UCL defends hosting Jackie Walker book launch about the “price paid” for speaking out about Jews

Jackie Walker is scheduled to appear on a panel at University College London (UCL) marking the launch of a volume of essays titled The Responsibility of Intellectuals – reflections by Noam Chomsky and others after 50 years.

The event is being organised by the Institute of Advanced Studies, which in the billing anticipates that Ms Walker and others will “describe the personal price they have paid for speaking out”. Ms Walker has a chapter in the book titled “I Don’t Want No Peace — a Black, Jewish activist’s take on the responsibility of intellectuals”.

Ms Walker is a former vice-chair of Momentum who was repeatedly suspended by Labour and finally expelled earlier this year. She has persistently claimed that complaints of antisemitism are part of a plot to destabilise the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn and has rejected the International Definition of Antisemitism.

The book’s release and the event marks fifty years since the publication of The Responsibility of Intellectuals by the controversial American professor, Noam Chomsky. 

UCL has defended the invitation to Ms Walker, despite her record, citing “freedom of expression”.

Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “It is appalling that someone who has blamed the Jews for the slave trade and even been expelled from the Labour Party is nonetheless given a platform by one of Britain’s leading universities to talk about the ‘personal price she has paid’ for her unrepentant racism. One cannot help but imagine that if Ms Walker had spoken about any other minority in similar terms, UCL would not tolerate her appearance on a panel.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism will be reviewing what is said at the event against the charitable objects of UCL, which is a charity.