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Wiley is not an ‘inspiration’: CAA and Ivors member and past awards panellist write to Ivors Academy calling for Wiley’s Ivors Inspiration Award to be rescinded

A senior volunteer at Campaign Against Antisemitism has written on our behalf to the Ivors Academy calling for it to rescind Wiley’s 2019 Ivors Inspiration Award.

In his letter, Joe Glasman, an award-winning composer, Ivors member and former Ivors award panellist, noted that Wiley has “spent the last several days on an antisemitic tirade” and wrote that it would be “untenable for an individual who holds such horrific antisemitic views to continue to be held up as worthy of such an award by the Academy, an honour bestowed specifically upon those whom the Academy considers to be inspirational role models for composers and young artists.”

Mr Glasman went on to note that the Academy is “rightly dedicated to diversity, equality and inclusivity” but that this means that the Academy “must be a safe space for all minorities, and that includes Jews.”

Mr Glasman observed that he could not remain a member of the Academy if it fails to revoke Wiley’s award, but expressed confidence that Ivors would make the right decision.

The full letter can be read below.

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Jeremy Corbyn deletes Wiley tweet without condemning antisemitism

Jeremy Corbyn has deleted a past tweet exchange with the grime artist Wiley, who has become embroiled in controversy over an extended antisemitic rant.

Wiley, whose real name is Richard Kylea Cowie Jr., appears to have shown support for the former Labour leader, who thanked him for his endorsement.

However, with Wiley now at the centre of his own antisemitism scandal, Mr Corbyn, whose tenure as Labour leader was marked by the Party’s institutional antisemitism, has apparently deleted the tweet, but has not issued any statement explaining why or condemning Wiley’s antisemitism.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Jeremy Corbyn has not found time to express a shred of solidarity with the Jewish community even as #NoSafeSpaceForJewHate became Twitter’s top trending hashtag, but he has found time to cover his own tracks. Mr Corbyn’s deletion of his positive Twitter exchange with Wiley without any statement condemning his antisemitism suggests that he is acting purely out of self-interest to try to protect the shards of his shattered reputation as a supposed ‘anti-racist’.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism recently called for Mr Corbyn to be suspended from Labour after he made a conspiratorial statement about a legal settlement reached between Labour and former staffers turned whistleblowers.

Mr Corbyn has a long history of antisemitism controversies implicating him directly, and over 57,000 people signed our petition denouncing him as an antisemite and declaring him “unfit to hold any public office.”

On 28th May 2019, the Equality and Human Rights Commission launched a full statutory investigation into antisemitism in the Labour Party following a formal referral and detailed legal representations from Campaign Against Antisemitism, which is the complainant.

In the first release of its Antisemitism in Political Parties research, Campaign Against Antisemitism showed that Labour Party candidates for Parliament in the 2019 general election accounted for 82 percent of all incidents of antisemitic discourse by parliamentary candidates.

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2019 showed that antisemitism on the far-left of British politics has surpassed that of the far-right.

Campaign Against Antisemitism advocates for zero tolerance of antisemitism in public life. To that end we monitor all political parties and strive to ensure that any cases of concern are properly addressed.

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Prime Minister Boris Johnson calls Wiley’s antisemitism “abhorrent” and Twitter’s response “not good enough”

The Prime Minister has spoken out against Wiley’s antisemitism, calling it “abhorrent”, and declared that Twitter’s response was “not good enough”.

A spokesperson for Boris Johnson said: “The Prime Minister would echo the comments of the Home Secretary yesterday that the antisemitic posts by Wiley are abhorrent. The Prime Minister would also echo the Home Secretary’s comments that this material should not have been able to remain on Twitter and Instagram for so long.”

The spokesman added that “social media companies need to go much further and faster in removing hateful comment such as this” and that “the message is clear: Twitter needs to do better on this.”

The comments come after Home Secretary Priti Patel also said: “The antisemitic posts from Wiley are abhorrent. They should not have been able to remain on Twitter and Instagram for so long and I have asked them for a full explanation. Social media companies must act much faster to remove such appalling hatred from their platforms.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism has joined others in walking out of Twitter and other social media platforms for 48 hours.

Those who oppose antisemitic racism are encouraged to join the walkout and to add the #TogetherAgainstAntisemitism profile badge in solidarity.

You can keep up with Campaign Against Antisemitism’s updates during the walkout at antisemitism.org/news or by subscribing to our e-mail updates and switching them from weekly updates to daily updates.

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CAA calls for prosecution, revocation of MBE and closure of social media accounts of musician Wiley over unhinged incitement against Jews

Campaign Against Antisemitism is calling for the prosecution of the musician known as Wiley over his unhinged incitement against Jews. We have also called for the revocation of his MBE and asked Twitter and Instagram, which is owned by Facebook, to close his social media accounts.

The rapper, whose name is Richard Kylea Cowie but who is known as Wiley, has spent today engaged in an escalating rant which has culminated in calls for Jews to be shot and for black people to go to “war” against them.

After a day spent likening Jews to the Ku Klax Klan and claiming that Jews had cheated him and were “snakes”, Wiley tweeted that Jews should “hold some corn”, which is a slang expression meaning that they should be shot. He added “Jewish community you deserve it”.

He also called on “black people” to go to “war” with Jews.

Wiley repeatedly evoked conspiracy theories that Jews were responsible for the slave trade and that modern-day Jews are in fact imposters who usurped black people — a conspiracy theory that has incited acts of terrorism against Jews, such as a stabbing attack in Monsey in New York in December.

As Wiley spewed his antisemitic venom, Campaign Against Antisemitism responded with the facts, for example that the conspiracy theory that Jews were responsible for the slave trade has been described by the Legacies of British Slave Ownership project at University College, London, as based on “no evidence whatsoever”.

Wiley’s racist ramblings, which he apparently referred to as “Black History Lesson For Today”, come after the musician known as Ice Cube tweeted a picture of an antisemitic mural and several other celebrities have promoted the antisemitic hate preacher Louis Farrakhan. During his rant, Wiley praised Ice Cube.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Our Crime Unit has reported this matter to the Metropolitan Police Service as we consider that Wiley has committed the offence of incitement to racial hatred, which can carry a substantial prison sentence. We have additionally asked Twitter and Facebook, which owns Instagram, to close down his accounts which have hundreds of thousands of followers, to prevent further outpouring of anti-Jewish venom. Our Regulatory Enforcement Unit is contacting the Honours Forfeiture Committee at the Cabinet Office to ask that Wiley’s MBE be revoked, and we will be looking to ensure that no reputable label or manager works with him again.

“The conspiracy theories evoked by Wiley today claiming that white Jews were responsible for the slave trade usurped the position of black people have caused recent bloodshed, for example the terrorist attack against Jews in Monsey, New York in December.

“Wiley has many hundreds of thousands of followers on social media and we have seen today that a significant number of them truly believe the unhinged hatred that he is spreading. We are treating this as a very serious matter which must be met with the firmest of responses.”

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Wiley must immediately apologise and make amends for antisemitic rant or no respectable label or manager should ever work with him again

The British rapper Wiley has spent the day delivering an antisemitic rant on Twitter, comparing Jews to the Ku Klux Klan, making comments about Jewish power and control of the “system” and insisting repeatedly that “Israel does not belong to you”.

Among the comments were:

  • “Is it anti semetic [sic] to say Jewish people have power?’
  • “If you work for a company owned by 2 Jewish men and you challenge the Jewish community in anyway of course you will get fired”
  • “My ex manager was South Africa/ Jewish and I promise you he taught me so much about how this all works I was shocked [sic]”
  • “Red Necks Are the KKK and Jewish people are the Law…Work that out [sic]”
  • “Listen to me Jewish community Israel is not your country I’m sorry”; Jewish community ya too touchy anyway Israel is not yours hold that”; “Israel does not belong to you”; “I don’t care Cos Israel is ours what about that”; and “Israel is ours who wants to talk about that?”; a sentiment also repeated here; here; and here
  • “Certain people out here actually using hitlers tricks and I don’t like hitler just saying tho [sic]”
  • “In some cases the oppressed become the oppressor [sic]”
  • “The Star of David that’s our ting [sic]”
  • “I’m not anti semetic I am anti slippery people there’s a difference [sic]”

Some other tweets in the rant can be accessed here; here; here; here; here; here; here; here; and here.

Wiley’s repeated claim that “Israel does not belong to you”, accompanied by the assertion that “Israel is ours who wants to talk about that?”, as well as his claim that “The Star of David that’s our ting [sic]”, suggests that he may be espousing views associated with the hateful Black Israelite Hebrews movement, which has been known to harass Jews and has been connected to at least one violent antisemitic shooting in the United States.

Wiley’s racist ramblings, which he apparently referred to as “Black History Lesson For Today”, come after Ice Cube tweeted a picture of an antisemitic mural and several other celebrities have promoted the antisemitic hate preacher Louis Farrakhan.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Likening Jews to the KKK is a hideous antisemitic slur, which Wiley can add to the antisemitic tropes he has tweeted about Jewish power and Jews in business. He joins a number of celebrities who have promoted antisemitic themes or individuals in recent weeks, some of whom have apologised and sought rehabilitation. Wiley must immediately do the same, otherwise no respectable label or manager should work with him ever again.”

https://twitter.com/WileyCEO/status/1286611940836544518
https://twitter.com/WileyCEO/status/1286615262003900416
https://twitter.com/WileyCEO/status/1286616589001986048
https://twitter.com/WileyCEO/status/1286616759575941120
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Roger Waters says American leaders are puppets of a Jewish billionaire, Israel teaches America how to “murder the blacks” and Zionism needs to be “removed”

Roger Waters has said that American leaders are puppets of a Jewish billionaire, that Israel teaches America how to “murder the blacks” and that Zionism needs to be “removed”.

The former Pink Floyd star, who has a long history of inflammatory comments about Jews, made the comments in an interview with an Arab news channel shortly after the racist killing of George Floyd.

The interview nodded and expressed agreement with Mr Waters’ conspiratorial accusations throughout the exchange.

In a mindless and offensive rant, Mr Waters said that Sheldon Adelson, a wealthy Jewish philanthropist and political donor in the United States, “is the puppet master pulling all the strings” who “believes that only Jews are completely human” and “everybody on earth is there to serve them [the Jews]”. Mr Waters concluded that “this is a crazy, crazy, crazy guy.”

Mr Waters then turned to other topics, saying: “The murder of George Floyd…was done with a technique designed by the IDF.” He further promoted this popular antisemitic trope by explaining that “the Israelis invented ‘let’s kill people by kneeling on their necks’…that is an Israeli technique taught to the militarised police forces in the United States of America by Israeli experts whom the Americans have been flying over to the United States to teach them how to murder the blacks, because they’ve seen how efficient the Israelis are”. He added that “the Israelis are proud of it!”

Mr Waters concluded by saying that Zionism, which is the basic right of Jews to self-determine, is “an ugly stain and it needs to be gently removed by us”.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “It is ironic that Roger Waters should be accusing others of being ‘crazy’ given his habit of promoting mindless and dangerous conspiracy theories. His claim that America’s leaders are in the pocket of a wealthy Jewish philanthropist, that Jews believe that non-Jews are subhuman, that Israel is to blame for the racist killing of George Floyd and teach America how ‘to murder black people’, and that Zionism – the basic right of Jews to self-determine – needs to be ‘removed’, speak to his deranged and obsessive views. At a time when the world is showing solidarity against prejudice, Waters is disgracefully sowing hatred.”

Image credit: MEMRI

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Ken Loach joined by Mike Leigh and other usual suspects in criticism of BAFTA nomination of Panorama programme that helped expose Labour antisemitism

The controversial filmmaker and Jeremy Corbyn enthusiast has been joined in his criticism of the BAFTA Television Award nomination for Panorama’s programme titled “Is Labour Antisemitic?” by a cast of usual suspects.

Ken Loach, a BAFTA Fellow, called the programme a “crude polemic, without balance or objectivity, intended to undermine Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership,” and claimed that “BAFTA’s choice is a blatant attempt to rehabilitate a discredited piece of propaganda. It should fool no-one.”

He has now been joined by another outspoken filmmaker, Mike Leigh, as well as the human rights barrister and political activist Geoffrey Bindman QC, who opposed Labour’s adoption of the International Definition of Antisemitism (he preferred Labour’s controversial substitute code) and has expressed concern that the Definition “serves to protect Israel from legitimate criticism.”

The group also included Tom Llewellyn, a former BBC Middle East Correspondent with a history of inflammatory statements, including apparently complaining about a “Jewish lobby”, “Zionist penetration” of the British Government and exploitation by Israel of European guilt over the Holocaust.

The group accused the Panorama programme of presenting a “high skewed, politicised and distorted account” of Labour’s antisemitism crisis and complained that fringe Jewish pro-Corbyn groups were not included.

The programme, which was televised in July 2019, showed former Labour Party employees speaking out publicly to reveal Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn’s personal meddling in disciplinary cases relating to antisemitism. The programme explained how senior Labour Party staffers, some of whom Campaign Against Antisemitism has known for years, used to run Labour’s disciplinary process independently, but soon after Mr Corbyn’s election as Party leader found themselves contending with his most senior aides, who were brazen in their efforts to subvert due process.

During the programme Labour’s press team made claims that the staffers featured had political axes to grind and lacked credibility, and it is understood that they and John Ware, the maker of the programme, commenced libel proceedings against the Labour Party. The libel cases are being brought by Mark Lewis, a highly esteemed media lawyer who is also an honorary patron of Campaign Against Antisemitism.

The Labour Party also submitted a 28-page complaint to the BBC, claiming the programme failed to meet the BBC’s standards, but the BBC’s Executive Complaints Unit, which is the top level of the broadcaster’s internal complaints process, decided to back the makers of the episode. Labour then took its complaint to Ofcom but withdrew it earlier this year.

On 28th May 2019, the Equality and Human Rights Commission launched a full statutory investigation into antisemitism in the Labour Party following a formal referral and detailed legal representations from Campaign Against Antisemitism, which is the complainant.

In the first release of its Antisemitism in Political Parties research, Campaign Against Antisemitism showed that Labour Party candidates for Parliament in the 2019 general election accounted for 82 percent of all incidents of antisemitic discourse by parliamentary candidates.

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2019 showed that antisemitism on the far-left of British politics has surpassed that of the far-right.

Campaign Against Antisemitism advocates for zero tolerance of antisemitism in public life. To that end we monitor all political parties and strive to ensure that any cases of concern are properly addressed.

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Controversial filmmaker and and Corbyn enthusiast Ken Loach describes BAFTA nomination for Panorama’s expose of Labour antisemitism a “disgrace”

Ken Loach, the controversial filmmaker and Jeremy Corbyn enthusiast, has described the BAFTA Television Award nomination for Panorama’s programme titled “Is Labour Antisemitic?” as a “disgrace”.

Mr Loach called the programme a “crude polemic, without balance or objectivity, intended to undermine Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership,” and claimed that “BAFTA’s choice is a blatant attempt to rehabilitate a discredited piece of propaganda. It should fool no-one.”

The filmmaker made the comments to The Canary, a controversial hard-left blog under investigation by the Government’s Independent Advisor on Antisemitism. Mr Loach has received several BAFTA awards over the course of his career.

The programme, which was televised in July 2019, showed former Labour Party employees speaking out publicly to reveal Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn’s personal meddling in disciplinary cases relating to antisemitism. The programme explained how senior Labour Party staffers, some of whom Campaign Against Antisemitism has known for years, used to run Labour’s disciplinary process independently, but soon after Mr Corbyn’s election as Party leader found themselves contending with his most senior aides, who were brazen in their efforts to subvert due process.

During the programme Labour’s press team made claims that the staffers featured had political axes to grind and lacked credibility, and it is understood that they and John Ware, the maker of the programme, commenced libel proceedings against the Labour Party. The libel cases are being brought by Mark Lewis, a highly esteemed media lawyer who is also an honorary patron of Campaign Against Antisemitism.

The Labour Party also submitted a 28-page complaint to the BBC, claiming the programme failed to meet the BBC’s standards, but the BBC’s Executive Complaints Unit, which is the top level of the broadcaster’s internal complaints process, decided to back the makers of the episode. Labour then took its complaint to Ofcom but withdrew it earlier this year.

Mr Loach’s voice has been among the loudest of those who attempt to dismiss Labour’s antisemitism crisis as non-existent and a right-wing smear campaign. He claimed that Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn was subjected to a “torrent of abuse” that was “off the scale” and that regardless of what he did, the “campaign” of antisemitism accusations was “going to run and run”. He described the BBC’s Panorama investigation into Labour antisemitism as “disgusting because it raised the horror of racism against Jews in the most atrocious propagandistic way, with crude journalism…and it bought the propaganda from people who were intent on destroying Corbyn.” He was also reportedly behind a motion passed by Bath Labour Party branding the Panorama programme a “dishonest hatchet job with potentially undemocratic consequences” and asserting that it “disgraced the name of Panorama and exposed the bias endemic within the BBC.” John Ware, the programme’s reporter, is apparently considering legal action against Mr Loach for his comments.

In 2017, Mr Loach caused outrage when, during an interview with the BBC, he refused to denounce Holocaust denial. The International Definition of Antisemitism states that “denying the fact, scope, mechanisms (e.g. gas chambers) or intentionality of the genocide of the Jewish people at the hands of National Socialist Germany and its supporters and accomplices during World War II (the Holocaust)” is a manifestation of antisemitism. Although Mr Loach later sought to clarify his remarks, he has continued to make inflammatory and provocative statements about Labour’s antisemitism scandal. While speaking at a meeting of the Kingswood Constituency Labour Party, Mr Loach advocated the removal from the Party of those Labour MPs, some of whom are Jewish, who have taken a principled stand against antisemitism. Shortly after that incident, the Labour Party announced that it would no longer use Mr Loach as a producer of their election broadcasts.

On 28th May 2019, the Equality and Human Rights Commission launched a full statutory investigation into antisemitism in the Labour Party following a formal referral and detailed legal representations from Campaign Against Antisemitism, which is the complainant.

In the first release of its Antisemitism in Political Parties research, Campaign Against Antisemitism showed that Labour Party candidates for Parliament in the 2019 general election accounted for 82 percent of all incidents of antisemitic discourse by parliamentary candidates.

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2019 showed that antisemitism on the far-left of British politics has surpassed that of the far-right.

Campaign Against Antisemitism advocates for zero tolerance of antisemitism in public life. To that end we monitor all political parties and strive to ensure that any cases of concern are properly addressed.

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Rapper Ice Cube approvingly tweets antisemitic image from mural that Jeremy Corbyn defended

The rapper Ice Cube has been condemned for posting – and subsequently refusing to remove – a tweet of the image known to British Jews from the mural that former Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn defended, before backtracking.

Ice Cube, a musician whose real name is O’Shea Jackson, tweeted the picture that originated on a wall in London’s East End in October 2012 after the Los Angeles-based street artist Mear One painted the image, which featured apparently-Jewish bankers beneath a pyramid often used by conspiracy theorists playing Monopoly on a board carried by straining, oppressed workers, several of whom had dark or black skin. The mural, called Freedom for Humanity, was widely perceived as antisemitic, and was eventually removed.

Ice Cube tweeted the same image, which now featured a caption: “All we have to do is stand up and their little game is over”. Ice Cube wrote in his tweet: “F*** the new normal until they fix the old normal!” His comment appears to be juxtaposing the ‘new normal’ social and economic condition resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic with the ‘old normal’ of racial hatred, opposition to which has been expressed in worldwide protests following the racist killing of George Floyd.

The rapper has refused to take down the tweet.

It is inexcusable to sully the noble cause of fighting anti-black racism by using expressions of anti-Jewish racism. Racism cannot be combated by recourse to other forms of racism.

There have been other recent instances of this appalling trend, including in the Labour Party.

Ice Cube has previously courted controversy, including in his song ‘No Vaseline’, the lyrics of which include the lines “It’s a case of divide-and-conquer/’Cause you let a Jew break up my crew” and “’Cause you can’t be the N**** 4 Life crew/With a white Jew tellin’ you what to do/Pullin’ wools with your scams.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism continues its robust engagement with social media companies over the content that they enable to be published, and we continue to make representations to the Government in this connection.

https://twitter.com/icecube/status/1269277079914209282

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BBC Panorama investigation into Labour antisemitism nominated for BAFTA TV award

BBC Panorama has been nominated for a BAFTA Television Award in the category of ‘current affairs’ for its programme titled “Is Labour Antisemitic?”, which explored antisemitism in the Labour Party.

The programme, which was televised in July 2019, showed former Labour Party employees speaking out publicly to reveal Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn’s personal meddling in disciplinary cases relating to antisemitism. The programme explained how senior Labour Party staffers, some of whom Campaign Against Antisemitism has known for years, used to run Labour’s disciplinary process independently, but soon after Mr Corbyn’s election as Party leader found themselves contending with his most senior aides, who were brazen in their efforts to subvert due process.

During the programme Labour’s press team made claims that the staffers featured had political axes to grind and lacked credibility, and it is understood that they and John Ware, the maker of the programme, commenced libel proceedings against the Labour Party. The libel cases are being brought by Mark Lewis, a highly esteemed media lawyer who is also an honorary patron of Campaign Against Antisemitism.

The Labour Party also submitted a 28-page complaint to the BBC, claiming the programme failed to meet the BBC’s standards, but the BBC’s Executive Complaints Unit, which is the top level of the broadcaster’s internal complaints process, decided to back the makers of the episode. Labour then took its complaint to Ofcom but withdrew it earlier this year.

On 28th May 2019, the Equality and Human Rights Commission launched a full statutory investigation into antisemitism in the Labour Party following a formal referral and detailed legal representations from Campaign Against Antisemitism, which is the complainant.

In the first release of its Antisemitism in Political Parties research, Campaign Against Antisemitism showed that Labour Party candidates for Parliament in the 2019 general election accounted for 82 percent of all incidents of antisemitic discourse by parliamentary candidates.

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2019 showed that antisemitism on the far-left of British politics has surpassed that of the far-right.

Campaign Against Antisemitism advocates for zero tolerance of antisemitism in public life. To that end we monitor all political parties and strive to ensure that any cases of concern are properly addressed.

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Celebrity singer Dua Lipa shares then removes social media post claiming Israelis are “fake” Jews

The singer, Dua Lipa, has shared a social media post claiming that Israelis are “fake” Jews, but she then removed it after criticism.

The British celebrity shared the post, originally authored by a user called “Vinarfuso”, to her tens of millions of Instagram followers.

The post claimed in respect of the residents of Gaza that Hamas is used as a “justification as to why they don’t deserve freedom”, but that this is “hysterical” because “the United States (fake Christians in the Midwest) and Israel (fake Jewish ppl [people] in the Israeli government) created Hamas simply for all of you geniuses to believe that Hamas is the reasons for the decades worth of occupation, oppression, ethnic cleansing, and murder.”

The post went on to clarify: “To my dear Jewish friends and family, I love you all. This has nothing to do with you or religion, and all to do with justice and freedom.”

Following criticism, Dua Lipa removed the post.

Campaign Against Antisemitism continues its robust engagement with social media companies over the content that they enable to be published, and we continue to make representations to the Government in this connection.

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Xenophobic article in The Guardian by comedian Stewart Lee is described by its target, Tom Tugendhat MP, as a “dog whistle” against the “Jew as foreigner”

The Guardian newspaper is embroiled in controversy over a xenophobic article by the comedian Stewart Lee that targeted the Conservative MP, Tom Tugendhat, over his foreign-sounding name.

In the article, entitled “Now Boris Johnson is talking through his Tugendhat”, Mr Lee wrote: “Stay alert! Many names – Fisher, Cook, Smith – derive from ancient trades. But ‘Tugendhat’ is just different words put together, like Waspcupfinger, or Appendixhospitalwool, or Abortionmaqaquesymptom. This former intelligence officer is the nephew of a real man called Baron Tugendhat. Baron Tugendhat is not a character from a 19th-century German children’s book about a baron with a weird hat, the end of which gets tugged.” The article continued in the same vein, making further mocking references to the MP’s name.

Mr Tugendhat, who has Jewish ancestry, described the article as “the dog whistle – Jews as foreigner. Again.” It was also noted that Mr Lee introduced Dominic Raab, the Foreign Secretary, into his rant. Mr Raab’s Jewish father escaped Nazi Germany just before the war.

The outrage focused in particular on how many Jews felt the need to Anglicise their names when they immigrated to Britain precisely to avoid the sort of racist opprobrium levelled by Mr Lee against Mr Tugendhat. One commentator described it as “playground-level racism”.

In another tweet, Mr Tugendhat elaborated, saying: “The idea of uppity foreigner coming over here and conspiring to take power is literally the archetypal antisemitic trope. It is so standard it’s dull but that doesn’t make it any less true. The search into my name shows he knows the origins. It’s not new.”

Mr Tugendhat further observed, following the publication of the article, that “antisemitism is now so mainstream this no longer surprises me.” Following the 2019 General Election, he revealed that he had witnessed antisemitic abuse during the campaign.

Once again, The Guardian has shown that it is much more sensitive to some types of racism while happily indulging in others.

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Disgraced former MP Chris Williamson to launch new ‘grassroots movement’ with inaugural ‘Resist Festival’ featuring Lowkey and Noam Chomsky

The disgraced former MP, Chris Williamson, has floated the idea of launching a new ‘grassroots movement’.

Mr Williamson, who was embroiled in scandals over antisemitism when he was in the Labour Party, has said that with the election of Sir Keir Starmer to the Labour leadership, many feel “politically homeless”.

He intends the new movement to use “culture, alternative media and street protest” to achieve its aims, with a ‘Resist Festival’ originally planned for June but now postponed to October due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Resist Festival is due to feature controversial speakers including the rapper Lowkey, the outspoken academic Noam Chomsky, the activist Max Blumenthal and representatives from the ‘yellow vest’ protests in France.

Mr Williamson resigned from the Labour Party in late 2019 after learning that he would not be allowed to stand for the Party in the general election. His extraordinary letter of resignation from the Party read like a manifesto against Jews. He ran in the general election as an independent and, in a rarity for an incumbent MP that demonstrates the depth of his rejection by his Derby North constituents, got so few votes that he lost his deposit.

He has described his erstwhile Party’s institutional antisemitism as “manufactured” and part of an “assault on our democracy” by a “hostile foreign government” to “normalise Zionism in the Labour Party”.

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2019 showed that antisemitism on the far-left of British politics has surpassed that of the far-right, and that 17% of British people believe, like Mr Williamson, that Israel and those who support it do damage to British democracy.

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Black metal festival with bands accused of promoting neo-Nazism moved to Edinburgh after Glasgow venue cancels booking

A black metal festival due to include bands accused of promoting neo-Nazism had its booking in Glasgow cancelled after concerns were raised, but it has now been moved to a venue near Edinburgh.

The event, which is tied to the National Socailist Black Metal scene within black metal music, was scheduled to take place in November 2020, but the Classic Grand venue in Glasgow withdrew, saying it would not provide “a platform to any form of hatred” after becoming aware of “certain connections to fascist ideology being associated with the festival.”

The organiser of the event rebuffed the suggestion that some of the bands promoted neo-Nazism, accused critics of a “witchhunt” and announced that the festival would proceed at an undisclosed, “privately-owned space” near Edinburgh.

Last year the event took place in Glasgow, and the organiser implied that the rescheduling of this year’s event, called Darkness Guides Us, was tied to logistical changes arising from the COP26 climate summit and COVID-19.

Some of the bands that have previously been subjects of controversy include Taake, Kalmankantaja and Satanic Warmaster. Last year, the festival sought to book a band called Korda, but the band was not permitted entry into the UK.

Campaign Against Antisemitism is monitoring developments.

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Ken Loach won’t judge Show Racism the Red Card competition after all, but not for the reason you think

The controversial filmmaker and Jeremy Corbyn enthusiast, Ken Loach, will not judge a Show Racism the Red Card competition after all.

Show Racism the Red Card describes itself as an anti-racism educational charity and appears to focus on discrimination and hate towards Black and Asian communities in the UK and does not appear to offer resources on antisemitism. Earlier this year, the activist group again became involved in controversy over antisemitism following an invitation to Mr Loach to join a panel of judges for a school competition on creative anti-racism designs.

The group’s chief executive, who has his own troubling history in relation to the Jewish community, described Mr Loach at the time as a “valued supporter” and he said that he could not “think of two people better qualified to choose winners,” in reference to Mr Loach and another controversial judge.

But today the organisation released a statement saying that it and Mr Loach “have together agreed that Ken will not act as a judge for the SRtRC School Competition 2020.” The statement reaffirmed that Mr Loach “has been a supporter, and advocate, of SRtRC for many years. He is a member of our Hall of Fame, in tribute to the work he has done over many years in combating racism and his support is greatly appreciated.”

The statement went on to disclose that evidence had been presented to the organisation of Mr Loach’s support via email for an appeal by Pete Gregson, a Labour activist, against his dismissal. Mr Gregson has been suspended from the Labour Party and expelled from the pro-Corbyn pressure group Momentum and from the GMB trade union after suggesting that the Holocaust was exaggerated and for abusive behaviour towards a female Jewish Labour member. Mr Gregson is the founder of Labour Against Zionism and Islamophobic Racism (Lazir) and was a guest speaker at an event organised by Keep Talking, a conspiracy theorist group that brings the far-right and far-left together.

The statement claims that Mr Loach “has since unequivocally denounced and rejected Peter Gregson for his antisemitism and behaviour, now that Gregson’s antisemitic behaviour and comments have been drawn to his attention. Ken Loach accepts a mistake in expressing support for Peter Gregson and in failing to contact the GMB prior to his reply to him…SRtRC and Ken Loach unreservedly support the GMB in the decision to expel Peter Gregson.”

However, although this revelation is implicitly a reason for Mr Loach’s withdrawal as a judge, the statement adds that “a significant factor in Ken Loach’s decision is the abuse online and in person that he and his family have received. It is profoundly distressing, and he is very concerned to protect those closest to him.”

Abuse is never acceptable, and Campaign Against Antisemitism hopes that Show Racism the Red Card is not suggesting that highlighting Mr Loach’s history of inflammatory comments on the subject of antisemitism and his consequent unfitness to serve as a judge in an anti-racism competition constitutes abuse.

Mr Loach’s voice has been among the loudest of those who attempt to dismiss Labour’s antisemitism crisis as non-existent and a right-wing smear campaign. He claimed that Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn was subjected to a “torrent of abuse” that was “off the scale” and that regardless of what he did, the “campaign” of antisemitism accusations was “going to run and run”. He described the BBC’s Panorama investigation into Labour antisemitism as “disgusting because it raised the horror of racism against Jews in the most atrocious propagandistic way, with crude journalism…and it bought the propaganda from people who were intent on destroying Corbyn.” He was also reportedly behind a motion passed by Bath Labour Party branding the Panorama programme a “dishonest hatchet job with potentially undemocratic consequences” and asserting that it “disgraced the name of Panorama and exposed the bias endemic within the BBC.” John Ware, the programme’s reporter, is apparently considering legal action against Mr Loach for his comments.

In 2017, Mr Loach caused outrage when, during an interview with the BBC, he refused to denounce Holocaust denial. The International Definition of Antisemitism states that “denying the fact, scope, mechanisms (e.g. gas chambers) or intentionality of the genocide of the Jewish people at the hands of National Socialist Germany and its supporters and accomplices during World War II (the Holocaust)” is a manifestation of antisemitism. Although Mr Loach later sought to clarify his remarks, he has continued to make inflammatory and provocative statements about Labour’s antisemitism scandal. While speaking at a meeting of the Kingswood Constituency Labour Party, Mr Loach advocated the removal from the Party of those Labour MPs, some of whom are Jewish, who have taken a principled stand against antisemitism. Shortly after that incident, the Labour Party announced that it would no longer use Mr Loach as a producer of their election broadcasts.

Mr Loach’s record should have been sufficient to disqualify him as a prospective judge in an anti-racism competition, and it is regrettable that further evidence of his disconcerting views had to come to light before Show Racism the Red Card reversed its decision to enlist him. Still, Show Racism the Red Card is at pains to defend and praise Mr Loach instead of cutting ties completely. Evidently, some types of racism are more tolerable than others.

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CAA picket of venue forces antisemitic saxophonist Gilad Atzmon to withdraw from performance at 606 Club

The antisemitic saxophonist, Gilad Atzmon, has withdrawn from his scheduled gig at the 606 Club tomorrow evening. The club had flatly rejected significant opposition to his performance by the Jewish community, until Campaign Against Antisemitism said that we would picket the venue on multiple future dates if Mr Atzmon was allowed to perform. Mr Atzmon said: “This morning I decided that in the light of the CAA’s threats, I am withdrawing from the gig.”

Mr Atzmon, billed as a “wonderful sax and clarinet player with a powerful sound and unique approach,” albeit one with “well-documented views on the Middle East that may provoke and challenge the listener,” had been scheduled to perform with his band at the iconic jazz venue tomorrow night.

However Mr Atzmon is a notorious antisemite. He was reported to have blamed the Grenfell Tower tragedy on “Jerusalemites” as well as reportedly telling university students that “the Jews were expelled from Germany for misbehaving.” His antisemitism is so brazen that he told a Jewish Twitter user in 2014: “I am not a Jew any more. I indeed despise the Jew in me (whatever is left). I absolutely detest the Jew in you.”

Initially, 606 Club doubled down on its invitation to Mr Atzmon, despite his record. Its owner defended Mr Atzmon, reportedly saying that although Mr Atzmon “sailed way too close to the wind sometimes”, nevertheless “having just spoken to Gilad he insisted he’s not racist and went to great pains to say that he does not have an issue with Jews, of which he is obviously one, the religion or the culture.” The owner added that he had never heard Mr Atzmon speak pejoratively of Jews.

However, after Campaign Against Antisemitism warned 606 Club that it would picket future events there in order to publicise to its patrons the venue’s tolerance of anti-Jewish prejudice, Mr Atzmon has apparently decided to back out of the performance, stating that it was because of “CAA’s threats”.

606 Club announced that Mr Atzmon had “decided to stand down” in order to “protect the venue’s reputation”, adding that the club would “liaise with concerned parties while it investigates allegations” against Mr Atzmon, which it claims are “so far unsupported”. The club’s owner reportedly said that he was doing “more due diligence on the matter”.

Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “It is appalling that 606 Club invited Gilad Atzmon to play yet again and then defended the decision even when confronted with his record of antisemitism which is well documented and well known. At a time when antisemitism in public life and on our streets is surging, it is disgraceful that the club resisted disinviting Mr Atzmon and apparently left it to him to do so under pressure from Campaign Against Antisemitism.”

This incident is not the first time that Campaign Against Antisemitism has succeeded in preventing Mr Atzmon from being given a platform.

Following efforts by Campaign Against Antisemitism to have Mr Atzmon banned from various musical venues, he penned an article in which he claimed that the then-Chairman of Campaign Against Antisemitism “fabricated” antisemitic incidents as part of a “business plan” to defraud the British taxpayer and earn money for himself. After being sued for libel, Mr Atzmon attempted to crowdfund “tens of thousands of pounds”, telling his supporters: “I have made the decision to fight this crucial battle for freedom of expression even though this fight poses a real risk of bankrupting me and my family.”

Faced with the impossible task of substantiating these libels, Mr Atzmon instead capitulated and agreed to settle the case, admitting that all of the claims were false and agreeing to pay substantial damages and costs. Mr Atzmon did not show his face in court, instead sending his solicitor to read an apology on his behalf.

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Iconic jazz venue 606 Club doubles down on disgraceful decision to host antisemitic saxophonist Gilad Atzmon

The iconic Chelsea jazz venue, 606 Club, has doubled down on its disgraceful invitation to the antisemitic saxophonist, Gilad Atzmon, to perform there with his band.

Mr Atzmon, billed as a “wonderful sax and clarinet player with a powerful sound and unique approach,” albeit one with “well-documented views on the Middle East that may provoke and challenge the listener,” will be performing at the club with his band on 1st February.

606 Club reportedly received a complaint from a regular patron regarding his views on the Holocaust. The saxophonist has previously denounced what he called the “Holocaust religion”.

But the club’s owner, Steve Rubie, defended Mr Atzmon, reportedly saying that although Mr Atzmon “sailed way too close to the wind sometimes”, nevertheless “having just spoken to Gilad he insisted he’s not racist and went to great pains to say that he does not have an issue with Jews, of which he is obviously one, the religion or the culture.” Mr Richie added that he had never heard Mr Atzmon speak pejoratively of Jews.

Mr Atzmon is reported to have blamed the Grenfell Tower tragedy on “Jerusalemites” as well as reportedly telling university students that “the Jews were expelled from Germany for misbehaving.” He is not shy about his antisemitism, telling a Jewish Twitter user in 2014: “I am not a Jew any more. I indeed despise the Jew in me (whatever is left). I absolutely detest the Jew in you.”

Following efforts by Campaign Against Antisemitism to have him banned from various musical venues, he penned an article in which he claimed that the then-Chairman of Campaign Against Antisemitism “fabricated” antisemitic incidents as part of a “business plan” to defraud the British taxpayer and earn money for himself. After being sued for libel, Mr Atzmon attempted to crowdfund “tens of thousands of pounds”, telling his supporters: “I have made the decision to fight this crucial battle for freedom of expression even though this fight poses a real risk of bankrupting me and my family.”

Faced with the impossible task of substantiating these libels, Mr Atzmon instead capitulated and agreed to settle the case, admitting that all of the claims were false and agreeing to pay substantial damages and costs. Mr Atzmon did not show his face in court, instead sending his solicitor to read an apology on his behalf.

Campaign Against Antisemitism will be writing to the venue.

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Duchess of Cambridge’s exhibition photographs of Holocaust survivors pre-released for Holocaust Memorial Day

Photographs taken by the Duchess of Cambridge of Holocaust survivors with their descendants have been pre-released to mark Holocaust Memorial Day.

The photographs, taken at Kensington Palace earlier this month, will feature in an exhibition of powerful images to open later this year. The Duchess is known to be a keen photographer.

Each portrait depicts the relationship between a survivor and younger generations of their family.

The Duchess reportedly spent time with the two survivors she photographed, saying that despite “unbelievable trauma at the start of their lives” they were “two of the most life-affirming people” she had met, and that “they look back on their experiences with sadness but also with gratitude that they were some of the lucky few to make it through.”

She added that “their stories will stay with me forever,” and that “it is vital that their memories are preserved and passed on to future generations, so that what they went through will never be forgotten.”

She wanted the “deeply personal” portraits to be a “celebration” of family and the life that they have built since immigrating to Britain in the 1940s.

The Duchess credited Anne Frank as one of the “underlying inspirations” behind the photographs, saying that she was particularly drawn by the young victim’s “sensitive and intimate” interpretation of the Holocaust.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge participated, along with other prominent figures, in a national commemorative event in Westminster yesterday. HRH Prince Charles joined world leaders in Jerusalem last week, while the Duchess of Cornwall and Lord Pickles represented the UK at Auschwitz.

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CAA hosts sold-out screening of Quezon’s Game on little-known story of Filipino president who saved Jews during the Holocaust, including Q & A with the director and cast

To mark Holocaust Memorial Day, Campaign Against Antisemitism held an exclusive screening of Quezon’s Game, before its UK release date, with the director and leading cast members.

The award-winning film tells how Filipino President Manuel L. Quezon risked his career, his health and his country’s relationship with the United States in order to rescue more than 1,200 imperilled Jews from Nazi persecution at a time when most countries were turning Jewish refugees away.

The screening, at an Everyman cinema in London, was followed by an intimate discussion with the director, Matthew Rosen, and two leading cast members, about how the film was conceived and produced, as well as the reception of the film in the Phillipines and elsewere, and Filipino awareness of the Holocaust and other matters of Jewish and humanitarian interest.

To hear more about Campaign Against Antisemitism’s educational events, please subscribe to our mailing list at antisemitism.org/act.

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Spotify removes user-generated playlists carrying titles praising Hitler and mocking Holocaust victims

Spotify has removed user-generated playlists which, while not necessarily carrying any offensive music, have antisemitic and pro-Nazi names.

In the past, Spotify has rightly been praised for removing hateful content, such as neo-Nazi music, from its streaming platform, but following an analysis by The Times of Israel of antisemitic user-generated playlists, Spotify has removed these as well.

Playlists have also been given titles by users such as “Lord of Jews”, accompanied by a picture of Adolf Hitler, and “The Fourth Reich” alongside a Nazi insignia. Other include: “Gas the Jews music”; “Gas Jews”; “Kill the Jews”; “The Holocaust was a joke”; “Rocking the soccks [sic] off holocaust victims”; “Just found out the Holocaust was fake”; “Hitler was right”; “Songs to snort Anne Frank’s ashes”; “Getting gassed with Anne Frank”; “Gas Anne Frank”; and “Auschwitz Train Sing Along”. One playlist, called “Auschwitz mixtape”, is accompanied by the phrase: “Almost as lit as the Jews in 1943”. Other playlist titles allude to antisemitic conspiracy theories, such as “9/11 did the jews”; and “RoThsChiLd Chillz”.

The playlist titles are searchable and available across the platform for its over 200 million global subscribers.

Users on Spotify can also register themselves under any name, and over 110 publicly viewable profiles are also registered under the name “Adolf Hitler”, with dozens more using variations of that name.

In a first statement to The Times of Israel, Spotify said: “We take this topic very seriously. Content (artists and music) listed by the Federal Department for Media Harmful to Young Persons (BPjM) in Germany is proactively removed from our service. We’re a global company, so we use the BPjM index as a global standard for these issues. Other potentially hateful or objectionable content that is flagged by users or others but not on the BPjM list is handled on a case-by-case basis.”

However, Spotify then reportedly advised that it would in fact remove the hateful content. A spokesman for the music platform said: “The user-generated content in question violates our policy and is in the process of being removed. Spotify prohibits any user content that is offensive, abusive, defamatory, pornographic, threatening, or obscene.”

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Actor from ‘The Office’ shares post saying “some rich Jews play the ‘antisemitism’ card to protect themselves”

An actor from the hit television series, The Office, shared a social media post claiming that “some rich Jews play the ‘antisemitism’ card to protect themselves”.

Ewen Macintosh, who played Keith Bishop in the programme, shared a statement on Facebook discussing Labour’s election defeat with a Jewish comedian.

The post said that “our hypersensitivity leads us to see any criticism of Jews as ‘antisemitism’”, and since “in modern Britain there are many Jews who are rich” and that “being rich, their position is threatened (as they see it) by the ‘Marxist’ ideas of the Labour Party” and “indeed many left-wing members of the Labour Party will identity ‘The Rich’ as their enemies,” consequently “some rich Jews play the ‘antisemitism’ card to protect themselves. Personally I find this inexcusable.”

Mr Macintosh initially said of the statement that “this was written by one of the wisest Jewish men I know”, but when challenged reportedly clarified that the statement was authored by the actor Colin David Reese and that he did not endorse it but “merely posted it as an example of a different viewpoint [to that of his interlocutor]” and “it’s hopefully still possible to quote sources in this day and age without being accused of agreeing with them. Otherwise we are in serious trouble.”

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Church of England should abandon plans to honour antisemite P.G. Wodehouse with memorial stone at Westminster Abbey


The author, poet, humorist and antisemite, P.G. Wodehouse, is set to be honoured with a posthumous memorial stone at Westminster Abbey.

The Daily Telegraph has reported that plans have been made to lay a memorial stone in his honour alongside some of Britain’s most respected authors and poets, including Geoffrey Chaucer, C.S. Lewis and Edward Lear.

Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse, better known as P.G. Wodehouse, died in 1975 aged 93. As well as being a literary genius who has long been considered to be amongst Britain’s greatest authors, he was also an odious antisemite.

His numerous antisemitic comments included a letter to a friend, in which he wrote: “One odd thing about television is the way it shows people up. I always used to think Groucho Marx screamingly funny. I saw him on television the other night, and he was just a middle-aged Jew with no geniality whatever, in fact repulsive.”

In another letter, he told a friend that: “A curious thing about American books these days is that so many of them are Jewish propaganda.”

In yet another letter he wrote: “The trouble is, you see, all these Jews out here have been having a gorgeous time for years, fooling about with the shareholders’ money and giving all their relations fat jobs, and this gives the bankers an excuse for demanding a showdown.”

His antisemitism continued long after the horrors of the Holocaust.

Many have also suggested that Sir Pelham’s activity in Europe under the occupation of Nazi Germany would have been enough to see him tried for treason had he ever dared return to Britain after the Second World War.

Sir Pelham moved to France for tax reasons in 1934. He was taken prisoner at Le Touquet by the invading Germans in 1940 and interned for nearly a year. After his release, he made six broadcasts on German radio which were sent to America which had not yet entered the war. After the war, he went into exile in the United States.

Gyles Brandreth, the former Conservative Party MP and broadcaster told The Daily Telegraph that these apolitical programmes were “undoubtedly damaging to the Allied cause” because they came when Britain was trying to encourage America to join the fight against the Nazis.

He said that Sir Pelham “undoubtedly gave comfort to the enemy during the darkest days of the war. He broadcast gently amusing non-political talks from Berlin, giving the impression that he was fine, and by implication that if he was fine all was fine in Nazi Germany.”

There is nothing wrong with admiring Sir Pelham’s works, but that is very different from admiring their author. It is not for the Church to forgive and forget his lifelong, unrepentant hatred of Jews. This honour should be withdrawn.

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Lovejoy actor and Labour candidate Chris Jury reportedly peddled antisemitic conspiracies

Chris Jury, an actor on Lovejoy and now a Labour council candidate, has reportedly peddled antisemitic conspiracies and alleged that there is no evidence at all that the Labour Party has a particular problem with antisemitism.

Mr Jury who played the character Eric in Lovejoy, a popular British television comedy-drama-mystery series in the 1980s, has also appeared in Doctor Who and Grange Hill. He is running to be a Labour councillor on Stratford-On-Avon Council in the upcoming local elections.

According to MailOnline, in a blog entitled “I Am Not A Number”, Mr Jury posted antisemitic tropes.

In one post published in March, Mr Jury allegedly wrote: “My disgust at the cynical abuse of the memory of the 6 million [Jews murdered by the Nazis] by the right-wing of the Labour Party, aided and abetted by the Israeli Embassy, grows daily and has left me despairing for the future of the Labour Party. There is no evidence at all that the Labour Party has a particular problem with antisemitism.” He also defended Chris Williamson in that article.

The International Definition of Antisemitism adopted by the British Government and the Labour Party, states that “Manifestations [of antisemitism] might include the targeting of the State of Israel, conceived as a Jewish collectivity…Antisemitism frequently charges Jews with conspiring to harm humanity, and it is often used to blame Jews for ‘why things go wrong’.”

In another post from April 2017, Mr Jury concluded that: “70 years after the defeat of the Nazis their racist, colonial, Eurocentric, moral degeneracy is still playing out in the Middle-East.”

Under the International Definition of Antisemitism, “Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis” is antisemitic.

In a tweet from August last year, Mr Jury also said that British politics was being “subverted” and antisemitism was being “weaponised by the Right of the Labour Party…”

Mr Jury reportedly stood by his comments in a statement to the MailOnline. He also posted on Facebook, downplaying antisemitism in Labour, writing: “The Labour Party has 500,000 members and I know only a few hundred of them so I obviously cannot claim that there are literally no antisemites in the Labour Party, only that I have never seen any substantive evidence that it is a particularly prevalent problem in the Labour Party and certainly not a problem on a scale that could warrant the sustained level of attack on the party over the three years since Jeremy Corbyn was elected leader.”

He continued that: “If the Israeli Embassy has played such a role, it is also perfectly legitimate to point that out as it may partly explain how and why this issue has come to such prominence since Corbyn was elected.”

He added that: “I do not oppose Israel or a Jewish state of Israel, I simply support the Palestinian cause. I believe that just as the Jewish people are entitled to live at peace in their traditional homeland so are the Palestinians.”

Mr Jury’s conspiracy theories about a secretive cabal of politicians in league with the Israeli government to use the Holocaust against Jeremy Corbyn and Chris Williamson are utterly repulsive. He seems to think that all of the Jewish Labour members calling for solidarity and help over the most vile antisemitic abuse are in fact part of a right-wing Israeli-run plot and worthy only of suspicion or even contempt. It is no surprise that he feels right at home in the Labour Party.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission has begun pre-enforcement proceedings against the Labour Party following a formal referral and detailed legal representations from Campaign Against Antisemitism, which is the complainant. The pre-enforcement proceedings are a precursor to opening a full statutory investigation.

In recent months, eleven MPs have resigned from the Labour Party over antisemitism, along with numerous councillors and Party members.

Almost 50,000 people have now signed our petition denouncing Jeremy Corbyn as an antisemite and declaring him “unfit to hold any public office.”

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Matthew Scott, former Head of Music at the National Theatre, reportedly under police investigation over alleged antisemitic comment

An allegedly antisemitic comment apparently made by Matthew Scott, the former Head of Music at the National Theatre, is being investigated by police after a complaint was made, according to The Daily Telegraph.

Mr Scott was Head of Music at the National Theatre from 2006 until 2016 and remained there as a music consultant until the end of last month. He is currently Emeritus Professor of Composition in Music at the University of Southampton.

The Daily Telegraph reported that Mr Scott is believed to have made the comment under a BBC News article about yesterday’s Israeli elections which said: “The time for the erasure of Israel and the completion of the cleansing process is rapidly approaching. Can Netanyahu now see that his actions are feeding the furnace?”

It is hard to imagine how “the completion of the cleansing process” could be understood as anything other than a call for the genocide of Jews in Israel. Additionally, under the International Definition of Antisemitism adopted by the British Government, “Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination (e.g. by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavour)” is antisemitic.

The comment, posted over the weekend, was subsequently deleted. Neither Mr Scott nor his agent responded to requests for comment by the Telegraph.

Essex Police confirmed to The Daily Telegraph that it had received a complaint about the post which it was expected to transfer to another force. A spokeswoman said that “enquiries are ongoing.”

The complainant, who did not want to be identified, told The Daily Telegraph that he was “appalled” by the comments which he said would be career-ending for many.

Furthermore, Campaign Against Antisemitism has discovered that someone posting as Mr Scott shared a Nazi analogy on Facebook, which featured an image captioned: “The thought of Jewish children being at the complete mercy of of Nazis is just as repulsive as Palestinian children being at the completely mercy of Zionist Israelis.”

Under the International Definition of Antisemitism, “Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis” is also antisemitic.

Campaign Against Antisemitism welcomes the investigation by Essex Police and keenly awaits the outcome. If proven, it would be particularly disturbing for someone in a position of such seniority in the artistic community to hold such brazenly antisemitic views.

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SoundCloud rejects CAA complaint, refusing to act over Kelechi Okafor’s defence of antisemitic stereotyping in podcast

Responding to a complaint made by Campaign Against Antisemitism, SoundCloud, the popular music streaming service, has stated that it can see no problem with the antisemitic comments made by actress and fitness studio owner Kelechi Okafor during an episode of her podcast series, “Say Your Mind”.

Ms Okafor caused outrage when she defended recent comments about Jews made by BBC presenter Reggie Yates in which he claimed it was “great” that the young generation of grime music artists is not “managed by some random fat Jewish guy from north west London, they’re managed by their brethren”. In her defence of Mr Yates, Ms Okafor insisted that his comments were truthful, and asserted that that the whole affair demonstrated “the power of a specific community”.  She went on to make a series of remarks that relied on classic antisemitic conspiracy theories  about Jews and money, as well as Jewish power wielded for the exploitation of others.

Ms Okafor said that black entertainers had been “so short changed by the kind of people Reggie Yates describes”, adding that “all sorts of ethnicities” can be capable of this but “the fact is, these men has dominated the industry for decades” and are “taking most of the profits”. She claimed that black artists “are having to work [their] entire arse off while they’re keeping everything”. According to Ms Okafor, grime, RnB, and hip-hop music have been “diluted” by these supposed Jewish music managers who “like blackness as long as it’s making them money”. She claimed that annual commemorations of the Holocaust are more prominent than any memory of the slave trade, saying that these historical events were part of the “power dynamic” she was discussing.

Ms Okafor then turned her attention to Harvey Weinstein, a Jewish figure in the entertainment industry recently accused of sexual assault. She remarked: “if you offend one of the more powerful sectors of the community, then off be with your head” and that “people are demanding their pound of flesh, and I am very specific about the reference I just made”. Ms Okafor mentions how the phrase is linked to Shakespeare. The “pound of flesh” is a central plot device in Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice in which the antagonist Shylock is portrayed as a stereotypical money-grabbing Jew. Shylock has become synonymous with the antisemitic trope that Jews control money and the banks.

Replying to CAA’s complaint, SoundCloud said it would be taking no action against Ms Okafor, stating that it saw “no clear intention to criticise, or demean any individual or group of individuals on the basis of their belonging to a protected group.”

The decision is outrageous and will only encourage antisemites to use the SoundCloud platform to spread their hatred.

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Actress and fitness studio owner Kelechi Okafor claims Reggie Yates’ comments about Jews were “the truth”

Actress and fitness studio owner, Kelechi Okafor, has defended recent comments about Jews made by BBC presenter Reggie Yates in which he claimed it was “great” that the young generation of grime music artists is not “managed by some random fat Jewish guy from north west London, they’re managed by their brethren”. Ms Okafor argued that Mr Yates was wrong to apologise for the comments and to step down as a host of the BBC’s Top of the Pops programme.

In her new 24-minute podcast on iTunes and Soundcloud, Ms Okafor addressed Yates’ comments, remarking that she “had a huge problem with people apologising for things that they meant”, adding that Yates’ apology statement was “well-manicured”. She remarked that Yates’ comments were “not problematic”, that he was speaking “the truth”, and that the whole affair demonstrated “the power of a specific community”. Ms Okafor challenged whether these Jewish music managers really are from North West London, adding “I just want to know where the fallacy is”, and that “stereotypes are based on an element on truth”.

Ms Okafor began describing how black entertainers had been “so short changed by the kind of people Reggie Yates describes”. She comments that “all sorts of ethnicities” can be capable of this but adds “the fact is, these men has dominated the industry for decades” and are “taking most of the profits”. She claimed that black artists “are having to work [their] entire arse off while they’re keeping everything”.

Ms Okafor remarks near the end of the podcast that grime, RnB, and hip-hop music have been “diluted” by these supposed Jewish music managers who “like blackness as long as it’s making them money”.

Ms Okafor appears to take umbrage at how the Holocaust receives public attention each year, but that the legacy of slave trade is seemingly ignored. She described how these historical events are responsible for the “power dynamic” she is discussing.

Ms Okafor then turned her attention to Harvey Weinstein, a Jewish figure in the entertainment industry recently accused of sexual assault. She remarks how accusations of inappropriate behaviour from the black actress Lupita Nyong’o were not taken seriously, but that “if you offend one of the more powerful sectors of the community, then off be with your head”. Ms Okafor claimed that what’s happening now is that “people are demanding their pound of flesh, and I am very specific about the reference I just made”. Ms Okafor mentions how the phrase is linked to Shakespeare. The “pound of flesh” is a central plot device in Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice in which the antagonist Shylock is portrayed as a stereotypical money-grabbing Jew. Shylock has become synonymous with the antisemitic trope that Jews control money and the banks.

It is not likely that Ms Okafor will be apologising for the remarks. Towards the end of the podcast she says that “if people don’t like what I said, they can drink some water and go to sleep”.

When approached privately by Rosa Doherty, a journalist for the JC, who first discovered the podcast, Ms Okafor responded via Twitter: “Hi @Rosa_Doherty thank you for your email regarding my podcast. I appreciate the time you took to reach out to me. What does the Jewish Chronicle do to tackle anti-blackness?”

Campaign Against Antisemitism has now filed a complaint with iTunes, which carries Ms Okafor’s podcast.

https://twitter.com/kelechnekoff/status/944336860662452224

https://twitter.com/kelechnekoff/status/944265413155807232

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Success for CAA as Reggie Yates resigns from hosting Top of the Pops and BBC admits it must “take these issues very seriously”, but his future may be saved

The BBC’s fallen star, Reggie Yates, has resigned from hosting special editions of the BBC’s flagship music programme, Top of the Pops, on Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve.

Mr Yates resigned following following pressure from Campaign Against Antisemitism and others after he remarked that it is “great” that the young generation is not “managed by some random fat Jewish guy from north west London, they’re managed by their brethren”, adding that they were “idiots”, “dickheads” and not “your people”.

In a statement today, Mr Yates wrote: “On a recent podcast, during a discussion about grime artists, I made some ill-considered remarks which have hurt many people. I can see clearly that the words I used reinforced offensive stereotypes, and that there is no context which would justify such remarks. My comments are no reflection on how I truly feel, and I would like to apologise unreservedly to the Jewish community, people in the music industry and anyone else I have offended. This has been, and continues to be a huge learning experience for me, and on reflection I have taken the decision to step down from hosting Top of the Pops this year.”

A BBC spokesman added: “We take these issues very seriously and Reggie is in no doubt about the BBC’s view of his comments.”

This resignation is a major improvement on his previous apology for what he termed a “flippant comment” which “could have been interpreted” as being offensive. We had also criticised the BBC’s comment when Mr Yates’ remarks were exposed, after the BBC said that “we do not believe this is a matter for the BBC”.

The comments which caused such controversy came during a programme about grime music artists, which was recorded a month ago. He had said: “Like I said it’s about perspective. The thing that makes it great about this new generation of artists is that they ain’t signing to majors. They’re independent, they’re not managed by some random fat Jewish guy from north west London, they’re managed by their brethren. Wretch, Stormzy, Skepta, its all – you know what I mean – these are all people that we’ve all known, that we’ve all come up with, from time. So it’s amazing to see now the example isn’t get hot and then give all of your publishing to these idiots. Or go and give all of your rights to these dickheads over here. It’s now get hot, bring the family in, keep the family close, and win with your people. That’s the example now in music.” For many, Mr Yates’ comments will evoke the ugly stereotype of Jews as untrustworthy and money-grabbing. The comment was brought to light by Telegraph journalist Camilla Turner.

It is unclear whether Mr Yates will simply miss out on two holiday special editions of Top of the Pops, or whether the BBC will now act to remove him from programmes such as his forthcoming documentary on the Grenfell Fire tragedy. Clearly someone who sees fit to voice such views and only apologises when caught out should not be presented by the BBC as a role model for young people.

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Ken Livingstone to be Matt Forde’s main guest in political comedy show at prestigious Leicester Square Theatre

Ken Livingstone is to star in an annual political comedy show at Leicester Square Theatre that has previously hosted Tony Blair, Jacob Rees-Mogg, Ed Balls, Ruth Davidson, Alastair Campbell, Michael Portillo, Harriet Harman, Nigel Farage, Neil Kinnock, Alan Johnson, Lord Prescott, Jack Straw and Dame Tessa Jowell.

This year, on 6th December, host Matt Forde will welcome Anny Soubry and Nick Clegg, followed by Ken Livingstone with his own show on 7th December. According to publicity material: “Both evenings promise to be a raucous end to the wildest year in British politics…yet.”

There is nothing remotely funny about Ken Livingstone’s unapologetic claim that “Hitler was supporting Zionism”. It is outrageous that he is now due to be given a platform along with senior figures such as Nick Clegg and Anna Soubry, at such a prestigious venue. No doubt they will wish to reconsider their participation rather than appear as a warmup the day before Ken Livingstone.

You may wish to contact the theatre through [email protected] and Matt Forde’s agent via [email protected].

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BBC star Reggie Yates apologises after saying music artists should not be managed by “some random fat Jewish guy from north west London”

The BBC’s rising star, Reggie Yates, has apologised after remarking that it is “great” that the young generation is not “managed by some random fat Jewish guy from north west London, they’re managed by their brethren”, adding that they were “idiots”, “dickheads” and not “your people”.

Mr Yates was talking about grime music artists when he made the comments. During the programme, which was recorded a month ago, he said: “Like I said it’s about perspective. The thing that makes it great about this new generation of artists is that they ain’t signing to majors. They’re independent, they’re not managed by some random fat Jewish guy from north west London, they’re managed by their brethren. Wretch, Stormzy, Skepta, its all – you know what I mean – these are all people that we’ve all known, that we’ve all come up with, from time. So it’s amazing to see now the example isn’t get hot and then give all of your publishing to these idiots. Or go and give all of your rights to these dickheads over here. It’s now get hot, bring the family in, keep the family close, and win with your people. That’s the example now in music.”

The comment was brought to light by Telegraph journalist Camilla Turner in an article yesterday. In response, Mr Yates said: “I am hugely apologetic for this flippant comment. It was not my intention to offend or reinforce stereotypes, but I’m aware that this could have been interpreted that way and for that I am also deeply sorry. What I was actually trying to say was how proud I am of the new generation of artists making their success independently on their own terms and without giving away control or their rights to major labels.”

Mr Yates, 34, made the comments while appearing as a guest on a show entitled “Take back the power”, hosted by DJ Chuckie Lothian. Mr Yates also spoke about his career, which has seen him rise from an impoverished council estate in Holloway to presenting children’s channel CBBC, Top of the Pops and The Voice UK, as well as hosting shows for BBC Radio 1 and presenting and directing documentaries. When approached by The Telegraph, the BBC declined to comment, but has since told us: “While we recognise the strength of people’s feelings, Reggie Yates is not a member of BBC staff and he was not speaking on behalf of the BBC. The interview itself was not broadcast by the BBC. For these reasons we do not believe this is a matter for the BBC and we will not be providing a comment.”

Mr Yates directed abuse at Jewish talent agents because he believes that they are unappetising, alien and corporate. He called them “idiots” and other insults simply because he considers them to not be “your people”. For many, Mr Yates’ comments will evoke the ugly stereotype of Jews as untrustworthy and money-grabbing. Apologies for any offence caused are easy to issue, but these bigoted remarks came from somewhere, and Mr Yates should reflect long and hard on his prejudice.

Clearly someone who sees fit to voice such views and only apologises when caught out should not be presented by the BBC as a role model for young people. It is not good enough for the BBC to try to shrug this off. If you believe that the BBC should investigate this matter properly, you may wish to make a complaint.

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Pizza Express will spend this weekend profiting from hosting notorious antisemite Gilad Aztmon

Pizza Express has refused to respond to calls to cancel performances this evening and over the weekend at its Soho jazz club by notorious antisemite Gilad Atzmon.

Earlier this week, Campaign Against Antisemitism wrote to the Chief Executive of Pizza Express, Jinlong Wang, to alert him to the fact that Mr Atzmon is a notorious antisemite who has, for a number of years, used social media as a vehicle to harass and bait Jewish people.

We have received no response.

Tickets to Mr Atzmon’s performances were selling at £20 each and have now sold out.

In March this year, Mr Atzmon attended a talk at the London School of Economics with Richard Falk, the discredited and disgraced fringe antisemitic conspiracy theorist and the former UN envoy, where he reportedly told those around him that “the Jews were expelled from Germany for misbehaving.” Stunned audience members asked him to repeat what he had said and he did. Mr Atzmon also was heard recommending the works of disgraced historian David Irving, who in 2000 was proven in court to be an antisemite, a Holocaust denier and an admirer of Hitler. It is also reported that Mr Atzmon later said, “Jews are always expelled for a reason.”

In December 2014, he told a Jewish Twitter user, “I am not a Jew any more. I indeed despise the Jew in me (whatever is left). I absolutely detest the Jew in you.”

Another of his books, The Wandering Who, was described in 2011 as “quite probably the most antisemitic book published in this country in recent years.”

He has stated that Jews were responsible for their persecution by the Nazis, Jews should apologise for making gentiles hate them, burning synagogues is “a rational act”, Jews are trying to control the world, Jews are harming the planet, Jews caused the credit crunch, and Israel is worse than Nazi Germany. He has also trivialised the scale and impact of the Holocaust.

The International Definition of Antisemitism, adopted by the British government, states, among other things, that the following are antisemitic:

  • Making mendacious, dehumanising, demonising, or stereotypical allegations about Jews as such or the power of Jews as collective — such as, especially but not exclusively, the myth about a world Jewish conspiracy or of Jews controlling the media, economy, government or other societal institutions.
  • Denying the fact, scope, mechanisms (e.g. gas chambers) or intentionality of the genocide of the Jewish people at the hands of National Socialist Germany and its supporters and accomplices during World War II (the Holocaust).
  • Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis.

In March 2012, a collective of Palestinian writers and activists disavowed Mr Atzmon for his attacks on Jews and Judaism, as well as his denial of the Holocaust.

It is disgraceful that Pizza Express is willing to profit from hosting an antisemite.

If you agree, please feel free to contact Jinlong Wang’s office to tell them your views on 020 3798 9000.

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App maker removes antisemitic dilemmas from reasoning game after complaint from CAA

The makers of a popular frivolous reasoning game, “Will you press the button?”, have removed antisemitic content from their app following a complaint by Campaign Against Antisemitism.

Campaign Against Antisemitism was contacted by a member of the public who had been playing the game with her son, when an antisemitic question popped up. The game invites players to consider whether they would accept something negative happening if something positive were also to happen, for example asking whether you would “press the button” to “gain the powers of your favourite superhero”, even if doing so would also mean that “the hero’s entire rogues gallery will hunt you down until they are defeated”.

The game is generally silly and good-natured, prompting players to consider various fanciful dilemmas. However, tucked amongst the mostly innocuous questions, the game also contained shocking antisemitic content, including asking whether players would “press the button” to “prevent the Holocaust from happening but [the downside is that] 6 million Jews survive”, or to “find undeniable proof that the Jews did 9/11 but [the downside is that] if you release it or tell anyone you’ll get assassinated by Mossad 5 minutes later”.

The questions had been answered in the affirmative by tens of thousands of players, many of whom may have been children.

Campaign Against Antisemitism contacted the app maker, which responded that the questions “were created by users before we had any moderation system” and have now been removed.

We are particularly concerned by antisemitism in computer games, especially those aimed at children. Anybody who comes across material of concern is encouraged to report it to [email protected]. In this case we were pleased to have been able to have the antisemitic content removed within four hours.

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Actress Miriam Margolyes appears to suggest “Jews and blacks” are stingy

Actress Miriam Margolyes has been caught on film appearing to suggest that “Jews and blacks” are stingy. The film, exposed by The Sun, shows Margolyes at an autograph signing event at which fans were charged £5 for a signed photograph with various stars. Some fans were taking photographs on their smartphones, prompting Margolyes, who appears in the Harry Potter films to jeer “can’t you afford five quid?” She then pointed at a black man and said: “Jews and blacks, they get a discount.”

A fan who filmed the incident said she thought Margolyes, who is Jewish “was being racist” and that she “singled out” and “humiliated” the black fan. It is unclear whether recognisably Jewish fans were also taking photographs. A spokesman for Margolyes told The Sun: “Miriam’s comments were made in jest and she would be mortified if anyone took offence.”

Last year, Margolyes said in an interview in The Telegraph that “nobody likes Jews”, blaming antisemitism on Israel. She explained: “People understandably and correctly associate Israel with Jews and Jews are killing people. Innocent people. And the Jewish community thinks it’s OK because they say that the Palestinians want to destroy Israel. And some of them do, that’s quite true, so they feel it’s alright to treat them in the way that they’re being treated. But I don’t think it is. I just can’t bear to see it.” According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, “Manifestations [of antisemitism] might include the targeting of the state of Israel, conceived as a Jewish collectivity” and “Holding Jews collectively responsible for actions of the state of Israel” is antisemitic.

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Yet another neo-Nazi band says it has played a major gig in the UK and will be “back soon”

The Home Office has yet again failed to prevent a vehemently antisemitic neo-Nazi band from entering the country, despite receiving ample warning from Campaign Against Antisemitism.

Some of Legion Twierdzy Wrocław’s songs are intrinsically antisemitic, Przetrwać by Zwyciężyć, appears to use coded neo-Nazi language to call for the annihilation of the Jewish People: “I will not rest until the vanishing of the whole tribe, the Khazars [a coded euphemism for Jews], The war lasts for generations. The flame that does not go out…My Aryan Homeland”. The band also uses the Auschwitz death camp entrance gate slogan “Arbeit macht frei” on its Facebook page, which is also filled with photographs of and information about the Nazis. The band also repeatedly uses a coded number, 1488, which means “We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children. Heil Hitler.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism was alerted to Legion Twierdzy Wroclaw’s gig by journalist Colin Cortbus, an expert on the far-Right. We immediately made representations to the Home Office, calling on the band to be banned from entering the country, and the Metropolitan Police Service.

The band has now posted on its Facebook page that it played in London and will be “back soon”.

The band is believed to be part of the dangerous international neo-Nazi “Blood and Honour” network which recently organised a weekend rave in Cambridgeshire which attracted neo-Nazis from all over Europe. Attendees performed Nazi salutes in response to calls of “Sieg Heil” from the stage and sported swastikas, including a Union Jack superimposed with a swastika. Vehemently antisemitic songs were performed, including “Once a nation, now we’re run by Jews” before declaring: “It’s time we drove out the traitors” — clear criminal incitement to racial hatred.

The far-Right was once considered a spent force in Britain but for some years it has been re-establishing its foothold, aided by neo-Nazi and fascist organisations across Europe and the United States. British neo-Nazis must not be allowed to gain strength through links with foreign neo-Nazi groups.

It is horrifying that neo-Nazi bands are repeatedly being allowed by the Home Office to enter the country. This neo-Nazi incitement is dangerous and threatens the safety of British Jews. We will be taking this up with the Government.

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CAA calls on the Home Secretary to stop Polish neo-Nazi band playing in London on Saturday

Polish neo-Nazi band Legion Twierdzy Wroclaw is set to enter the United Kingdom and play at least one gig in London. Campaign Against Antisemitism has alerted the Home Office and the Metropolitan Police Service, requesting that the band be prevented from entering the country. The gig is currently due to go ahead on Saturday night in Dagenham, under the name of “United Skinheads”, which appears to be a name made up especially for the event.

The band is believed to be part of the dangerous international neo-Nazi “Blood and Honour” network which recently organised a weekend rave in Cambridgeshire which attracted neo-Nazis from all over Europe. Attendees performed Nazi salutes in response to calls of “Sieg Heil” from the stage and sported swastikas, including a Union Jack superimposed with a swastika. Vehemently antisemitic songs were performed, including “Once a nation, now we’re run by Jews” before declaring: “It’s time we drove out the traitors” — clear criminal incitement to racial hatred.

Campaign Against Antisemitism was alerted to Legion Twierdzy Wroclaw’s gig by journalist Colin Cortbus, an expert on the far-Right. We immediately made representations to the Home Office, calling on the band to be banned from entering the country, and the Metropolitan Police Service.

The band’s music is intrinsically antisemitic. For example, Cortbus reports that one of their songs, Przetrwać by Zwyciężyć, appears to use coded neo-Nazi language to call for the anihiliation of the Jewish People: “I will not rest until the vanishing of the whole tribe, the Khazars [a coded euphemism for Jews], The war lasts for generations. The flame that does not go out…My Aryan Homeland”.

Cortbus has also found that Legion Twierdzy Wroclaw used Auschwitz death camp entrance gate slogan “Arbeit macht frei” on its Facebook page, which is also filled with photographs of and information about the Nazis. The band also uses a coded number, 1488, which means “We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children. Heil Hitler.”

The far-Right was once considered a spent force in Britain but for some years it has been re-establishing its foothold, aided by neo-Nazi and fascist organisations across Europe and the United States. British neo-Nazis must not be allowed to gain strength through links with foreign neo-Nazi groups, and we are making very clear our demand that existing rules should be enforced to ban neo-Nazi groups from entering the country.

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Neo-Nazi gig in Scotland called off over fears of Home Office ban on band entering UK

A neo-Nazi gig in Scotland has reportedly been called off after the Scottish Justice Minister called on the Home Secretary to intervene to ban the US-based band from entering the UK.

Various anti-fascist groups had said that Bound for Glory, a white supremacist band would be playing a gig in Falkirk on Saturday, but the event has apparently been called off.

Up to 500 neo-Nazis had been expected to attend.

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Successful letter-writing campaign resoundingly rebuts suggestion that Jewish culture should be boycotted

Last week, local paper Ham & High published a letter by John McPartlin demanding that the UK Jewish Film Festival not be permitted in the borough. Campaign Against Antisemitism joined a call by North London Friends of Israel to write letters to the paper which was inundated with so many that almost a page of this week’s edition is devoted to letters rebutting the bigoted notion that Jewish cultural events should be boycotted. Congratulations to everyone who wrote in, and to North London Friends of Israel!

Hat tip: Mandy Blumenthal

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Local paper publishes letter from man demanding that UK Jewish Film Festival be banned in his borough

Local paper Ham & High has published a letter by John McPartlin demanding that the UK Jewish Film Festival not be permitted in the borough. Writing in response to an article in the paper about the UK Jewish Film Festival, McPartlin refers to the festival as the “Israeli Film Festival” possibly because he is confused, or perhaps because he wants to make the bigoted suggestion of banning a Jewish cultural event seem more acceptable. If you would like to respond with your own letter, please send it to [email protected].

Hat tip: North London Friends of Israel and Mandy Blumenthal

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Success: Antisemitic Nazi sympathiser removed from Big Brother

Thien Thanh Thi Nguyen, better known as “Tila Tequila”, has been removed from Celebrity Big Brother. Nguyen has described herself as “Hitler reborn” and has a history of antisemitic and pro-Nazi rants.

As soon as the channel announced her participation during the launch of the series, we contacted Channel 5 and asked them to explain their decision. We briefed the media and set up an online petition which hundreds of you signed in the first couple of hours. Channel 5 opened an investigation and the media shone its spotlight on the issue.

The same day, Channel 5 contacted us to explain that they hadn’t known about Nguyen’s past, and they then removed her from the programme with minimal fuss, as we and you had demanded in the petition, without her $175,000 payout.

Thanks to everyone who signed our petition, and to our media network, a woman with well-documented, nasty antisemitic views has been removed from prime time television.

Questions remain. When searching for “Tila Tequila”, the top search results include her antisemitic and pro-Nazi rants. It is hard to believe that Channel 5 and Endemol’s team of researchers, bookers, producers and commissioning editors missed this well known part of Nguyen’s background. Even her Wikipedia entry mentioned her Nazi sympathies. However, we commend Channel 5 for removing her from the programme once we brought her views to their attention.

British values demand zero tolerance for antisemitism and that is why we sought and achieved this result.

We hope that Nguyen will now be shunned by the media and look forward to her swift return from whence she came.

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UPDATE: Channel 5 “investigating” Nazi sympathies of Big Brother contestant – sign the petition

In response to Campaign Against Antisemitism’s questions, Channel 5 claims that it did not know about the Nazi views of contestant “Tila Tequila”.

“Tila Tequila”, whose real name is Thien Thanh Thi Nguyen, has a history of antisemitism. She has described herself as “Hitler reborn”, and also posted a picture (see above) on Facebook showing her dressed in hot pants holding a gun, wearing a swastika armband and Nazi uniform hat, standing in front of Auschwitz concentration camp.

In a statement, Channel 5 told Campaign Against Antisemitism: “These comments did not come to the attention of either or Channel 5 or Endemol prior to the entry of the celebrity into the Big Brother house. We are currently investigating these comments.”

We are pleased to have brought this issue to the attention of the channel and alerted them to the problem. We hope that the channel and the programme makers will now take the correct action, swiftly, and remove “Tila” from the show with minimum attention being given to her and her repulsive views. We deeply regret that things went this far. We hope that they will commit to better research of future participants, especially those with well documented antisemitic and pro-Nazi views, easily found through basic online searches.

While we wait for Channel 5 and Endemol to “investigate”, please click here to add your name to our petition demanding that this Nazi sympathiser be removed from the programme.

Tila-Tequila-Nazi

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Demand Channel 5 removes Nazi sympathiser housemate who claims to be “Hitler reborn” from Big Brother

Tila-Tequila-Nazi

Campaign Against Antisemitism has launched a petition to have an antisemitic Nazi sympathiser removed from the popular television show “Big Brother”.

The latest series of Big Brother on Channel 5 includes the participation of Thien Thanh Thi Nguyen, better known by her stage name “Tila Tequila”.

Nguyen has previously expressed her admiration for Adolf Hitler, and also posted a picture (see above) on Facebook showing her holding a gun, wearing a swastika armband and Nazi uniform hat, standing in front of Auschwitz concentration camp, where an estimate 1.1 million people were killed. Approximately 1 in 6 of the 6 million Jews killed during the Holocaust died at the camp.

Nguyen has written on social media that Hitler was a “special and sweet kid” who was rejected by art schools and later “bullied”. She said she similarly felt “mocked” and “rejected” when she tried to convert to Judaism in 2012. She claimed that “Hitler was NOT as bad as he was painted out to be”. Her blog entry “Why I Sympathize With Hitler Part 1: True History Unveiled” has been removed, but is still available through Internet cache sites. Nguyen has also written on Facebook that she considers herself to be “Hitler reborn” which she followed with a smiley face emoji.

Facebook has blocked Nguyen’s profile in the past as a result of her extremist  and anti-Semitic posts. She complained that she had been banned “a total of 8 times! For nothing except for maybe the fact that they are owned by the ZIONISTS!” She went on to say: “I find it quite absurd that jewbook bans me for yet another 30 days then warns me that they will delete my page totally if I do not ‘FOLLOW THEIR RULES AND BE A GOOD GOYIM!’ – Jewbook bans me constantly for nothing… the second I write a blog about how I sympathize with Hitler, I immediately get banned for 30 days AND they have removed majority of my posts. So now their jewbook shills and other mainstream media news outlets, which has now spread like wildfire, are saying that I deleted my posts!!!! I smell something fishy and it’s coming from jewbook shills!… I understand the Jewish people went through some shit too, but hey guess what?? SO DID THE MAJORITY OF THE PEOPLE WHO SUFFERED IN EVERY SINGLE WAR THST TOOK PLACE! You were NOT the only ones!  So please, if the rest of us can forgive and forget maybe it’s time you do also!!!”

The British public has little time for attention seeking Nazi sympathisers like ‘Tila Tequila’. Channel 5 and Endemol Shine UK ought to be ashamed of themselves for promoting such a deeply offensive and nasty person on prime time television. Her repulsive writings on Hitler, the Holocaust and on Jewish people make her a totally unacceptable participant for this programme. Channel 5 must remove her immediately from the programme, and apologise fully for their enormous error of judgement. She should then be given the exact amount of public attention she deserves: none.

Add your name to the petition to remove Nguyen from Big Brother.

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Performer at Edinburgh Festival reported to police for antisemitic ‘quenelle’ gesture

Alison Chabloz, a performer at the Edinburgh Festival, has been reported to the police by a concerned member of the public, after she tweeted a photo of her performing the neo-Nazi ‘quenelle’ salute outside Edinburgh Castle (see below). In a blog post, she also praised ‘research’ by Robert Faurisson disputing the use of gas chambers by the Nazis and referred readers to Ernst Zündel’s paper entitled “Did six million really die?”

Shocked festival-goers were astounded when Chabloz claimed that the backlash from those offended by her action constitutes a “smear campaign” because of her views regarding Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.

The quenelle is an inverted Nazi salute, a gesture involving one outstretched hand pointing to the ground with the other touching the same arm. It is widely accepted as being aimed at Jewish people. The quenelle was made popular by the controversial French performer Dieudonné M’Bala M’Bala who said he would like to put a quenelle up the backside of Zionists, and believes Jews control the world to their own advantage. Last year Diedonné was banned by the Home Office from entering Britain and several of his shows have been cancelled in France amid fears that his stereotypical portrayal of Jews and mocking of the Holocaust were a risk to public order.

In 2013, French President François Hollande said of Diedonné “We will fight against the sarcasm of those who purport to be humourists but are actually professional antisemites.” The International League Against Racism and Antisemitism has called the quenelle: “an inverted Nazi salute representing the sodomy of the victims of the Holocaust”.

West Bromwich Albion striker Nicolas Anelka was banned for five matches and fined £80,000 by the Football Association for his quenelle gesture last year.

Over the weekend, Matisyahu, a Jewish American reggae artist was booted from Spain’s Rototom Sunsplash music festival after refusing to issue a statement endorsing a Palestinian state; There is no reason that a Jewish performer should be forced to make political statements before being permitted to perform at a festival. Last year the Tricycle Theatre in London refused to host the UK Jewish Film Festival, and Israeli performers withdrew from The Edinburgh Festival after threats to their safety.

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has declared that the levels of Scottish antisemitism are “unacceptable” as the number of antisemitic attacks in Scotland doubled last year. In May, the Scottish Council of Jewish Communities voiced fears that some Scottish Jews were considering leaving the country.

The Edinburgh Festival has told members of the public: “The Fringe Society do not select or programme the Festival Fringe, nor do we curate or censor the behaviour or actions of performers. It is not within our remit or our open access ethos to allow or refuse performers a platform for their work that is within the law.”

The quenelle is a neo-Nazi symbol of Jew-hatred used by antisemites who claim that they oppose ‘Zionists’ but openly espouse Holocaust denial and other antisemitic views. Alison Chabloz routinely ends her tweets with ‘#quenelle’ and this latest photograph of her, along with her defence of papers questioning the scale of the Holocaust, should be of grave concern to any venue hosting her at the Festival and to Nicola Sturgeon who has rightly promised zero tolerance of antisemitism.

When asked for comment, Police Scotland said: “We would urge anyone with concerns about online content to contact Police Scotland on 101 where your report will be treated with the utmost seriousness.”

We are seeking to recruit a General Counsel a Video and Content Creator an Education and Outreach Intern to join our London office

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Campaign Against Antisemitism is a volunteer-led charity dedicated to exposing and countering antisemitism through education and zero-tolerance enforcement of the law. Everything that we do is done by people who volunteer their time, using donations contributed by members of the public. Join the fight against antisemitism by subscribing to our updates, volunteering, or donating.