Open Letter to Jeremy Corbyn on Witch-hunt as McDonnell Tacks to the Right

Jeremy - you've been accused of false 'anti-Semitism' - why do you keep silent when I am suspended for the same 'crime'?

Is John McDonnell the new Stafford Cripps?

And don't support an attack on the Left

John McDonnell advises socialists to trust the Board of Deputies of British Jews - the same Board that opposed Jewish resistance in the 1930's and which urges uncritical support of Israel now

 As people will know, I was suspended for making comments, the nature of which were not divulged to me.  The reasons for my suspension were however leaked to that Labour supporting papers, The Daily Telegraph and last Saturday and The Times.

I have therefore written an Open Letter to Corbyn asking him to lift my suspension and instead suspend John Stolliday, the Labour apparatchik who was responsible for the leak to the Telegraph.

Morris Beckman of the '45  Group which physically destroyed the Mosleyites after the war.  They were ignored by the Board of Deputies

It is also extremely disappointing that the new 'Iron Chancellor' who is trapped in the same pledge to  eliminate Britain's fiscal deficit as George Osborne has now conceded, in an interview with the BBC's Andrew Marr, that the issue of anti-Semitism should be left to the Board of Deputies of British Jews.  'I believe that what we should do is take the advice of the British Board of Deputies and our other Jewish friends as well....'

The real anti-Semites who the Board of Deputies ignore - with an Israeli flag in one hand and Hitler salutes on the other

The Board of Deputies of British Jews is a 100% Zionist body, based on synagogue representation but not elected by British Jews, that has consistently depicted support for the Palestinians and opposition to Zionism as anti-Semitism.

The Jewish Peoples Council helped organise the Battle of Cable Street when Moseley was prevented from marching through the Jewish East End by 100,000 people.  The Board of Deputies told Jews to ignore them and stay at home

What is just as bad is that when it comes to genuine anti-Semitism the  Board of Deputies has always distinguished itself by its cringing and servile attitude.  In 1936 it famously opposed the mobilisation of Jews against Oswald Moseley's British Union of Fascists in the Battle of Cable Street in London' East End.  It has always been a bourgeois Jewish institution that put the needs of capitalism above those of Jews.  The Jewish Peoples Council that organised the opposition to Moseley, stormed the Board of Deputies office in response to their scabbing.  

Board of Deputies advice to Jews in the 1930's - Keep Away from the Fascists -  Don't Oppose Them - Leave it to the anti-Semitic London Police Force - thousands of Jews ignored them - McDonnell wants us to agree with them

In the 1970's when the fight against the National Front was at its height, the Board of Deputies attacked the Anti-Nazi League, which destroyed the NF as a credible threat, in preference to the fascists.  McDonnell's ignorance is inexcusable.

Having resiled from his earlier support for Irish Republicanism, McDonnell is now resiling from support for the Palestinians.  Going along with false accusations of 'anti-Semitism' only aids those who are genuinely anti-Semitic.  When Zionists cry wolf about anti-Semitism, people then begin to have genuine difficulties discerning the real thing.  This is what we found when we tried to remove Gilad Atzmon from the Palestine solidarity movement.  Time after time I was told, that accusations of anti-Semitism are what Zionists always say.  I was even called a Zionist by those who had become so utterly confused.

Letter in Jewish Chronicle concerning the Board of Deputies

Zionism, having never fought anti-Semitism, doesn't care if they aid the real anti-Semites.  After all they have demonstrated alongside anti-Semites outside Ahava.  The BNP and EDL are open in their support of Israel.  

Socialists however should be careful to make the distinction between anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism.  It isn't that difficult.

Tony Greenstein

Labour Party membership number: L1435959

Monday, 04 April 2016

To:      Jeremy Corbyn,

Leader of the Labour Party

Dear Jeremy,

As you may be aware, I have been suspended from membership of the Labour Party on the basis of comments which it is alleged I have made.  I have not been informed as to the nature of these comments, the allegations pertaining to them or the identity of the complainant(s).

Despite writing twice to John Stolliday of the Constitutional/Compliance Unit and both speaking and writing to the local Regional Organiser, Harry Gregson, I have been refused access to any details concerning the reasons for my suspension.

You can imagine therefore my surprise when this information surfaced in Saturday’s Daily Telegraph and Times, with the Telegraph boasting of having been given access to this information.  From my contact with the Compliance Unit and Gregson, I am already aware that they have little appreciation or understanding of the meaning of natural justice.

The behaviour of the Compliance Unit in leaking information concerning my suspension, when I have been refused access to the same information, is both outrageous and unfair.  I have written to Stolliday to say that in my opinion he should be suspended forthwith for gross misconduct pending an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the leaking of this information.  I attach a copy of my letter.

The allegations of anti-Semitism which have been made against me are, to put it bluntly, crap.  They are little from the allegations of anti-Semitism which were made against you over the summer.  Having known me for over 30 years and having both spoken on the same platform on numerous occasions, I am sure you will confirm that I am an anti-Zionist and supporter of the Palestinians, not an anti-Semite.  

Support for  the Palestinians and opposition to Zionism are not the same as anti-Semitism.  I would have hoped that both you and John McDonnell would have made that distinction when similar allegations were made against Oxford University Labour Club for having supported Israel Apartheid Week.  Anti-Zionism is about opposition to the political movement that formed the State of Israel, a state which is Jewish only in so far as Jews have privileges over non-Jews.  Anti-Semitism is about hatred of, discrimination and violence against and conspiracy theories about Jews as Jews.

The reason that your Zionist detractors will never be satisfied with your assurances that you do not tolerate anti-Semitism in the Labour Party is because you are speaking a different language.  Their definition of anti-Semitism is not that which is commonly understood.  The Zionist definition of anti-Semitism, which is sometimes called 'new anti-Semitism' is about opposition to the racist Israeli state, its policies and practices.  That is why no amount of appeasement of Zionist groups will have the slightest effect. 

Indeed it is quite possible to be both anti-Semitic in the racist sense and pro-Zionist.  One of your main accusers, the editor of the Jewish Chronicle, Stephen Pollard, whilst attacking you as anti-Semitic was more than happy to describe Michal Kaminiski, the anti-Semitic MEP for Poland’s Law & Justice Party, as ‘one of the greatest friends to the Jews’ Guardian 9 October 2009 http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2009/oct/09/michal-kaminski-antisemitism. The BNP and English Defence League are both pro-Zionist and holocaust deniers.

I am writing to you in order that action will be taken over this leak of information, which I believe has also happened in other cases.  The Compliance Unit should be immediately disbanded and Stolliday should be relieved of his position - either for incompetence or malevolence.  The purpose of leaking this information isn’t simply to prejudice my position but to weak your own position as Leader of the Party

The choice of the Daily Telegraph as the newspaper to leak to speaks volumes.  I trust that all those years of making speeches condemning witch-hunts and defending the Palestinians won't disappear into a black hole.

With best wishes,

Tony Greenstein