Labour’s denial and distraction over antisemitism has been harrowing to witness

The party’s response to its antisemitism scandal has been depressing and disturbing. There are small signs of hope, but only if the leadership commits to meaningful, radical action 

Saturday 13 July 2019 11:08 BST
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Panorama investigates alleged Labour antisemitism: 'trying to interfere politically is just wrong', says MP Ian Mcnicol

Even by its own sometimes paranoiac standards, Labour’s response to the BBC Panorama programme about the party’s alleged antisemitism crisis, and indeed to the longer history of accusations of anti-Jewish racism within its ranks, has been depressing.

The official response of the party and its cheerleaders in the media can be summed up in two words: denial and distraction.

Denial comprises the notion that the problem is overstated, misunderstood and, in so far as it applies to Jeremy Corbyn and those around him, manifestly absurd. That is the defensive arm of the strategy.

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