Sorry seems to be the hardest word
IT’S unfortunate that Jeremy Corbyn felt unable to apologise to the Jewish community for the hurt caused by anti-Semitism within his party.
There is no doubt that a fringe element within Labour has crossed the line between legitimate criticism of the Israeli state and outright anti-Semitism.
While Mr Corbyn undoubtedly has stood against all forms of racism for his entire adult life, there are others within the Labour Party of whom that could not be said. The rise of anti-Semitism within the party has occurred since he became leader. Many of the Labour members accused of making antiSemitic remarks joined the party either to vote for Mr Corbyn in the 2015 leadership election or did so after he had won. In some cases they had previously belonged to ultra-left groups which don’t have to pay much attention to the normal civilities of political discourse because no one else is interested in what they have to say. Once inside Labour, however, continuing their use of offensive language is much more problematic because it brings shame on a party that is seeking to form the next Government.
For whatever reason, Labour’s handling of this situation has been deeply unimpressive. By allowing it to drag on for as long as it has, the party has exacerbated the hurt felt by the Jewish community and caused itself more damage. Mr Corbyn’s attempt to distance himself from responsibility for the party’s hapless handling of the issue will convince no one. As the leader, he had a duty to make sure complaints were dealt with much more efficiently than they have been.
Racism in all its forms is abhorrent, and just because Labour has made a mess of investigating antiSemitism in its own ranks there is no reason to let other parties off the hook.
There is undoubtedly a problem of Islamophobia in the Conservative Party which affects elected local politicians and activists. It actually goes to the very top of the party, as evidenced by Boris Johnson’s troubling comments about women who choose to cover their face.
Issues of this kind deserve to be taken very seriously. Anyone with a slight knowledge of recent history will be aware of what racist abuse can lead to.
Legitimate criticism of the state of Israel or of states that are predominantly Muslim must never be off limits. But neither should the appropriateness of fair criticism be used as a cover for racism.