Anti-Semitism and the

Left
 By
Ian Hernon
Amberley Publishing
 'Under Corbyn, the true Left of radical campaigning and genuine
anti-racism has been bastardised into a hate cult distinguished by
repellent self-righteousness. Corbyn's cronies, more than willing to
act with venality when it suits them, have told themselves that if you
say you are on the side of the poor and the downtrodden, anything
goes. Anyone who disagrees is obviously on the side of the
imperialist, the fat cat bankers and hedge fund managers, the
exploiters driven by greed alone to make their billions.'

Charges that anti-Semitism was widespread in the Labour Party did

much to undermine Jeremy Corbyn's chances of entering No. 10
Downing Street in the 2019 general election. This book, by a
veteran political correspondent, examines whether such charges
were justified and to what extent they were facilitated by a lack of
leadership.

It also traces the roots of anti-Semitism on the Left which can make
uncomfortable reading for adherents of such socialist icons as Karl
Marx, Keir Hardie, Ernest Bevin, John Burns and George Bernard
Shaw. The strand of anti-Semitism that has existed on the Left since
the birth of socialism as an effective movement is hard to fathom -
especially as Jews played an integral part in the creation of both the
British trade union movement and the Labour Party. No one with a
single brain cell can doubt the persecution and death camps of the
twentieth century. In addition, Zionism - opposition to which is now
used as a dodgy excuse for anti-Semitism - was for decades
embraced by the Left as a template for a socialist paradise.

Ian Hernon writes: 'The most virulent anti-Semitism has over the
last century or so come from the Far Right, the British
Establishment, the aristocracy and home-grown bigots of all classes.
But that does not excuse the Left for its, in some instances,
overlapping racism due to populist pursuit of power, bigotry,
ignorance or a twisted understanding of history and socialist ideals.'

Amberley Publishing

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