This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/mar/26/jeremy-corbyn-accused-of-being-figurehead-for-antisemitism

The article has changed 11 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 3 Version 4
Jeremy Corbyn accused of being 'figurehead for anti​​semitism' Jeremy Corbyn concedes Labour has failed to address antisemitism problem
(about 5 hours later)
The Jewish Leadership Council has stepped up its attack on Jeremy Corbyn, accusing him of being a figurehead for antisemitism and presiding over a party that has no safe spaces for Jews. Jeremy Corbyn has conceded that there is a problem with antisemitism in the Labour party that the party has failed to address.
Speaking before rival protests outside a meeting of Labour MPs, Jonathan Goldstein, the chair of the council, said Corbyn’s apology for “pockets of antisemitism” in the party was not enough. Responding to Sunday night’s forceful attack from the two leading Jewish organisations, which accused him of being a figurehead for antisemitism in the party, he apologised to the leader of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, Jonathan Arkush, and to Jonathan Goldstein, leader of the Jewish Leadership Council.
In an interview for BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Goldstein said: “The time for words is over and the time for action is now important. The reality is there are no safe spaces online or in meetings for Jewish people within the Labour party.” His letter to the leaders of the two organisations says: “I recognise that antisemitism has surfaced within the Labour party, and has too often been dismissed as simply a matter of a few bad apples. This has caused pain and hurt to Jewish members of our party and to the wider Jewish community in Britain. I am sincerely sorry for the pain which has been caused, and pledge to redouble my efforts to bring this anxiety to an end.”
In a strongly worded letter, the Board of Deputies of British Jews and the council urged supporters to stage a show of solidarity outside parliament on Monday as Labour MPs hold their weekly meeting which Corbyn is not planning to attend. The Labour backbencher Wes Streeting, one of Corbyn’s biggest critics in the parliamentary party, urged MPs to join the rally. Corbyn’s marked shift in tone followed Goldstein’s rejection of his previous statement that apologised for “pockets of antisemitism” in Labour. Goldstein said that was not enough. The letter goes beyond any previous apology.
But the pro-Corbyn Jewish Voice for Labour is organising a counter-demonstration. Corbyn has expressly apologised for failing to study the content of an antisemitic mural in the East End of London that has been at the centre of the latest controversy.
Goldstein said: “We’ve had enough of hearing that Jeremy Corbyn opposes antisemitism while the mainstream majority of British Jews and their concerns are ignored by him and those he leads.” Jewish leaders claimed in their letter, released on Sunday night, that the mural row was just the latest evidence that the Labour leader “cannot seriously contemplate antisemitism, because he is so ideologically fixed within a far-left worldview that is instinctively hostile to mainstream Jewish communities”.
He added: “The greatest shame is that it has taken us to take to the streets for the apology to be forthcoming Wherever we go we are told that we act on the instructions of Israel, that Rothschilds run the world, that Isis is a fake front for Israel, that Zionists are the new Nazis. And I’m afraid it is the time for action rather than words.” Countering the charge, Corbyn says in his letter: “While the forms of antisemitism expressed on the far right of politics are easily detectable, such as Holocaust denial, there needs to be a deeper understanding of what constitutes antisemitism in the labour movement. Sometimes this evil takes familiar forms the east London mural which has caused such understandable controversy is an example.
The latest row over antisemitism in the party comes after Corbyn expressed regret for apparently showing support for the creator of an antisemitic mural in the East End of London six years ago. “The idea of Jewish bankers and capitalists exploiting the workers of the world is an old antisemitic conspiracy theory. This was long ago, and rightly, described as ‘the socialism of fools’. I am sorry for not having studied the content of the mural more closely before wrongly questioning its removal in 2012.”
Goldstein called for Labour to take action against the former London mayor Ken Livingstone and the former Momentum vice-chair Jackie Walker, who he claimed continued to make antisemitic comments. In a much more nuanced recognition of the forms that antisemitism can take, the letter also accepts that criticism of Israel can be antisemitic.
He said: “This is the first time in my life time that the Jewish community has felt the need to take to the streets to campaign against the leader of a major political party. Rightly or wrongly, Jeremy Corbyn is now the figurehead for an antisemitic political culture based upon obsessive hatred of Israel, conspiracy theories and fake news and that is doing great harm not just to the Labour party but to Britain in a wider sense.” “Newer forms of antisemitism have been woven into criticism of Israeli government,” he acknowledges.
Corbyn has promised to meet Jewish leaders to discuss their concerns. However, Goldstein said neither he nor the Board of Deputies had received a formal invitation to meet him. “Criticism of Israel, particularly in relation to the continuing dispossession of the Palestinian people, cannot be avoided. Nevertheless, comparing Israel or the actions of Israeli governments to the Nazis, attributing criticisms of Israel to Jewish characteristics or to Jewish people in general and using abusive phraseology about supporters of Israel such as ‘Zio’ all constitute aspects of contemporary antisemitism. And Jewish people must not be held responsible or accountable for the actions of the Israeli government.”
He added: “We have no issue with people expressing criticisms of Israel but to deny the right of a Jewish state to exist within the Middle East crosses a line into anti-Zionism.” Insisting that he is committed to eliminating antisemitism “wherever it exists”, he also promises that the party will implement in full the “overdue” recommendations of the Chakrabarti report which was published nearly two years ago.
Louise Ellman MP, a former chair of the Jewish Labour Movement, echoed Goldstein’s concerns. Speaking to BBC Breakfast, she said: “It has taken Jeremy far too long to admit how wrong he has been in failing to deal with antisemitism in the Labour party. He says: “The battle against antisemitism should never become a party political issue. It must unite all of us if we are both to honour the memory of the victims of the bestial crimes of the 20th century and build a future of equality and justice for all.
“Since Jeremy Corbyn became leader, the antisemitism in the Labour party has had a louder voice. He hasn’t recognised it; he hasn’t stamped on it. I hope he recognises that a tipping point has been reached.” “In that spirit, I must make it clear that I will never be anything other than a militant opponent of antisemitism. In this fight, I am your ally and always will be.”
She also called for Livingstone and Walker to be expelled from the party. There are rival demonstrations taking place outside parliament on Monday night, timed to coincide with the weekly meeting of the PLP. Corbyn was not planning to attend.
However, Jewish Voice for Labour accused the Board of Deputies and Jewish Leadership Council of playing party politics in the run-up to the local elections in May. In a statement, it said both groups had been silent on antisemitism from the right. Goldstein said, prior to Corbyn’s letter: “This is the first time in my life time that the Jewish community has felt the need to take to the streets to campaign against the leader of a major political party. Rightly or wrongly, Jeremy Corbyn is now the figurehead for an antisemitic political culture based upon obsessive hatred of Israel, conspiracy theories and fake news and that is doing great harm not just to the Labour party but to Britain in a wider sense.
“We have no issue with people expressing criticisms of Israel … but to deny the right of a Jewish state to exist within the Middle East crosses a line into anti-Zionism.”
Jewish Voice for Labour, on the other hand, had accused the Board of Deputies and Jewish Leadership Council of playing party politics in the run-up to the local elections in May. In a statement, it said both groups had been silent on antisemitism from the right.
It said: “The BoD and the JLC and those supporting them must be aware that this is an attempt to influence local elections and has nothing to do with the real and necessary task of challenging racism and antisemitism at all levels of political life. We call on them to stop playing party politics and start representing what our community needs.”It said: “The BoD and the JLC and those supporting them must be aware that this is an attempt to influence local elections and has nothing to do with the real and necessary task of challenging racism and antisemitism at all levels of political life. We call on them to stop playing party politics and start representing what our community needs.”
Labour
Jeremy CorbynJeremy Corbyn
Labour
JudaismJudaism
ReligionReligion
Race issues
newsnews
Share on FacebookShare on Facebook
Share on TwitterShare on Twitter
Share via EmailShare via Email
Share on LinkedInShare on LinkedIn
Share on PinterestShare on Pinterest
Share on Google+Share on Google+
Share on WhatsAppShare on WhatsApp
Share on MessengerShare on Messenger
Reuse this contentReuse this content