As it happens, I do not think the left-wing MP can lead Labour to victory in 2020, despite agreeing wholly with his anti-austerity drive, his position on the Iraq war, and his social democratic vision. But cumulative decades of Thatcherism and Blairism have turned millions of Brits into self-serving individuals – more like middle-class Americans than egalitarian Scandinavians. Corbyn doesn’t get that, and he would not receive my leadership vote if I were part of that process. But I will defend the man forcefully against the calumny and defamation now being heaped upon him.
What evidence have his detractors produced to “prove” that he is anti-Semitic? That he has appeared on Press TV, the Iranian-funded station? Well, until late 2009, the Telegraph journalist Andrew Gilligan presented a fortnightly programme on that channel. Is Gilligan therefore also a Jew-hater? Of course not. Next: Corbyn shared a platform with Carlos Latuff, the Brazilian-Arab cartoonist who condemned Israel’s oppressive policies in Palestine.
The Simon Wiesenthal Centre has declared Latuff anti-Semitic but the Jewish daily Forward claims he is a “furious” critic of the state of Israel, not an anti-Semite. So no consensus there. As for sharing spaces: many of us speak at conferences where some speakers turn out to have nasty views about various ethnic and religious groups. That is the complex and argumentative world we live in. To talk to those we violently disagree with is surely an obligation.
Some of the people Corbyn has been closest to are conscientious and ethical British Jews. The late Mike Marqusee, a Marxist, New York secular Jew who migrated to the UK, was his friend. So, too, is Ken Loach, a liberal British Jew and fierce defender of Palestinian rights. There are others, dismissed by Zionists as “self-haters” because they reject blind loyalty to Israel.
Two of Corbyn’s weaknesses are his tendency for unchecked inclusiveness, and his naivety. His strength is his ability to take the long view. In the past, he refused to condemn the IRA – now some of them are in the Northern Ireland Assembly. He got to know Tamil Tigers, and South American rebels during the era of vicious dictatorships – as did Ken Livingstone and others. So what? Those on the right have their own relationships with unspeakable types.
The most livid reactions, as ever, are on Twitter. Liz Kendall said at a meeting organised by Corbyn that Ed Miliband and Labour should not have recognised the Palestinian state – a Zionist position. This is one reason why I think Kendall should categorically not lead the Labour Party. Like Tony Blair, she defends the indefensible. However, instead of fair criticism, she was subjected to foul, misogynist abuse by some of Corbyn’s loonier supporters. That, according to his detractors, is Corbyn’s fault. Some Tory tweeters are racist – so I suppose the PM is now personally to blame for that, too?
But the overreactions of some extreme Zionists these days is tantamount to an attempt to censor all criticism of Israel’s political and military tactics. And the position has hardened since British public opinion has softened towards Palestinians. The last cruel demolition of Gaza played badly for Israel. So here is the new claim being put about assertively: those who want to destroy Jewry hide behind the Palestinian cause. They are right, up to a point. Veiled anti-Semitism is around us, and most of all on university campuses, where Palestine is a burning issue and convenient alibi. Attacks on Jewish Europeans are also rising.
Just as pernicious is the way Zionists use the charge of anti-Semitism to block probes into Israel’s oppressive practices, its weaponry, and its influence in Western parliaments. Some public intellectuals and politicians – who should have some understanding of nuance – have become propagandists for Israel, be the country’s actions right or wrong. They use images of Nazism and excruciating memories to whip up fears of a new horror, an impending extermination of the plucky nation by its cruel colonial neighbours. I myself have been subjected to such intimidation and branded an anti-Semite over the years. More such muck will be thrown at me when this column appears.
Most depressing of all is the collusion between the powerful right and Zionists. They seem determined to crush all alternatives to neoliberal economics and Western hegemony. Jewish lawyers, activists, entrepreneurs and thinkers in South Africa, the UK, Europe and US have fought so long for justice, equality and progressive politics. It gets harder and harder for them to carry on that noble tradition. Ed Miliband was one of them and look what sections of the media did to him.
As the forces of darkness turn on Corbyn, the leadership contest continues its descent into a passion play. Yesterday, Gordon Brown dealt a fresh blow to the next likely leader of the party – though he did not have the guts even to name his adversary. Fair enough. That’s politics. But the accusation of anti-Semitism is not. The other contenders so detest the left-winger that they allow this stain to spread. This is how low Labour has sunk.
