Thread by @cdaargh

If you're fucking sick of hearing so much about left-wing antisemitism, think how fucking tired its victims are of being on the receiving fucking end of it.

And if you think complaints about left-wing antisemitism are part of some kind of conspiracy to cover up complaints of other kinds of racism or forms of bigotry, guess what, you sound pretty indistinguishable from an antisemite, however "woke" you are.

Absolutely true that antisemitism isn't the only form of bigotry or hypocrisy on the left - various people &/or publications decry some kinds of antisemitism but not others, or are actively transphobic or racist in other ways. That's not an excuse to be same.

Also obviously true that there's shitloads of antisemitism & bigotry of all kinds on the right, but most of us on left take that as given, & challenge & oppose right from the neo-Nazis to the Tories to the neoliberals.

It's been (rightly) pointed out that some people raising their voices against antisemitism in Labour took a long time to call out racism & misogyny directed against Diane Abbott, but is this a reason to dismiss them entirely...? +

Abbott herself dismissed claims of antisemitism in Labour as a smear campaign against Corbyn, something he himself has now said several times isn't true. Would that be a reason to dismiss racism against her?? (Cluestick: no, definitely not.)

tbh I don't give much of a shit what people think about John Mann or Jess Philips or various journalists who I find vile on various levels so don't retweet... it's what MPs like Luciana Berger have to deal with, and ditto Jews on social media & everyday life.

If the media suddenly gave massive coverage to the SWP's rape apologism, some on left would see this as an attack against the left, others would welcome it as an attack on rape culture in parts of the left. Which side would you be on?

When it comes down to it, you can stand with the antisemites & those spreading antisemitic tropes & conspiracy theories, or against them. Shouldn't matter if they come from left or right. It's the same lies, with the occasional angled twist.

Actually, it does piss me off that I have to tweet about antisemitism so damn much. If more of the left had listened to people for the last few decades saying what I've been saying for last 4 years, we wouldn't be in this fucking mess.

The Nazis didn't just gain their power because far-right views were spread by propaganda, they gained their power because antisemitism was already woven into most of gentile society & antisemitic tropes were widely accepted as truth.

Someone once asked me what exactly I feared re: antisemitism from a Corbyn-led govt, & I couldn't articulate what that was. Now, it's more apparent. I don't remotely think Corbyn would start death camps - but parts of left now normalizing antisemitic tropes.

We need an opposition which OPPOSES far-right, not one which spreads many of its tropes (& notice how many of them spread pro-Assad conspiracy theories too). For antisemitism to be normalized across left as well as right equals no hope, to very many Jews.

AND - though this doesn't apply to 100% of my followers, it applies to way more than 50%: your cultural heritage is not free from antisemitism. Some of your ancestors very likely collaborated in or took active part in the oppression or slaughter or Jews.

Is that your fault? No. I don't blame younger generations of Germans or Austrians etc for the Nazis. But that isn't the point. Jew-hate has been a systemic part of European & other societies for centuries. Let's not ignore or erase that.

Article on #antisemitism in the UK, full of links, for those wishing to learn more: leftungagged.org/2018/08/03/ant…

Blog post from @budgie in 2014, on criticizing Israel vs #antisemitism: budgiehypoth.wordpress.com/2014/08/14/50-…