And indeed, be in no doubt: the point of the furore over anti-Semitism and Labour is to weaken Corbyn, to sew doubt in his supporters, and to damage Labour's prospects in the coming local elections, providing the context for another leadership bid by this year's Owen Smith equivalent. The right in the Party have been in stasis since the unexpectedly good results in the last General Election. There is no way, however, that they will sit by and let Corbyn fight another General Election (a Corbyn government is, for many of the Old Believers from the Blair years, a worse prospect than a Tory government). This is their chance to stop that, and they have pounced.
Whatever else we say about Labour and anti-Semitism it is vital that we understand that this is what is going on, and that we support the leadership. On top of that, four points:
1. Anti-Semitism around the left is real
Defending Corbyn is not the same thing as being defensive. Some on the left have been unhelpful in denying that anti-Semitism around the left is a thing. Whereas anyone who looks honestly at the trajectory of anti-capitalist protest (and, to an extent, of Palestine solidarity politics) since the 2007/8 financial crisis will know differently. A crisis of capitalism focused in the financial sector, happening at a time when left ideas and organisations were weak, provided the opportunity for every vile caricature of Jewish people, every obsession with the Rothschilds and the Illuminati to work its way out of the woodwork. That mural is a case in point. So are the weirdoes with home made signs featuring the Star of David, one sees on the fringes of demonstrations. To the extent that these people have found their way into the Labour Party (and inevitably some have), they should be expelled. It is no use denying any of this.
Far from being a sign that the left has gone too far, however, the persistence of what August Bebel called 'the socialism of fools', shows that we need a stronger, more disciplined, left with better political education, capable of offering an account of the world persuasive enough to draw people away from the simplicities of bigotry. The Corbyn movement provides the best opportunity for that in this country for a generation. Anyone who is genuinely concerned about anti-Semitism ought not to try to undermine that movement.
2. Anti-Semitism within the Labour leadership is not a thing
This shouldn't need saying. Jeremy Corbyn, a lifelong campaigner against racism of all kinds is not an anti-Semite. Nor is John McDonnell. Nor is Christine Shawcroft (who is something far less politically exciting: an overworked official trying to deal with a mountain of complaints, many of them spurious. We would do well to reflect on the story of the boy who cried wolf). The injustice of good people, who have dedicated their lives to the cause of a more equal and just world, being cynically accused of racism (or at least of turning a blind eye to racism) is palpable. They deserve our absolute support and solidarity.
3. The politics of cultural and religious belonging is complicated
A problem in left of centre politics at the moment is the lack of sophistication in understanding the politics of cultural and religious belonging. This criticism applies equally to Corbyn's attackers and to many of his defenders. Ethno-religious groups are not politically uniform: differences of theology and tradition run through them and intersect with divisions along lines of class, gender, and sexuality. Speaking about the group I'm most familiar with: a certain type of conservative Catholic will accuse people of 'anti-Catholicism' in the context, say, of debates about legal abortion or same-sex marriage. These accusations are spurious and are made for political effect. This does not mean for one moment that anti-Catholic bigotry is not a real thing. It's just that this isn't it: and, crucially, plenty of Catholics (myself included) will argue against the conservatives, and will do so on grounds internal to Catholicism itself.
The danger is that people unfamiliar with the texture of ethno-religious groups treat them as undifferentiated unity. They see a subgroup taking offense at something and assume that the offense is warranted, proportionate, and directed at the right people. Thus the Board of Deputies of British Jews, a conservative organisation politically opposed to Corbyn over the Middle East is not the voice of all Jews in Britain. It does not speak from a political vacuum. The voices of Jews who support Corbyn cannot be allowed to be silenced.
4. Corbyn will never be able to give enough to satisfy his critics
Ian Austin, Stella Creasy and John Mann do not want a slightly more muted, or somewhat more woke Corbyn. They want no Corbyn. They want the Labour Party to be led by somebody else. Concessions to them - Shawcroft's resignation, committees, enquiries - none of this will satisfy them. So, whilst absolutely fighting anti-Semitism, those concessions ought not to be made. This battle, and that's what it is, is not about anti-Semitism (indeed, I'm tempted to say that using British Jews as pawns in intra-Labour wrangles is itself anti-Semitic) it is about the direction of the Labour Party. Only a resolutely socialist direction will secure proper action against all racism and against the capitalism that fuels it.
Incidentally, if we're now being merciless towards MPs who fail to notice racism, I do think that Stella Creasy might want to ask herself whether she is in a position to cast the first stone.
