Jeremy Corbyn suspended from Labour Party

Thank you Well Said Rowantree

www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/sep/10/jeremy-corbyn-israel-yad-vashem

Corbyn has spent his whole life campaigning against racism and antisemitism. He has integrity and honesty. He's also anti-Zionist and refuses to condone Israel's foreign policy regarding Palestine. It is mainly that which has condemned him in the eyes of many British Jews.
However, I am a Jew and also a Labour Party member and have never experienced one sniff of antisemitism, personally, and neither has my 94 year old father - a Jewish refugee who abhors Israel's tactics and has himself been vilified by a Jewish refugee organisation to which he belongs for being a 'self-hating Jew'. It seems that one cannot criticise Israel without being termed anti-semitic.
I am not saying there are not individuals in the Labour Party, as elsewhere, who are antisemitic or racist. Corbyn has made it clear there is no place for them in the party. IMO Starmer is toadying up to the Israel lobby and trying to win back their support by delivering a death-blow to Corbyn - who has his faults, yes, but antisemitism is not and has never been one of them.
Now shoot me down in flames.

No just a proud lefty

Back in 1987, the Labour leader successfully campaigned to stop property developers taking over a Jewish cemetery.

Fighting a Hodge-led council to save a Jewish cemetery

And it turns out that Margaret Hodge, who has smeared Corbyn as an antisemite, was leader of Islington Council at the time. Although Hodge’s personal view is unspecified, under her leadership the council approved “destroying the gravestones and digging-up and reburying the bodies” to build for-profit properties.

Whitewave - indeed!

Grany

Jeremy Corbyn has been a champion of decency and an ally to all movements fighting racism, colonialism, and exploitation.

As leader of the Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn not only spoke out about the ills of anti-Semitism in British society broadly. He also took the issue of anti-Semitism in his own party seriously, listening to the concerns of Jewish constituents and improving the process for investigating and sanctioning cases of anti-Semitism.

As fierce opponents of anti-Semitism — and as an International that includes many Jewish members across the planet — we abhor the weaponization of Jewish pain against the project of socialism and the legacy of Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership in the United Kingdom.

The evidence of such efforts to weaponize the issue of anti-Semitism is clear. The majority of the British public now believe that a third of Labour Party members — a full 200,000 people — are the subject of anti-Semitism allegations. The truth is less than 2,000, less than 0.3 per cent of the party.

The campaign against the character of Jeremy Corbyn did not begin with the issue of anti-Semitism, and it will not end here. A principled defence of the Jewish community demands that we distinguish between genuine appreciation of the community's pain and cynical attempts to ride it toward political reaction.

We, members of the Progressive International, know that Jeremy Corbyn is under attack because of his life-long fight to transform Britain, to dismantle empire, and to defend the rights to care, peace, and freedom.

We, members of the Progressive International, stand united in the defence of Jeremy Corbyn, in defence of decency, and for the future of socialism in Britain and around the world.

Corbyn suspended for telling the truth
sputniknews.com/amp/columnists/202010311080933893-corbyn-suspended-for-telling-the-truth--a-new-socialist-party-is-required/?__twitter_impression=true

This is sounding like a cult.

Jeremy Corbyn has been a champion of decency and an ally to all movements fighting racism, colonialism, and exploitation.

As leader of the Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn not only spoke out about the ills of anti-Semitism in British society broadly. He also took the issue of anti-Semitism in his own party seriously, listening to the concerns of Jewish constituents and improving the process for investigating and sanctioning cases of anti-Semitism.

As fierce opponents of anti-Semitism — and as an International that includes many Jewish members across the planet — we abhor the weaponization of Jewish pain against the project of socialism and the legacy of Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership in the United Kingdom.

The evidence of such efforts to weaponize the issue of anti-Semitism is clear. The majority of the British public now believe that a third of Labour Party members — a full 200,000 people — are the subject of anti-Semitism allegations. The truth is less than 2,000, less than 0.3 per cent of the party.

The campaign against the character of Jeremy Corbyn did not begin with the issue of anti-Semitism, and it will not end here. A principled defence of the Jewish community demands that we distinguish between genuine appreciation of the community's pain and cynical attempts to ride it toward political reaction.

We, members of the Progressive International, know that Jeremy Corbyn is under attack because of his life-long fight to transform Britain, to dismantle empire, and to defend the rights to care, peace, and freedom.

We, members of the Progressive International, stand united in the defence of Jeremy Corbyn, in defence of decency, and for the future of socialism in Britain and around the world.

Corbyn suspended for telling the truth
sputniknews.com/amp/columnists/202010311080933893-corbyn-suspended-for-telling-the-truth--a-new-socialist-party-is-required/?__twitter_impression=true

A strange man

Fennel - I haven't made my mind up as to whether Jeremy Corbyn is anti-semitic but no-one should be surprised if his failure to show sympathy and solidarity with the Jewish Labour MPs who were being subjected to vile anti-semitic abuse leads people to question this.

I agree with you when you say that Corbyn was not leadership material. The EHRC report commented on this as well -

".....the failure of leadership, although it extended across the party through the period of example that we looked at, was of course during the time when Jeremy Corbyn was leader.

“And as leader of the party, and with evidence of political interference from within his office, he does have a responsibility, ultimately, for those failings".

I find it odd that he continues to quibble about the scale of the problem within the Labour party under his watch when it is not the numbers that are important but the fact that he knew there was a problem and did not take effective action.

I don't expect him to apologise to the victims of this abuse after all this time and it saddens me that he seems to put himself forward as the main victim rather than those who were on the receiving end of it for so long.

I am looking forward to the conclusions of the Martin Forde investigation next. I hope he wasn't in any way involved in that episode.

He certainly has a strange personality - so inflexible. And not leadership material.
I voted for him originally, but on condition that he could unite the party - vain hope! For anyone really.

I am prepared to believe that Corbyn isn’t anti-semitic, but that only points to his weakness and failings in not controlling the pervasive atmosphere of it within the Party.
Also, his championing of the Palestine cause so vigorously gave others the leeway to align that cause ( anti Israel) with anti-semitic views.
All he had to do the other day was to graciously accept the findings.....but no, he couldn't even do that.

M0nica, no worries, I was highlighting the article in the Sunday Times in agreement with your last sentence

“There are plenty of really nasty examples of anti-semitism about for you not to see it where it isn't.”

As it’s behind a paywall, I thought I’d share it in case people were interested but maybe missed it.

trisher, our views on this won't converge I don't expect. I don't agree that only Corbyn is criticised. If he had an ounce of concern for the Jewish party members, the Jewish MPs subjected to the most foul abuse and the need this country has for an effective opposition, followed by a Labour government, he would accept the findings of the report. He'd apologise and we. could all move on.

ps forgot to add - Rabbi Pinter was a member of the LP and an elected member of Hackney borough council

X posts Iam64

Regarding the bacon sandwich thing, it may have been a media idea to play up the ‘bacon’ aspect, but most people, including me, thought it was just a pic of eating something in a slightly messy way.In any case, he isn’t at all religious, and no doubt enjoys bacon as much as anyone else.
Remember his brother, snapped holding a banana?All the fun the media had with that one.It’s just a food thing, nobody looks great eating something in the street ( so I never do)?

Iam64 I agree that the definition was debated and I think it still is, what concerns me is the fact that only Corbyn is condemned for criticising it when in fact many have and still do.

Apologies if this seems like perpetuating a difference of opinion that will never end but, the IHRA was debated, the differing opinions given to the government were reported. I followed that carefully.
The definition was adopted.
As for antisemitic, that's how I've always written the word. My spell checker often interrupts or changes this but that word has aways stayed as I typed it.
I agree that the bacon butty episode was part of the attempts to undermine Ed Miliband, to make him look pathetic. I also felt there were antisemitic elements because they didn't just post and comment on a photograph of him eating a sandwich, it was always referred to as a bacon (butty as we in the north west call it). He is a secular Jew though of course, not following the faith doesn't take away the fact he is Jewish.
No reason whatsoever he shouldn't eat bacon but no need for the press to make the big deal they did of it.

I've read all this thread, which is very informative and people have mostly written respectfully about this very sensitive subject.
I want to add one thing - we take an orthodox Jewish weekly. About a year ago there was an article about Jeremy Corbyn with an interview with Rabbi Avrohom Pinter, from Stamford Hill. A much respected educator and worker to explain the Jewish outlook and priorities to non-Jews. Sadly he died from the virus a few months ago.
He said, Corbyn is not an antisemite. They have worked together to cooperate for some time.

Glorybee at no time have I queried the anti semitism in the Labour party. I am well aware what happened to Louise Berger, Margaret Hodge and others and it was appalling and one of the many reasons why I would never vote Labour.

I merely queried this one incident.

Surely this photo of Ed eating his sandwich can be interpreted in both ways:
the media wanted to embarrass and humiliate him for eating food in a public place. This is not considered a good look for an aspiring PM. It's not just food they stop at -posters, alcohol, anything else that gets them a shot.
the media wanted to embarrass and humiliate him in front of his Jewish community. My experience of Jewish people is that they would regard the eating of a bacon sandwich by someone of Jewish descent as pretty small fry beside what they went through in the Holocaust. I think I'm right in saying that the Jewish G-D does allow for starvation situations where life needs to be maintained until rescued and dietary laws can be relaxed. Atonement for this can come later in better times.
Of course, I acknowledge this was not a 'starvation' situation but just a man on the campaign trail trying to grab a bite to eat who isn't even practising the religion.
Whichever way the photographer intended it, it was successful as a fair amount of time has been occupied trying to interpret it.

That's OK Ramblingrose22 it is something I have looked at carefully and I am prepared to discuss with any one because not to discuss something is to encourage views which are not only racist but unreasonable. Only extremists shut down dialogue and I believe everyone should keep on learning about things. The fact that something is adopted does not place it beyond debate. I am not a legal expert and so I choose to listen to those who are. One of the things I have just decided after research is to stop using the accepted form of the word anti-semitic which my spell checker wants me to - hyphenated and adopt the term antisemitic.
I am willing to listen to any reasons why the bacon sandwich episode is not antisemitic, but alleging that it is simply a photo of a politician eating is not really convincing. There was no reason to state what sort of sandwich it was apart from drawing attention to Ed Milliband's origins and the dietary rules of Jewish people, which is antisemitic.

In the meantime Trisher, and despite differing views on it, the IHRA was the definition that the Labour Party NEC and many others have decided to adopt it.

Your suggestion that a photograph of David Miliband eating a bacon sandwich is anti-semitic proves that you have absolutely no idea what anti-semitism is.

Angela Rayner, who must know Jeremy Corbyn well, has said that he has a blind spot about anti-semitism.

Unfortunately he is not the only one and for that reason I shan't be commenting on any further posts from you on anti-semitism or Jeremy Corbyn.

No idea how they knew it was bacon but that was what they said it was.
And the IHRA definition of antisemitism hs been much debated legally. In fact there was advice to the government that it should not be adopted because of the questionable legal aspects of it. Of course all this comment hasn't been covered in the press and it seems only Corbyn is regarded as critical of it. But here's a legal opinion www.doughtystreet.co.uk/news/ihra-definition-antisemitism-not-fit-purpose