UK’s Jewish Labour Movement exposes antisemitic attacks on social media

Organization highlights abuse written to them on Twitter, Facebook and other social media platforms

Protesters hold placards and flags during a demonstration, organised by the British Board of Jewish Deputies for those who oppose antisemitism, in Parliament Square in London. (photo credit: HENRY NICHOLLS/REUTERS)
Protesters hold placards and flags during a demonstration, organised by the British Board of Jewish Deputies for those who oppose antisemitism, in Parliament Square in London.
(photo credit: HENRY NICHOLLS/REUTERS)
Britain’s Jewish Labour Movement has been subjected to continuous antisemitic attacks on social media, it revealed over the weekend.
The organization took to Twitter to show the abuse that has been written to them on Twitter, Facebook and other platforms as the Labour Party’s antisemitism crisis deepens.
“We receive huge volumes of abuse, across all social media platforms,” a Jewish Labour spokesman said. “Today, we wanted to share just a tiny proportion of what we receive.”
They warned in the Twitter thread that the information being shared was distressing. In a second tweet, the group explained that some “of the key categories of abuse is the use of classic antisemitic terminology, including ‘yid,’ ‘kike’ and ‘zios,’” a derogatory term for Zionists.

One example was from a user who wrote mockingly and posted emojis of a big nose and Star of David: “Oy vey, you dirty kikes… you poor oppressed yids. Yell antisemitism three times and all your scatological problems will go away.”
Other users claimed that Labour antisemitism was conjured up by the Israel Embassy, the Jewish Labour Movement, “and all those others who want to bring down [Jeremy] Corbyn.”
Another user wrote, “you’re no Jewish movement, you’re just zios.”
The movement also pointed out that users have also demanded that they “disaffiliate from the Labour Party,” but noted that “the Jewish Labour Movement is one of the Labour Party’s oldest affiliates, having affiliated in 1920.”
Tweets and comments by antisemites calling for the Jewish Labour Movement to leave the Labour Party have stated that they “cannot wait to hear the last of you, please please disaffiliate.”

Others have said they should disaffiliate because they are “racists,” using hashtags like #ZionismisFacism and #ZionismRacism.
The organization said the attacks occur daily, including those that call them “backstabbers,” “traitors,” “fifth columnists,” and also play “on the antisemitic trope of Jews being untrustworthy and having dual loyalty. One particularly common variation of this is the idea that as an organization affiliated to the Labour Party for almost 100 years, our members are Tories despite their campaigning efforts for the Labour Party that span decades.”
Users claimed that the movement was “being paid” by the Tories, and that the affiliate “ain’t JewishLabour, you’re the JewishTorries (Traitors).”
A user even said that it was “a disgrace” that the Jewish Labour “has been part of Labour for nearly 100 years. To vote no confidence in JC [Jeremy Corbyn], you are a disgrace,” and calling them traitors.
The Jewish Labour Movement said that “this is the reality for many politically active Jews on the Left,” pointing out that users have also claimed that Jewish politicians on the Left are accused of using Labour “as an attempt to hijack [it] as a mouthpiece for your Zionist movement.”
It concluded that “social media platforms need to step up to the challenge of online hate. We will never allow it to silence us.”