Antisemitism: On the Doorstep

November 1, 2019

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Labour Antisemitism: On the Doorstep

Jamie Stern-Weiner, 1 November 2019

How I will respond to concerns about Labour antisemitism expressed on the doorstep. Posted here in case others find it useful.

I joined Labour to get rid of all forms of oppression and injustice, including antisemitism. And it is precisely because I oppose racism, antisemitism, injustice that I am out here campaigning for Labour and Jeremy Corbyn to be our Prime Minister.

When the fascists marched on the Jewish East End of London, Jeremy Corbyn’s mum was one of those who stood against them—not with words, but physically, with their bodies, on the streets.

That legacy inspired Corbyn to campaign against racism—again, not just in words, but on the streets, even when it wasn’t popular, and even when it got him arrestedto campaign against racism his entire adult life.

When South Africa was under apartheid, Corbyn was out there demonstrating against it, campaigning against it, getting arrested, while the Tory Government was calling Nelson Mandela a terrorist.

From Wood Green in 1977 to Golders Green in 2015, whenever there has been a campaign to defend British Jews against the far-right, Corbyn has been there.

And what was Corbyn’s very first act as Labour leader in 2015? To appear at a demonstration in defence of refugees and asylum-seekers.

Again and again, Corbyn has stood with Jewish people and other minorities in this country: not just with words, but where it mattered.

And that’s why loads of left-wing Jews like the Jewish Socialists’ Group and Jewish Voice for Labour support him—as well as the Jewish members of his constituency who know him best.

Any antisemitism is a problem, but all these false and exaggerated claims about Labour don’t help.

All the evidence we have shows there is less antisemitism in Labour than on the Right. The media makes out that Labour is full of it, but actually, the proportion of party members accused – not found guilty, but just accused – amounts to less than one-tenth of one percent.

This election is not like any other. The far-right is winning around the world. We are just one economic crisis, one climate shock away from the return of fascism across Europe.

This is the real threat to Jewish people.

In the past and today, our best defence, our only defence, against the far-right, is a strong left, which has a positive and inclusive plan for a fairer society.

If we want to defeat the far-right and to defeat the causes of the far-right, our only hope is Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party.

 

Further Resources:

– Jewish Voice for Labour, Briefing for Canvassers

– Over 200 Jewish Labour supporters say: Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour is a Crucial Ally in the Fight against Antisemitism

– 34 Orthodox Rabbis reject allegations against ‘respected leader’ Jeremy Corbyn

– Joseph Finlay, Jeremy Corbyn is an Anti-Racist, Not an Anti-Semite

Fifty Times Jeremy Corbyn Stood with Jewish People