In support of Ken Loach in the face of absurd accusations of antisemitism

So, it’s come to that: Ken Loach is now the target of a character assassination campaign waged by those who will stop at nothing to shield the Apartheid policies of Israel. Their message to people of good conscience is simple: Unless you too want to be tainted as an antisemite, keep quiet about the crimes against humanity and the assault on human rights in the land of Palestine. They are putting the rest of us on notice: “If we can do this to Ken Loach, a man who has spent his life championing the victims of oppression, racism and discrimination, imagine what we shall do to you. If you dare support the Palestinians’ human rights, we will claim that you hate the Jews.”

Thankfully, no smear campaign against Ken Loach can succeed

Not only because Ken’s work and life are proof of the accusation’s absurdity but also because of the courageous Israelis who take awful risks by defending the right of Jews and non-Jews alike to criticise Israel. For instance, this group of academics who have methodically deconstructed the IHRA’s indefensible definition of antisemitism, which conflates it with legitimate criticisms of Israel that many progressive Israelis share. Or the wonderful people working with the Israeli human rights organisation B’TSELEM to resist the apartheid policies of successive Israeli governments. I am just as grateful to them as I am to my friend and mentor Ken Loach.

Photo Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Do you want to be informed of DiEM25's actions? Sign up here

Detained for protesting Israel’s war on Gaza: Mahmoud Khalil’s letter from ICE detention centre

In this letter Mahmoud Khalil, exposes the systemic injustices within U.S. immigration facilities and how his arrest reflects the crackdown on ...

Read more

Yanis Varoufakis lauds the legacy of Tony Benn: An unyielding voice for change

As Yanis recounted his personal encounter with Benn, a vivid illustration of Benn's ethos emerges - a dedication to challenging the status quo ...

Read more

Democracy under fire: Yanis Varoufakis’ remarks in London on the vanishing right to protest

Yanis Varoufakis gave a speech alongside Juliet Stevenson, Holocaust survivor Stephen Kapos, Jeremy Corbyn, Chris Nineham and Ben Jamal at a ...

Read more

Indonesia’s deforestation crisis: Can a just transition save its rainforests?

Indonesia plans to clear an area of rainforest the size of Belgium for sugarcane-based bioethanol and food crops, sparking fierce backlash from ...

Read more