It pains me to say this. As the Leader of the GLC and as the Mayor of London, I thought Ken Livingstone did an amazing job. His achievements are too long to list, but a few of the lasting legacies are as follows - Making anti racism mainstream politics , the Travel Card, Congestion Charging, the Oyster card, low emissions zones, high rise London. He was right to support the Birmingham Six and The Guildford four, when mainstream politicians shied away. However his comments over recent years about the Jewish community have become beyond the pale. His recent outbursts about Hitler and Zionism are simply gratuitously offensive. Whilst Ken may be historically correct that some Zionists conspired with the Nazi party in the 1930's for their own ends, to present this as evidence that the Nazi's and Zionism are in any way bedfellows is ridiculous. In every party and movement there are people who will exploit any opportunity. Any Zionist dealing with Nazi's in the early 1930's would have no idea of the holocaust that would be unleashed on their community. Like all dictators, Hitler saw such naive fools as "Useful Idiots", who could be used as a fig leaf for his own advantage. For anyone who has studied history, it is clear that Hitler played all sorts. He did the same with Stalin and the Molotov/Von Ribbentrop pact. Does he claim that Nazis are communists because of this?
It is simply gratuitously offensive to Jewish People and as such Ken should have been expelled. Too many people died for Nazi's to be used as a stick to beat anyone.
4 comments:
Hi Rog
I'm genuinely shocked at this post. You accuse Ken Livingstone of making 'comments over recent years about the Jewish community' that have 'become beyond the pale'. Which comments about the jewish community are you talking about? You say he presented his historical remarks as 'evidence that the Nazi's and Zionism' were somehow 'bedfellows'. No, he didn't. You and many others have made that connection, not him. Did he say that Hitler was a Zionist? No, he didn't. You say that 'Too many people died for Nazi's to be used as a stick to beat anyone'. I agree, but once again, what part of what Ken Livingstone said was an attempt to beat Jewish people with the stick of Nazism? As you know, Barnet Council have recently adopted the National Holocaust Memorial Day definition of anti-semitism. I have read it carefully, it is a very robust definition, and I can see nothing in there that remotely describes Ken Livingstone's comments. Maybe he caused offence, but that is something completely different. And if you are going to report that, maybe you should also report that many prominent Jewish people in the Labour Party have gone out of their way to defend him. It is a sad day indeed when somebody is vilified for talking about history just because it might raise some uncomfortable questions.
Here is a link to an open letter from some of those Jewish members which gives the rather less reported other side of the story:
Letter from Jewish Members and Supportors of the Labour Party. Perhaps we should all just pause for a moment and remember that the 'Jewish community', like any group of people, are not homogenous.
Paula,
I said Ken's comments were gratuitously offensive to the Jewish community. You are correct that not every Jewish person will be offended and you are correct to point out that some Jewish people still support Ken. It is also true that not every black person was offended by Bernard Mannings racist jokes, but that does not excuse them. I've no idea why Ken feels the need to dig up the 1930's when talking about the modern day state of Israel or Zionism. If he has a case to make, it should be against what is happening today, not about the behaviour of people who have long since passed away in a very difficult and turbulent time.
I still have admiration for much of what Ken did, as I said at the start of this post. But that does not give him a blank cheque to indulge in gratuitously offensive behaviour. What Ken has done is extremely damaging to the image of the Labour party. Jeremy Corbyn has enough problems without it. You may not have an issue with what Ken said, you may agree with him. I am gald you have taken the trouble to put your sside of the story and a link to what you believe supports your case, that is the purpose of the comment facility and intelligent people can make their own mind up. It is a free country (thank God). I however stand by every word I wrote.
Fair enough Rog, I just think that if you are going to accuse somebody of making anti-semitic remarks, you should be prepared to back up it up with evidence, or at the very least be able to say which remarks you are referring to so that people can make their own minds up.
Paula,
I listened to Ken on BBCLondon 94.9 Vanessa Feltz show (as I do every day when I wake up). I was totally appalled by his comments. They are a matter of public record. If they don't bother you then fine.
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