Blogger who posted songs to mock Jews faces prison
‘The material was grossly offensive’
A FORMER cruise ship worker who described Auschwitz as a ‘theme park for fools’ faces jail after being convicted in a landmark case.
Alison Chabloz, 53, filmed songs mocking Jews and questioned whether the Holocaust ever happened in videos posted on YouTube.
She was convicted of three counts of publishing offensive material online after an extraordinary criminal case in which she claimed her prosecution was an attack on free speech – although she admitted her lyrics were ‘close to the bone’.
Yesterday’s verdict was met by shouts of ‘justice’ from a campaigner and ‘shame’ by a supporter of Chabgrossly loz at a packed Westminster magistrates’ court.
There were ugly scuffles as she left the building after being warned she could be imprisoned when she returns next month.
A man holding an Israeli flag was involved in several heated arguments, and a court officer intervened before police arrived to keep the peace. Campaigners hope the case will deter others responsible for a tidal wave of anti- Semitic material on social media.
Chabloz, of Glossop, Derbyshire, insists she is not a denier of the Holocaust, but questions the ‘official narrative’ of the deaths of six million Jews. She was only put on trial after the Campaign Against Antisemitism brought a private prosecution.
The case was taken over by the Crown Prosecution Service, who accused her of repeatedly sending offensive communications over social media.
During the case, Chabloz appeared to sing along in the dock as her songs were played, including the lyrics: ‘Did the Holocaust ever happen? Was it just a bunch of lies? Seems that some intend to pull the wool over our eyes.’
In the song, which was set to traditional Jewish folk music, she also referred to Auschwitz as ‘a theme park just for fools’ and ‘the gassing zone, a proven hoax’.
Prosecuting, Karen Robinson said: ‘The songs were undoubtedly anti-Semitic, they were explicitly and exclusively references to Jewish people and the Holocaust.’
Adding that it was ‘difficult to conceive a more offensive sentiment’, she said Chabloz had targeted the Jewish people, ‘for no other reason than their faith’.
District Judge John Zani said ‘the material was grossly offensive’ and the ‘custody threshold’ was likely to have been passed. Gideon Falter, of the Campaign Against Antisemitism, said Chabloz had dedicated her life to ‘inciting others to hate Jews’ and added that the verdict sent a strong message that ‘anti-Semitic conspiracy theories will not be tolerated’.