ok so...yes, claims that Corbyn avoided calling “Rothschild Zionists run world governments” an antisemitic statement are exaggerated and the Tories are obviously more racist & dangerous to all marginalized people but seriously Corbyn has no idea how to talk about this

as an outside observer, it seems to be a mix of systemic issues with societal antisemitism plus a poor process for handling complaints, but also some intracommunity tensions with centrists attacking leftist Jews as antisemites & Tories making political hay out of it all but STILL

the substance of Corbyn’s comments are accurate! and the report correctly identified antisemitic conspiracy theories that should be condemned! and he says it’s an antisemitic trope! and he’s probably right that the disciplinary process is longer b/c of legal representation! *BUT*

and it’s a *big* BUT. he’s either so oddly defensive because of this lengthy controversy or so uncomfortable actually talking about antisemitism concretely and not in the abstract or so unwilling to really grapple with how conspiratorial antisemitism manifests on the left that...

sigh. many of Corbyn’s critics are operating in bad faith & people are downplaying the racism of the Tories & some people expressing concerns about antisemitism in Labour have done so in appallingly racist ways, but *this still isn’t how to address antisemitism effectively*

if a marginalized community is expressing concerns about some genuinely appalling antisemitic comments made by members of your party, lengthy discussions about the finer points of your disciplinary process don‘t convey empathy and understanding

similarly, if you’re asked about rebuilding trust with a specific marginalized community who think you’ve fucked up on their issues, the ideal response is not a generic statement vs. hatred of all kinds & a conspicuous refusal to apologize or acknowledge shortcomings on your part

like, even if some of that distrust is a result of bad faith political opportunism by the right-wing press and the Tories and even if the narrative that Labour as a whole is more antisemitic isn’t actually borne out by statistics or studies, this is a bad response

(and I mean, take it as read that Boris is an appalling Islamophobic racist bigot who will never even try to display this level of introspection and fearmongering that Labour would ban circumcision or pass discriminatory laws vs. Jews or is an existential threat is absurd)

but fucking hell you need to learn how to talk about people’s concerns and fears in ways that don‘t sound purely academic & not awkwardly opt for universalist rather than particularist language at every opportunity *when discussing a particular bigotry*

esp. when asked about a manifestation of conspiratorial antisemitism of the Socialism of Fools variety that’s been embedded in the British left since at least the 1800s. yes, ”rothschilds control world governments” is antisemitic. skip the wind up. talk about the report after.