We support the right to protest but...
This Saturday, thousands of British people took to the police to protest against the ongoing genocide in Gaza. This has been planned in response to the Israeli navy's illegal hijacking of the aid flotilla. Or as the Israeli government calls it: 'The Hamas-terrorist flotilla.' Presumably because all Palestinians are terrorists and because baby formula is a weapon of mass destruction /s. I digress.
Hundreds of people have been arrested, not for acts of violence but because the group Palestine Solidarity has been designated as a terrorist organisation, so now a granny with a sign saying 'I'm against genocide and support Palestine Solidarity Action' is now legally classified as a terrorist.
The British political class is still not happy. Due to the tragic murder of two Jewish men in Manchester, our government has called for a pause on all protests. Starmer called on the protesters to 'respect the grief of British Jews.' Shabana Mahmood called the protests 'un-British'. 'Journalist' Juliet Hartley-Brewer called the protests pro-terrorists and pro-Hamas.' In the meantime, the IDF has killed another fifty Palestinian civilians.
What we are seeing, for the millionth time, is people disengenuously avoiding a political issue by conflating Jewish identity with the actions of the state of Israel. Not all Jews are zionists, and not all (most) Zionists are not Jews. As tragic as the murder of British Jews was, this in no way legitimises the mass violence of the Israeli state.
Zack Polanski, the new Green Party leader (himself Jewish) made this very point whilst also condemning the Manchester attack, but was ignored by most of the media. I think that it's actually problematic to conflate all Jews with Israel.
Now our government is bringing in new laws to crack down on protesters to 'protect communities from disruption'. Creeping authoritarianism in the name of protecting minorities.
Hundreds of people have been arrested, not for acts of violence but because the group Palestine Solidarity has been designated as a terrorist organisation, so now a granny with a sign saying 'I'm against genocide and support Palestine Solidarity Action' is now legally classified as a terrorist.
The British political class is still not happy. Due to the tragic murder of two Jewish men in Manchester, our government has called for a pause on all protests. Starmer called on the protesters to 'respect the grief of British Jews.' Shabana Mahmood called the protests 'un-British'. 'Journalist' Juliet Hartley-Brewer called the protests pro-terrorists and pro-Hamas.' In the meantime, the IDF has killed another fifty Palestinian civilians.
What we are seeing, for the millionth time, is people disengenuously avoiding a political issue by conflating Jewish identity with the actions of the state of Israel. Not all Jews are zionists, and not all (most) Zionists are not Jews. As tragic as the murder of British Jews was, this in no way legitimises the mass violence of the Israeli state.
Zack Polanski, the new Green Party leader (himself Jewish) made this very point whilst also condemning the Manchester attack, but was ignored by most of the media. I think that it's actually problematic to conflate all Jews with Israel.
Now our government is bringing in new laws to crack down on protesters to 'protect communities from disruption'. Creeping authoritarianism in the name of protecting minorities.
41-45, M
