Corbyn faces fury at anti-Semitism demo
JEREMY Corbyn yesterday faced fury inside and outside Parliament over his failure to do more to tackle anti-Semitism in his party.
The Labour leader attempted to reassure Jewish community leaders that he was their eternal ally in the fight against racism as he admitted the party had too often dismissed concerns.
But his latest statement failed to head off a demonstration by hundreds of protesters in Parliament Square, declaring that “enough is enough” and demanding more action from him.
Supporters of the Board Of Deputies Of British Jews and the Jewish Leadership Council (JCL) were joined by several Labour MPs and also Tories, including Communities Secretary of State Sajid Javid.
Labour MP Luciana Berger, chair of the Jewish Labour Movement, told the crowd: “Anti-Semitism is very real and it’s alive in the Labour Party.”
Some protesters called on Mr Corbyn to quit as Board of Deputies president Jonathan Arkush said it was time for the hard-Left leader to “finally, finally take some responsibility”.
The latest accusations that Mr Corbyn has tolerated growing antiSemitism erupted over his Facebook post in 2012 sympathising with a street artist whose mural of caricatured Jewish businessmen counting money on the backs of slave-like figures was being destroyed in response to complains it was anti-Semitic.
Mr Corbyn’s office initially said his concern had been about free speech but he has subsequently regretted not looking more closely at the “deeply disturbing and anti-Semitic” image.
In his letter to the Board Of Deputies and the JLC yesterday, Mr Corbyn said: “I recognise anti-Semitism has surfaced within the Labour Party, and has too often been dismissed as simply a matter of a few bad apples. This has caused pain and hurt to Jewish members of our party and to the wider Jewish community in Britain.
“I am sincerely sorry for the pain which has been caused and pledge to redouble my efforts to bring this anxiety to an end. In this fight, I am your ally and always will be.”
Earlier, Labour MP John Mann, the non-Jewish chairman of Parliament’s All Party Group Against Anti-Semitism, urged Mr Corbyn to “take a lead” and expel anti-Semites or “rue the day”.
But the pro-Corbyn group Jewish Voice For Labour staged a counter-demonstration outside Parliament. It said the Board Of Deputies “do not represent us or the great majority of Jews in the party who share Jeremy Corbyn’s vision for social justice and fairness”. Spokeswoman Naomi Wimborne-Idrissi said that the “hysteria” about anti-Semitism was driven by a desire to quash pro-Palestinian voices and that the Board Of Deputies was “not Labour, they are Tories”. Asked if Mr Corbyn should apologise more clearly over the mural, she said: “If I have one criticism of Jeremy it is that he’s far too nice, far too apologetic. “Everybody who supports Palestine is under the cosh here. “Jeremy needs to apologise less.”