front cover of Bad News for Labour
Bad News for Labour
Antisemitism, the Party and Public Belief
Greg Philo
Pluto Press, 2019
Jointly written by five leading voices on the topic, this book looks at the contentious issue of antisemitism in the Labour Party today, and sets out ways of addressing the problem while maintaining the integrity of the organisation. The first part of the book includes original material on public beliefs about antisemitism in the Labour Party, and the kinds of problems this poses regarding voting intentions and demoralization of the membership. The writers then investigate the institutional problems and policy decisions that prevented a coherent and well-planned response from the party, and how Labour can rectify this today. The book progresses to explore in depth the coverage of the issue in mainstream media outlets, and the partial accounts presented to the public. The writers focus on the debates around the IHRA definition, and the accusations made against David Miller which were eventually dismissed and set an important precedent. At the end of the book, Mike Berry provides a helpful chronological account of the arguments surrounding this issue from the beginning of Corbyn's leadership to the present.
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front cover of Whatever Happened to Antisemitism?
Whatever Happened to Antisemitism?
Redefinition and the Myth of the 'Collective Jew'
Antony Lerman
Pluto Press, 2020

'This elegantly written, erudite book is essential reading for all of us, whatever our identifications' - Lynne Segal

Antisemitism is one of the most controversial topics of our time. The public, academics, journalists, activists and Jewish people themselves are divided over its meaning. Antony Lerman shows that this is a result of a 30-year process of redefinition of the phenomenon, casting Israel, problematically defined as the 'persecuted collective Jew', as one of its main targets.

This political project has taken the notion of the 'new antisemitism' and codified it in the flawed International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's 'working definition' of antisemitism. This text is the glue holding together an international network comprising the Israeli government, pro-Israel advocacy groups, Zionist organizations, Jewish communal defence bodies and sympathetic governments fighting a war against those who would criticize Israel.

The consequences of this redefinition have been alarming, supressing free speech on Palestine/Israel, legitimizing Islamophobic right-wing forces, and politicizing principled opposition to antisemitism.

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