The surge of the Green party has underscored a persistent rule in British politics: those on the left are often not treated as legitimate political actors. This was evident recently when Green party leader Zack Polanski was interviewed by Sky News' Trevor Phillips, who barely concealed his contempt.
Misrepresentation of Polanski's Comments
Two weeks ago, in an interview with Haaretz, Polanski was asked about the Green party's response to a wave of attacks on Jewish sites in the UK. He stated, "I'm concerned about rising antisemitic attacks. We saw arson attacks on ambulances, and Jewish communities are feeling unsafe. There's a conversation to be had about whether it's a perception of unsafety or actual unsafety, but neither is acceptable." Phillips twisted this into a claim that Polanski dismissed threats as imaginary. In reality, Polanski noted that pro-Palestine marches have been perceived as unsafe by some Jewish people but safe by others, including himself.
Polanski then asked, "Why is my Jewish identity being erased from this conversation?" Phillips retorted, "Don't try that one on me!" and continued to argue that "many" Jewish people disagreed with Polanski, ignoring Polanski's own experiences of antisemitism, including an incident leading to arrests and a Green rally disrupted by rightwing activists performing Nazi salutes. Phillips also failed to address a Times cartoon depicting Polanski with a grotesquely hooked nose, a classic antisemitic trope.
Double Standards in Media Treatment
If a Jewish Labour or Tory leader had been spoken to this way, there would likely be national outrage. But Polanski is both Jewish and left-wing, and thus, it seems, not a legitimate figure whose identity should be respected. Other journalists echoed this sentiment. Times columnist Janice Turner wrote that for Polanski, "'Jew' is his political shield." On Sky News, Melanie Phillips, also Jewish, accused Polanski of being a "menace to public safety" and using "his Jewish ancestry as a shield" because he repeats the "canard that Israel is committing a genocide." This logic would also apply to prominent Jewish genocide scholars like Omer Bartov, who has stated he can recognize a genocide when he sees one.
Delegitimizing Palestinian Rights
These attacks also serve to delegitimize Polanski's support for Palestinian rights. Melanie Phillips has previously claimed that supporting the Palestinian cause facilitates "murderous Jew-hatred" and declared that "there is no such thing as the Palestinian people" and that Jews have an entitlement to all the land. Such inflammatory statements about Palestinians often go unpunished, while opposing their destruction invites vilification.
The day after the interview, Trevor Phillips said on Times Radio that there is "an Islamist community that wants to kill Jews" and that the Green party "draws its support from that community." He claimed the party fears losing support if it condemns antisemitism. These points are contradictory: why would Islamists vote for a secular party led by a gay Jewish man with a progressive platform? The Green party has repeatedly condemned antisemitism.
Party Allegations and Media Bias
While there have been allegations of antisemitism among some Green candidates, these are isolated cases in a party that has grown to nearly 230,000 members. Smearing the entire party, as the Daily Mail has done, is cynical. Trevor Phillips will likely face no consequences for his bias, as it aligns with acceptable discourse. Those on the left are not considered legitimate political actors, so anything goes.
