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In September 2017, Jewish Voice for Labour was officially launched on the second day of the [[Labour Party (UK) Conference|Labour Party annual national conference]] at the [[Brighton Centre]] in Brighton.<ref name="Rosenhead"/>
In September 2017, Jewish Voice for Labour was officially launched on the second day of the [[Labour Party (UK) Conference|Labour Party annual national conference]] at the [[Brighton Centre]] in Brighton.<ref name="Rosenhead"/>


The organisation has objected to "unjustified allegations of antisemitism" which are "used to undermine [[Jeremy Corbyn]]'s [[Labour Party leadership of Jeremy Corbyn|leadership]]".<ref name="Daisley">{{cite news |last=Daisley|first=Stephen|url=http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/247057/british-labour-corbyn-anti-semitism|title=The British Labour Party’s 'Kosher Stamp' for Anti-Semitism|work= |location= |publisher=''[[The Tablet]]''|date=16 October 2017|accessdate=26 March 2018}}</ref> It opposed the definition of the [[International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance]] being formally accepted by the Labour Party at the 2017 conference. This it sees as "attempts to widen the definition of antisemitism beyond its meaning of hostility towards, or discrimination against, Jews as Jews".<ref name="JVL05082017"/><ref name="Sugarman"/> Rosenhead sees this definition as being intentionally "vague" allowing for "the protection of Israel" via "a side door" and thus "encouraging the presumption that [[Criticism of the Israeli government|criticism of Israel]] is likely to be antisemitic".<ref name="Rosenhead"/><ref name="Sugarman"/> The change to the [[Labour Party Rule Book]], which was supported by Corbyn, they see as an "anti-democratic restriction on political debate".<ref name="Philpot"/>
The organisation has objected to "unjustified allegations of antisemitism" which are "used to undermine [[Jeremy Corbyn]]'s [[Labour Party leadership of Jeremy Corbyn|leadership]]".<ref name="Daisley">{{cite news |last=Daisley|first=Stephen|url=http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/247057/british-labour-corbyn-anti-semitism|title=The British Labour Party’s 'Kosher Stamp' for Anti-Semitism|work= |location= |publisher=''[[The Tablet]]''|date=16 October 2017|accessdate=26 March 2018}}</ref> It opposed the definition of the [[International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance]] being formally accepted by the Labour Party at the 2017 conference. This it sees as "attempts to widen the definition of antisemitism beyond its meaning of hostility towards, or discrimination against, Jews as Jews".<ref name="JVL05082017"/><ref name="Sugarman"/> Rosenhead sees this definition as being intentionally "vague" allowing for "the protection of Israel" via "a side door" and thus "encouraging the presumption that [[Criticism of the Israeli government|criticism of Israel]] is likely to be antisemitic".<ref name="Rosenhead"/><ref name="Sugarman"/> The change to the [[Labour Party Rule Book]], which was supported by Corbyn, they see as an "anti-democratic restriction on political debate".<ref name="Philpot"/> In May 2018, the organisation with members of Free Speech on Israel produced a definition of antisemitism as "Antisemitism is a form of racism: hatred, hostility, discrimination or prejudice against Jews because they are Jews. It may be manifested in violence; denial of rights; direct, indirect or institutional discrimination; prejudice-based behaviour; or verbal or written statements. Such manifestations draw on stereotypes – characteristics which all Jews are presumed to share."<ref name="timesofisrael">{{cite news |last= |first= |url=http://jewishnews.timesofisrael.com/jewish-voice-for-labour-offer-new-anti-semitism-definition/|title=Jewish Voice for Labour offer new anti-Semitism definition|work= |location= |publisher=''[[The Times of Israel]]''|date=17 May 2018|accessdate=17 May 2018}}</ref>


The organisation has defended individuals such as former [[Mayor of London]] [[Ken Livingstone]] who was suspended from party membership for bringing the party into disrepute. "These actions by Ken were not offensive, nor anti-semitic in any way", according to Manson,<ref name="Philpot"/> and accusations of antisemitism against [[Moshé Machover]] as "ill founded".<ref name="Harpin1">{{cite news |last=Harpin|first=Lee|url=https://www.thejc.com/news/uk-news/israeli-born-anti-zionist-expelled-from-labour-party-1.445722|title=Israeli-born anti-Zionist expelled from Labour Party|work=[[The Jewish Chronicle]]|date=9 October 2017|accessdate=2 April 2018}}</ref><ref name="Harpin2">{{cite news |last=Harpin|first=Lee|url=https://www.thejc.com/news/uk-news/expelled-anti-zionist-moshe-machover-readmitted-to-labour-party-1.447052|title=Expelled anti-Zionist Moshe Machover readmitted to Labour Party|work= |location= |publisher=''[[The Jewish Chronicle]]''|date=31 October 2017|accessdate=2 April 2018}}</ref>
The organisation has defended individuals such as former [[Mayor of London]] [[Ken Livingstone]] who was suspended from party membership for bringing the party into disrepute. "These actions by Ken were not offensive, nor anti-semitic in any way", according to Manson,<ref name="Philpot"/> and accusations of antisemitism against [[Moshé Machover]] as "ill founded".<ref name="Harpin1">{{cite news |last=Harpin|first=Lee|url=https://www.thejc.com/news/uk-news/israeli-born-anti-zionist-expelled-from-labour-party-1.445722|title=Israeli-born anti-Zionist expelled from Labour Party|work=[[The Jewish Chronicle]]|date=9 October 2017|accessdate=2 April 2018}}</ref><ref name="Harpin2">{{cite news |last=Harpin|first=Lee|url=https://www.thejc.com/news/uk-news/expelled-anti-zionist-moshe-machover-readmitted-to-labour-party-1.447052|title=Expelled anti-Zionist Moshe Machover readmitted to Labour Party|work= |location= |publisher=''[[The Jewish Chronicle]]''|date=31 October 2017|accessdate=2 April 2018}}</ref>

Revision as of 21:33, 17 May 2018

Jewish Voice for Labour
AbbreviationJVL
Formation28 July 2017; 6 years ago (2017-07-28)
Region served
United Kingdom
Chair
Jenny Manson
Secretary
Glyn Secker
Treasurer
Richard Kuper
Vice-Chair
Leah Levine
Key people
Membership Officer: Mike Cushman
Media Officer: Naomi Wimborne-Idrissi
Information Officer: Jonathan Rosenhead
Websitewww.jewishvoiceforlabour.org.uk

Jewish Voice for Labour (JVL) is an organisation for Jewish Labour Party members.

Premise and organisation

Jewish Voice for Labour's founding statement advocated "making the Labour Party an open, democratic and inclusive party, encouraging all ethnic groups and cultures to join and participate freely", to support a commitment "to strengthen the party in its opposition to all forms of racism, including antisemitism",[1] and "does not make promoting the centrality of Israel to Jewish life a condition of membership".[2]

The organisation admits full membership only to Labour Party members who identify as Jewish.[3][4] All other members are associate members, without voting rights as the constitution specifies that the organisation is led by Jewish people, in that only Jews can vote on its policies.[5] By contrast the Jewish Labour Movement accepts full membership to both non-Jewish and non-Labour Party members.[3][4] In 2017, Naomi Wimborne-Idrissi, an executive board member of Jewish Voice for Labour, said the organisation's "longer term aim" could be to affiliate to Labour.[6]

Jenny Manson, an activist in Jews for Justice for Palestinians and a former Labour councillor, was elected chair before the organisation's formal foundation.[4] While Manson has said the organisation is "not anti-Zionist", she also told The Jewish Chronicle that it is an alternative to the Jewish Labour Movement for Jewish Labour members, describing the Jewish Labour Movement as having a "profoundly Zionist orientation",[1][4] Jewish Voice for Labour's information officer, Jonathan Rosenhead shares the later opinion.[3] Manson has admitted she only "began to identify as a Jew in order to argue against the state of Israel" and that JVL's core purpose is to "tackle allegations of antisemitism in the Labour Party".[7]

Jewish Voice for Labour was reported by The Times of Israel in December 2017 to be closely linked to Free Speech on Israel (FSOI) which was founded in 2016, is non-Zionist and opposes the notion that anti-Zionism is anti-Semitism. However, Wimborne-Idrissi rejected this claim saying they are "two separate organizations with different aims and objectives."[6]

History

In September 2017, Jewish Voice for Labour was officially launched on the second day of the

Labour Party annual national conference at the Brighton Centre in Brighton.[3]

The organisation has objected to "unjustified allegations of antisemitism" which are "used to undermine

criticism of Israel is likely to be antisemitic".[3][4] The change to the Labour Party Rule Book, which was supported by Corbyn, they see as an "anti-democratic restriction on political debate".[6] In May 2018, the organisation with members of Free Speech on Israel produced a definition of antisemitism as "Antisemitism is a form of racism: hatred, hostility, discrimination or prejudice against Jews because they are Jews. It may be manifested in violence; denial of rights; direct, indirect or institutional discrimination; prejudice-based behaviour; or verbal or written statements. Such manifestations draw on stereotypes – characteristics which all Jews are presumed to share."[9]

The organisation has defended individuals such as former Mayor of London Ken Livingstone who was suspended from party membership for bringing the party into disrepute. "These actions by Ken were not offensive, nor anti-semitic in any way", according to Manson,[6] and accusations of antisemitism against Moshé Machover as "ill founded".[10][11]

In March 2018, the Jewish Voice for Labour organised a smaller counter-demonstration,[12] attended by around 30 people, according to The Independent,[13] at a protest against antisemitism in the Labour Party, held in Parliament Square, London. In a statement, Jewish Voice for Labour said it was "appalled" by the Board of Deputies of British Jews' letter and that "They do not represent us or the great majority of Jews in the party who share Jeremy Corbyn's vision for social justice and fairness. Jeremy's consistent commitment to anti-racism is all the more needed now."[14] Manson defended Corbyn on Daily Politics, saying he had taken "enormously strong action" to deal with the issue in his party.[15] Corbyn has said of Jewish Voice for Labour, they are "committed to fighting anti-Semitism and making sure there is a Jewish voice in the party. We already have the Jewish Labour Movement. JVL was established last year and I think it is good that we have organisations within the party that are giving that voice to people."[16]

See also

Reference

  1. ^ a b Manson, Jenny; Levy, Raphael (28 September 2017). "Jewish Voice for Labour is not an anti-Zionist group". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 February 2018. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  2. ^ a b "New organisation founded for Jewish Labour Party members". Jewish Voice for Labour. 5 August 2017. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  3. ^ a b c d e Rosenhead, Jonathan (11 October 2017). "A new Jewish voice for Labour". openDemocracy. Retrieved 1 February 2018. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  4. ^ a b c d e f Sugarman, Daniel (25 August 2017). "New Jewish group launched in Labour". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 26 March 2018. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  5. ^ Saville, Ian (25 April 2018). "There are a lot of myths about Jewish Voice for Labour. Here's the truth". Labour List. Retrieved 25 April 2018. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  6. ^ a b c d Philpot, Robert (15 December 2017). "UK's new Jewish Voice for Labour seeks to throw off the 'shackles' of Israel". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 2 April 2018. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  7. ^ Welch, Bem (3 April 2018). "What is JVL?". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 30 April 2018. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  8. ^ Daisley, Stephen (16 October 2017). "The British Labour Party's 'Kosher Stamp' for Anti-Semitism". The Tablet. Retrieved 26 March 2018. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  9. ^ "Jewish Voice for Labour offer new anti-Semitism definition". The Times of Israel. 17 May 2018. Retrieved 17 May 2018. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  10. ^ Harpin, Lee (9 October 2017). "Israeli-born anti-Zionist expelled from Labour Party". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
  11. ^ Harpin, Lee (31 October 2017). "Expelled anti-Zionist Moshe Machover readmitted to Labour Party". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 2 April 2018. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  12. ^ Neilan, Catherine (26 March 2018). "Corbyn supporters organise an anti-anti-Semitism rally". City A.M. Retrieved 27 April 2018. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  13. ^ Cowburn, Ashley (26 March 2018). "Hundreds of people protest outside Parliament against antisemitism in the Labour Party". The Independent. Retrieved 30 March 2018. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  14. ^ "Corbyn apologises for 'hurt' caused by anti-Semitism in Labour". BBC News. 26 March 2018. Retrieved 30 March 2018. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  15. ^ "Daily Politics guests debate whether Jeremy Corbyn has tackled anti-Semitism". BBC News. 26 March 2018. Retrieved 2 April 2018. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  16. ^ "Corbyn calls Jewish Voice for Labour "good people"". The Jewish Chronicle. 28 March 2018. Retrieved 2 April 2018. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)

External links


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