In the month that the Equality and Human Rights Commission published Investigation into antisemitism in the Labour Party, I am rereading “That’s Funny You Don’t Look Anti-Semitic”, by Steve Cohen.
Steve Cohen was a member of the International Marxist Group and wrote the book in 1984.
In the forward his son has written that after the Israeli invasion of Lebanon his father started a book condemning the invasion and “During the research stumbled across Left antisemitism by self-described ‘anti racists’ time and time again … This racism perpetuated by leaders of the radical and revolutionary Left was an affront to his sense.”
The book ranges over historic “left antisemitism", highlighting the actions of Ben Tillett, Robert Blatchford and even Keir Hardie, and in a series of chapters focuses on the position of leading members of the left in the 1970s and 80s.
For those of us who always identified with the Left, the book makes disturbing reading particularly in the light of the current debate around the failure of the Labour Party during 2015-2019 to effectively address the issue of antisemitic complaints.
And leaves me reflecting on those who currently seek to portray the previous leader of the Labour Party and some of his allies as the victims in the fall out from that report.
*“That’s Funny You Don’t Look Anti-Semitic”, Steve Cohen, 1984, republished by No Pasaran Media Ltd 2019
No comments:
Post a Comment