Fifty years ago, the student revolt broke out on campuses all over western Europe. The revolutionary fervour of the times spawned a generation who believed that a better world was possible if only we dedicated ourselves. In Communist Eastern Europe there were student demonstrations against state-sponsored anti-Semitism. There were occupations and sit-ins at LSE, Leicester … Read more
Last week, the UK’s House of Commons was the scene of a debate about contemporary anti-Semitism. It was an occasion when many Labour MPs, both Jewish and non-Jewish, related intensely personal stories about how they had been targeted by the purveyors of anti-Semitism. Yet despite his formal public declarations against anti-Semitism, Jeremy Corbyn, the leader … Read more
Review of Sean Matgamna’s book The Left in Disarray Most of the time, the key terms of the anti-capitalist Left have no clear meaning, they express and convey emotion, not reason. They are the tools of demagogy more than of reasoned discourse … our language of politics is decayed, disablingly. So opens Sean Matgamna’s timely … Read more
Is Labour unapologetically antisemitic? Is British Jewry merely a conduit for Benjamin Netanyahu’s policies? For some, those pro-Israel Jews who insist on remaining in Labour appear to be out of sync with the prevailing wisdom pervading both party and community. Caught in the crossfire of the breast-beaters, this is not an easy time for those … Read more
Two recent UK election campaign moments provide a window into the electoral dilemma of many British Jews: should they maintain their lifelong allegiance to the Labour party – or not? The first, earlier this week, concerns a BBC radio interview conducted by journalist Emma Barnett with Jeremy Corbyn, leader of the Labour party. … Read more
In November, we will mark the 100th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration. Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of the Labour opposition, said that this declaration was a mistake. How will he react this time? It was in 2013 that he offered his opinion on the Balfour Declaration. It arises from his lack of understanding of both … Read more
Last Shabbat, the prayer for the state of Israel was recited in the main Havana synagogue. It was also the day when the announcement was made of the passing of Fidel Castro, who had broken off diplomatic relations with Israel in 1973. This symbolised Fidel’s individualistic approach towards Jews and Israel while remaining a … Read more
“The Egyptian has his thumb on our windpipe”. So muttered Prime Minister Anthony Eden in July 1956 on hearing that President Gamal Abdel Nasser had nationalised the Suez Canal. It led to a clandestine agreement with then Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion for a joint military intervention – and Israel’s subsequent move into Sinai … Read more
The roots of the current crisis between British Jews and the leadership of today’s Labour Party, are not new. They are a consequence of debates that stirred passions over 100 years ago in Europe between socialist factions, following the deaths of Marx and Engels; friction between loyalists and critics of the Kremlin within the Communist … Read more
The assertion of Tom Watson, Labour’s deputy leader, that Trotskyists were attempting to join his party, has been a refrain voiced for the best part of a century. The total failure of far-left groups such as the Communist Party to appeal to the British working class meant that entryism into the Labour Party was the … Read more