Join the Twitterstorm on 20 August – oppose antisemitism and defend free speech for Labour Party members
The Labour Party NEC is under pressure to revise the code of conduct on antisemitism it adopted in July and to replace it with the IHRA working definition and its 11 examples.
According to the author of the IHRA wording, Kenneth Stern, the purpose of the definition he put together was to assist in the collection of data, not for restricting free speech. This was clearly set out in his testimony to the US Congress in November 2017.
Different criteria, than those required for data collection, are necessary when defining antisemitism for the purpose of disciplinary action and legal cases.
Labour’s NEC adopted a code in July, that incorporated the 38 word IHRA definition and seven of the appended IHRA examples. The code also set out guidelines relating to other four IHRA examples. The Labour leadership’s code was produced for the purpose of disciplinary action within Labour. Its aim is to tackle antisemitism where it exists, whilst maintaining a degree of free speech on issues of Palestine and Israel.
Supporters of Labour’s NEC code, who oppose the erosion of free speech, will be taking part in a Twitterstorm on 20 August to draw attention to these issues. Their campaign can be found here.
Progressive people, who oppose antisemitism and support Palestinian human rights, will want to support this initiative.