Thread by @Steve_Cooke

Thread: The status update below has attracted lots of praise in a Labour Party-related Facebook group with members enthusiastically declaring they have "nicked and shared" it on their own timelines. And it does look supportable. But ... (you knew there'd be one) ... /1

First, I'll reproduce the text of this meme for the benefit of those who can't see the image: "As a Labour member/supporter, I am 100% against antisemitism and 100% against humiliation and abuse of occupied Palestinian people." /2

Of course, both parts of the statement ought to be 100% supportable – opposing antisemitism and opposing mistreatment of Palestinians, what's not to like? – but why link them together in that way? /3

The problem is, it's really a dog whistle declaration that makes the first point conditional upon the second point and which presents the two as directly related. /4

Antisemitism existed long before the State of Israel was established in 1948. That anti-Jewish prejudice continues to this day has little or nothing to do with any actions of the Israeli government towards Palestinians, no matter how outrageous those actions might be. /5

Opposition to, and fierce condemnation of, the Israeli government's policies is not antisemitic. In many instances, however, Israel has simply become a contemporary pretext for people with antisemitic views to express them whilst claiming merely to be anti-Zionist. /6

The statement brings to mind other double-barrelled formulations that declare opposition to a prejudice whilst simultaneously reinforcing it. /7

For example: "As a Labour member, I am 100% against homophobia and 100% against child abuse", which implies that paedophilia is somehow linked to homosexuality. (Pro tip: It isn't.) /8

Or: "As a Labour member, I am 100% against Islamophobia and 100% against Muslim grooming gangs", which implies that Islam and Muslims are a threat to non-Muslim children and young people. /9

Try this one too: "As a Labour member, I am 100% against racism and 100% against jobs being taken by immigrants", which implies that people from different cultures are a threat to the livelihoods of longer term residents of an area and/or white people. /10

These are really variations on the "I'm not a racist, but ..." cliché that we on the political left would mock were we talking about any other form of racism. /11

Yet somehow the statement is deemed acceptable, even insightful ("Nicked and shared!"), by supposed antiracists and socialists.

Understand that and we might start to move beyond the current controversies about antisemitism in the Labour Party. /12

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