Also in news from UK / English/Welsh politics today –
A Jewish Labour MP has left Jeremy Corbyn’s launch of an antisemitism report in tears after being accused of colluding with the right-wing press.
I watched the video clip in which she leaves and I didn’t see any tears or signs of tears.
…a man handing out leaflets linked to Momentum, an activist group that supports Mr Corbyn, then verbally attacked Ruth Smeeth.
Witnesses said the campaigner accused the Labour MP for Stoke-on-Trent North and Kidsgrove of “colluding” with the right-wing media, after refusing to hand a leaflet to Ms Smeeth and taking down her name.
Ms Smeeth said she was “verbally attacked” and accused of being part of a media conspiracy.
“It is beyond belief that someone could come to the launch of a report on antisemitism in the Labour Party and espouse such vile conspiracy theories about Jewish people, which were ironically highlighted as such in Ms Chakrabarti’s report, while the leader of my own party stood by and did absolutely nothing,” she added.
“People like this have no place in our party or our movement and must be opposed.”
…
Footage showed the man – Marc Wadsworth – calling a journalist from the Daily Telegraph a “trouble-maker” after she asked him whether he wanted to apologise.
His press release, claiming to be from Momentum Black Connexions, called for the deselection of Labour “traitors” who are calling for Mr Corbyn to resign in the wake of the EU referendum.
Mr Wadsworth told The Independent he did not know Ms Smeeth was Jewish, adding: “I’ve never been called antisemitic in my life.”
I’m frankly not sure I understand what happened, unless “media conspiracy” is unmistakable code for “Jewish.”
Comments
8 responses to “Accused of colluding with the right-wing press”
The Report, which I’ve actually read (!), does identify a number of running themes – Jews all in league with Israel / media / big business, being one of them – which should be recognised as anti-semitic / racist and need to be tackled within the Labour Party.
Wadsworth has been around for yonks, to no great purpose as far as I can see. Now, will he read it?
http://www.labour.org.uk/page/-/party-documents/ChakrabartiInquiry.pdf
Wadsworth actually accused Smeeth of working hand in hand with the Telegraph journalist who had just handed her a press release. Smeeth dubbed it a ‘media conspiracy’ slur and apparently burst into tears. Too thin skinned to be a politician in my opinion! https://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2016/06/sanity-shami-chakrabarti-ruth-smeeth-affair/
Marc Wadsworth has been thrown out of the Labour Party.
That report seemed like a lot of waffle to me. How much money was wasted on this?
Len Johnstone – what do you mean “apparently”? The video is right there for anyone to see – she didn’t burst into tears at all. She protested, and then after a short pause she got up and left.
@3
Right. Wasted money. I hear “they” have plenty. Should’a paid for it themselves. Anyway they’re only in Labour to undermine it. ( /s )
@4
Kinder, Küche, Kirche.
justinr,
If you think that the report is a load of waffle that could be because it is too subtle for you.
The Labour Party – it could be any organisation – has a problem. It’s not a new problem but one which erupts somewhere or other every couple of years. The Leader commissions a report and wants it quickly. SC delivers.
Her advice to the Party is not to become ever more shouty and ever more punitive about it but to do three things. 1. Acknowledge that careless talk can produce real harm even where none is intended. 2. Equip the whole party to deal with such difficulties better – carefully, reasonably swiftly and openly. 3. Be LESS punitive.
Apart from the fact that Shami Charkrabarti is one of the country’s top human rights lawyers and a member of the Labour Party, the report displays real emotional intelligence. Or haven’t you got to that yet?
The very first words in the report:
the report should have finished there.
Does anyone know who the guy in the pink tie who seemed to encouraging her to make a fuss was?
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/labour-antisemitism-jeremy-corbyn-ruth-smeeth-jewish-mp-accused-of-colluding-with-media-a7111061.html