Opinion Piece
UK Jewry is in trouble. Serious trouble. And has been for some years. 2014 is probably as good a starting point as any. Operation Protective Edge in July 2014 started as a response to an increase in rocket and mortar attacks in the preceding weeks.
Antagonism towards British Jews reached new heights for then (though nowhere near as bad as it is now) with long standing friendships being torn apart, and attempts by local government to bring in boycott legislation. Once Jeremy Corbyn was elected leader of the Labour Party the following year, Jew-hating individuals in the party were given free rein to do their worst. All the time this was going on, some British Jewish community leaders fought shy of calling the hatred what it was, simple unadulterated anti-Semitism.
Even after Corbyn lost the election in 2019 and resigned as leader the following year, Labour was still not a safe space for Jews. The new leader Sir Kier Starmer tried hard to eradicate the worst excesses of Jew-hatred in the party and to some extent he was successful. All was going well until the 7th October 2023 at which point the wheels came off the wagon. Around the country the left wing rose up as one, in their hatred of Israel, either by their contribution to the hate marches ostensibly in support of the Palestinians or by constant and visceral attacks on Israel and the Jews on social media.
The protection of the Jews has been lukewarm. Despite the support of the previous – Conservative Government – the hate marches, which started days after the 7th October, have been running without any prospect of stopping. Despite the blatant anti-Semitic activity amongst a significant proportion of those taking part, the police have turned a blind eye, preferring not to upset the marchers just in case their numbers, sometimes in the hundreds of thousands, became uncontrollable and threatened property and lives.
And so the marches have continued, becoming an acceptable part of the anti-Semitic landscape in the capital. The new – Labour – Government have very quickly shown their attitude towards the Jews. They don’t matter, not when there are ten times as many Muslim voters whose support they crave. The previous objection to the International Criminal Court investigating the Israeli Prime Minister has been withdrawn. Payments to UNRWA have been reinstated despite serious concerns over their support for the October attacks and now, rumours are gathering strength that contracted supplies of arms to Israel may be blocked.
Enter the riots across England where asylum seekers and mosques have been attacked. Suddenly, groups calling themselves anti-fascist have sprung into life claiming to protect the victims of these racist attacks. Jewish communal leaders have supported these groups claiming presumably that there is common ground between us and those targeted by the rioters. The irony of course is that many of the people in these ‘anti-racist’ groups are the very people cheering on Hamas every week, on social media or on the streets of London.
The reality is that very few people like us and despite all the claims by the Prime Minister that he takes our security seriously, the opposite appears to be the case. Less than 6 weeks have passed since the election of the new Government, and we have been cast adrift. I fear the trouble will only increase.
