The Campaign Against Antisemitism is at it again – this time the victim is Labour’s new lawyer

This is exactly why This Writer is raising money to fund legal action against the Campaign Against Antisemitism and others who use accusations of hatred against Jews to score political points.

Amazing though it seems, the CAA objects to the appointment of an independent barrister to advise the Labour Party on disciplinary matters involving allegations of anti-Semitism. It seems he is not sufficiently biased towards the CAA’s own views.

Or perhaps he’s the “wrong sort of Jew” – which is itself an anti-Semitic slur and the author of the CAA piece should be ashamed for making it.

Gordon Nardell QC is not only a barrister but he is also a Jew, which tends to suggest that he is well-placed to provide solid advice on such claims. But the CAA has trumped up a few silly quibbles and is trying to turn them into major objections – its usual modus operandi.

Let’s look at the methods used to smear Mr Nardell, from the CAA’s recent article about him. First up is a classic – denigrating a person because of the people who support them:

Mr Nardell counts Elleanne Green amongst his supporters. Ms Green, a prolific and obsessive poster of conspiracy theories, wrote in the virulently antisemitic “Palestine Live” Facebook group she founded that Mr Nardell is: “A man I like and trust…also a non Zionist Jew and a very brilliant mind…this should prove interesting…He has already seen my letter to the Labour Party as I copied him in a week or two ago…so, we shall see…”

Saying that he “counts” Elleanne Green among his supporters is to cast him in an active role that is not supported by the evidence. Where has he commented on this person’s support and how did he welcome it? Answer: He hasn’t – otherwise the CAA would be crowing about it. The organisation’s statement about the connection between these two people is meaningless, other than as defamation of character – possibly referring to both these people.

The CAA then moves on to Mr Nardell’s own Facebook posts. It states:

In one response to a Labour member’s defence of Ken Livingstone, Mr Nardell commented: “The problem with characterising Ken’s rather crass and ill-judged remarks as antisemitism is that it debased the coin – we no longer recognise real anti-Jewish racism when we see it, and we undermine the party’s ability to tackle it.”

He also liked a post praising the lifting of Jackie Walker’s original suspension for antisemitism, and another claiming that accusations of antisemitism were being made by a group of Jewish Labour members in an attempt to shut down criticism of Israel.

So his opinion on these matters is different to that of the article’s author. So what? Ken Livingstone was not accused of anti-Semitism by the Labour Party because the allegations would not have withstood examination in a court of law. This is one reason I want to drag the CAA – and those who have supported its false claims – into court, and why I need your help to do it.

Mr Nardell’s further comment – that the furore accusing Mr Livingstone of anti-Semitism would make it harder to recognise real anti-Semitism – is justified, of course.

As discussed on This Site in the past, the lifting of Jackie Walker’s original suspension was the right decision – hackers had broken into her private Facebook messages, grabbed the first thing they could find that they could claim as anti-Semitism, and broadcast it to the press. It later transpired that the claim was unfounded – defamatory – and the accusation was dropped.

As for the claim about “a group of Jewish Labour members” attempting “to shut down criticism of Israel”: Context is everything. We are meant to disapprove of Mr Nardell on this basis – but what was actually said and why was it said? The CAA omits the important information in order to present a false impression.

We see this tactic in operation again, along with the classic quotemining technique of using only individual words rather than full sentences – suggesting that Mr Nardell’s words did not have the meaning attributed to them – here:

Mr Nardell has also turned his sights on Campaign Against Antisemitism, stating that our work to combat hatred directed at Jews by Labour members is “revolting” and results in antisemitism being “abused and belittled”.

Context is everything. What did he really say, and why did he say it? The CAA doesn’t want you to know.

That’s why these liars – and they are lies; they change the meaning of actions (or inactions, in the first case above) and comments in order to present a false argument – must be tackled.

That’s why I am raising cash to fund legal action against this organisation for the libels it has committed against me, using more extreme examples of the same behaviour.

It is clear that the people running this organisation will not heed any appeal to reason; we must therefore turn to the law.

Please visit my JustGiving page and donate, so that we can all put an end to the petty, vindictive, and harmful accusations coming from the CAA and its allies.

Source: CAA calls for independent disciplinary process at the Labour Party as Jeremy Corbyn’s new antisemitism czar lashes out at CAA – Campaign Against Antisemitism


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3 thoughts on “The Campaign Against Antisemitism is at it again – this time the victim is Labour’s new lawyer

  1. Simon Cohen

    Sounds like Mr. Nardell is spot on with this:

    ‘Mr Nardell commented: “The problem with characterising Ken’s rather crass and ill-judged remarks as antisemitism is that it debased the coin – we no longer recognise real anti-Jewish racism when we see it, and we undermine the party’s ability to tackle it.”

    The CAA is debasing anti-semitism itself.

  2. Jeffrey Davies

    the blairites the greedy ones changing how we discuss isn’t it strange when the we can’t open our mouths at all

  3. Zippi

    Interesting. Mr. Nardell’s comment on the Ken £ivingstone case, for example, in how anti-Semitism was being misused; this is exactly the point that I was trying to make re: Islamophobia vs. racism.
    We know that these people are not serious and are merely trying to stir the pot and muddy the waters, or there would have been police investigations, at the very least but no police complaints have been made, have there? If anti-Semitism is racism (£ord knows why we don’t call it that) and racism is a crime, why did these people not go to the police?

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