The launch of LAZIR on Sunday 5th May at Labour HQ at 105 Victoria St, London drew 10 people together to declare that JLM’s days are numbered. LAZIR is Labour Against Zionist Islamophobic Racism (LAZIR).
Our aim is to rid Labour and the unions of the Zionist scourge and the fraudulent IHRA Definition of anti-Semitism. We want Labour to disaffiliate the Zionist Jewish Labour Movement (JLM) and affiliate Jewish Voice for Labour, because Zionism is racism.
We also want those Labour MPs who are members of the Labour Friends of Israel to relinquish membership, for they are party to supporting a racist state. As you must know, almost a year ago, Israel adopted the Nation State Law, and thus their membership condones apartheid, in a country whereby only Jews can have nationhood and all others have far fewer rights.
To read the full aims and policies of the LAZIR campaigning group and to join for free, go to www.tinyurl.com/laziwork
We know that whenever the next general election is called, the JLM will burst into action all over again, accusing MPs and Corbyn of bogus anti-Semitism, contriving to ruin Labour’s chances of winning power. For, as the Lobby (see https://youtu.be/ceCOhdgRBoc) demonstrates, they are funded and work for Netanyahu, who fears Corbyn attaining premiership. We must rid ourselves of these racist parasites. Your support will help Labour into Government.
What Labour had to say thus far:
Gareth Snell MP had this to say upon receipt of the invitation email “Delete me from your mailing list.“ and then “By your own admission, your aim is to disaffiliate one of the founder groups of the Labour Party and replace it with a group of individuals who seek to diminish antisemitism.”
Wes Streeting MP said “I’m just guessing, but as you’re a suspended member your meeting probably isn’t taking place at Labour HQ. Thanks for endearing Jon Lansman to me a little more though. Great news! Do follow my work for an exemplar on how to criticise the policies of the State of Israel - including the occupation, illegal settlement expansion, demolition of Palestinian homes and the racist Nation State Law - without resorting to antisemitic tropes. It’s very easy! I am happy to run masterclasses entitled: ‘how to criticise the State of Israel without being a massive racist’. You might learn something - who knows?! Best wishes - but definitely not solidarity!”
LABOUR HQ Complaints unit said “It has come to our attention that you are publicising an event and have the location down as Labour HQ, Southside, 105 Victoria Street, London SW1E 6QT.
Both of these notices give the impression that you are using the premises of Labour HQ for this launch, which you are not. Please remove these notices. If you are holding the event on the street outside Labour HQ, please amend the text from “launch event at Labour HQ” to “launch event outside Labour HQ”. [in the end I did this]
There were two documents we gave out - our Aims and Policies (which makes clear we want the Zionist JLM replaced by the JVL) and the second was a paper rendition of my website posting about the JVL declaration on FB, claiming that I had not consulted with them regarding the use of their name, which I’m sorry to say is a complete fiction.
The video of the launch has got to Russia Today, who are thinking of broadcasting an item on LAZIR on their “Going Underground” channel.
If any of want a png of the LAZIR banner we had displayed in front of Labour HQ, click here. Please post it on social media to help spread the word. Tell folk they can get more info at www.tinyurl.com/laziwork where you can join: so far 10 people have joined (it’s free)
Socialist Fight and Rabbi Ahron Cohen of the Neturie Karta, along with about 10 others commented on the draft aims and policies. I have been speaking to the Friends of Al Aqsa and I think they too are supportive of our initiative.
In his interview, Gerry mentions that members of Socialist Fight were expelled from Labour Against the Witch-hunt (LAW) on January 5th and I was also expelled from LAW on Saturday. My expulsion was watched by Ken Livingston, the new LAW president, who abstained from the vote. For more info on the expulsion, see below. Our view is that LAW is essentially a defensive body and lacks the aggressive focus that will be needed to purge the Labour Party and the unions from Zionist influence. It will be a long hard road; I do not expect success for a year or two, hopefully time enough to finish the job before the next General Election. We want a Labour Government led by Corbyn to be able to impose sanctions on Israel until it abandons its apartheid ways in the manner South Africa was forced to in the late 80s. If Corbyn declared Israel racist right now, he’d be expelled from Labour, so delegitimising the politicised and fraudulent IHRA definition of anti-Semitism is key.
The Daily Mail article “Demands for Jeremy Corbyn's Labour to face a full-scale anti-Semitism probe with 'damning dossier' alleging hundreds of incidents of anti-Jewish prejudice within the party” shows how urgent our work is.
One of you sent me this quote from Arthur Schopenhauer, which seems apposite:
All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident
EXPELLED
On Saturday 4th May, Labour Against the Witchhunt expelled me. Tony Greenstein’s motion (see the 3rd motion on the agenda here, which was subsequently moved to be the first business) was passed 20 in favour, 9 against and 8 abstentions.
The agenda was re-jigged so that the meeting opened with the motion. LAW then decided to refuse my two LAW two motions as well – one on twinning UK cities with Palestinian ones.. and they have refused to discuss LAZIR. Thus my fate was sealed on the support of but 5% of LAW’s membership; the steering group refused to allow those who could not travel to London a vote by email; I know many who could not attend but who would have supported me. The bias in favour of Londoners is impossible to ignore – and London is the seat of power for Jackie Walker, a key supporter of Tony’s motion, so clearly I was disadvantaged from the get-go.
It’s hard to see why LAW are so resistant to ideas other than the ones the steering group have. Time and again I’ve tried to persuade them to take action and gotten nowhere. I do hope they start becoming more democratic and accessible.
Hear the audio recording of the debate here (many thanks to the LAW member who sent this to me. Note, it lasts one hour and to hear the thoughts of Werkman, Walker and Greenstein, you’ll need to CRANK IT UP)
One of the complaints lodged against me at the meeting was that I should not have put the contents of the email exchange online. The reason I did so was because from the outset of this sorry affair, Greenstein copied in a number of Google groups to which I had no access. There are 400 members of LAW and any number of these people would have been in the Google groups. Many would be people that I would have dealings with, through their having signed this petition.
The charge Greenstein was lodging were so serious that I felt he had no alternative but to put them up on my website. Since by copying in so many people Greenstein had published them anyway, I believed that the only way I could get my defence across to the many Greenstein was already communicating with was to put the emails up on my website, and circulate the link to the 2,200 people who had signed his petition. It is regrettable that someone tipped off the Jewish Chronicle of their existence. The fact that Greenstein stated at the meeting that he had spoken to the Chronicle prior to publication suggests it may have been Greenstein himself who tipped off the Chronicle. We shall never know. But the Chronicle coverage is pretty biased in favour of Greenstein, for sure…
See the coverage and my response here
[PS Note- Some LAW folk have complained that I have put the audio from the meeting online. It's important that everybody understands the danger I face here. I was on trial as a holocaust denier supporter. This is a very damaging slur. Under the circumstances I had to try and clear my name. All kangaroo courts such as this need to be exposed.
What was witnessed on Saturday was a popularity contest. I've heard LAW is pretty much run by the CPGB and members had been mandated to expel me.
This is about freedom of speech. LAW was established to defend freedom of speech. What it effectively now says is that the only freedoms it entertains are those that set by Tony, as he digs about in old communications, seeking excuses to expel people (I am not the first).
Others need to consider that being accused of being a holocaust denier supporter (when you are not), is outrageous. I reckon others in my situation would also have put the audio online, in an effort to put the record straight. LAW has lost both its credibility and sense of direction utterly. I was found guilty by association by 5% of the membership in a ridiculous popularity contest; the charges are stupid and I've made clear I have no truck with Holocause deniers. It is a matter of public interest that everybody can hear the discussion and listen to the mistruths that abound on the charges levelled against me.
I have made clear that if Tony had approached me in a quiet comradely fashion (without copying in countless others with a threat of expulsion if I did not meet his demand) then I most certainly would have taken down the link to the Ian Fantom piece. But his desire here was to humiliate me and bully me. I do not respond to bullies.
Furthermore, I do not think Ian Fantom or even Kollerstrom is an anti-Semite. Indeed Rabbi Cohen pointed out to me last week that Holocaust denial is not anti-Semitic. For somebody to praise Hitler for murdering the Jews – that would be anti-Semitic. But to doubt they were murdered in the first place is, as the Rabbi pointed out, just stupid. For the evidence is there.
I do think LAW is an important body, but I feel it has lost direction. Essentially a defensive body set up to challenge all bogus expulsions, it is ill-suited to the aggressive and focussed work necessary to kick Zionism out of Labour and the unions. If LAW had agreed to support LAZIR on Saturday (or even accommodate my initial idea of running LAZIR as a sub-Committee of LAW) that would have been great. That, yet again, the steering group have turned me away shows they have little appetite for that. My proposal to them of a fortnight ago was to put the LAZIR and twinning motions before the expulsion one, which would have allowed these proposals to possibly be passed- and then to expel me. That the business was engineered to get me out before my other motions could be heard, speaks volumes about the steering group’s attitude to new ideas.]
OTHER NEWS
There have been a few online video films made with Gordon Dimmack – each is 5-15 mins long, transmitted between 1st and 4th May.
Here they are: Palestinian rights supporter Pete Gregson updates us on his Labour suspension
Shutting down speech is a bad idea with Pete Gregson
Pro-Palestine rights activist Pete Gregson talks about LAZIR
Petition to twin Edinburgh with Gaza introduced
The bombing of Gaza recently shows our cause is urgent. I hope if you are able to go to London for the Palestine demo on Saturday that you go. I can’t: it’s my son’s 14th birthday and I’m organising his birthday party
Cheers the noo
Pete Gregson, Edinburgh