Labour Party Antisemitism

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has announced it is formally investigating the Labour party to determine if the party has acted unlawfully in its treatment of Jewish people – specifically within its complaints procedures.

We welcome this announcement. This issue has spent too long being mired in partisan politics – we hope that this impartial investigation will provide some clarity and hopefully some answers for those on the receiving end of antisemitic abuse and harassment.

The scale of the antisemitism within the Labour party cannot, and should not, be underestimated. Several Labour councillors, and a Labour MP, are currently suspended for antisemitic behaviour, as well as many other party activists under investigation. Based on what our close associates and comrades from within the Party have told us about their experiences, we feel an independent EHRC enquiry is essential and we await the transparency that the results of the investigation will bring.

We have long argued that the vast majority of Labour Party members and supporters are not antisemitic, but this should not be used as an excuse for inaction when it rears its head. There should be zero tolerance for any form of racism in any of the main political parties.

Hundreds of cases have been supplied to the EHRC, via @JewishLabour, of Labour members being antisemitic. This issue has been growing, largely unimpeded, and will not go away simply by being ignored. 

Labour’s response to this investigation shows how much work is yet to be done. To deflect from the issue by talking about the funding levels of the EHRC is essentially an attack on the body itself, and undermines the vital work they are about to do.

If you want to support the work of people fighting against antisemitism in the Labour party, you can join the Jewish Labour Movement as an affiliate member now. Watch this video with Gordon Brown explaining why this is important. If you’ve seen first-hand institutional racism from within the Party and want to cooperate with @JewishLabour’s referral, DMs are open.

You can find our previous statements regarding antisemitism in the Labour Party below

• Labour’s Antisemitism: What’s Needed Now Is Action
• Antisemitism in the Labour Party: Where to go From Here
• Labour and Antisemitism: The Way Back From This New Low
• Antisemitism in the Labour Party