Green Party co-leader Zack Polanski has faced what commentator Owen Jones describes as an erasure of his Jewish identity due to his left-wing politics. Writing in the Guardian, Jones argues that Polanski is treated as an illegitimate political actor by the right-wing press, exemplified by a recent Sky News interview with Trevor Phillips.
In the interview, Phillips misrepresented Polanski's comments about antisemitic attacks and Jewish safety, leading Polanski to ask: 'Why is my Jewish identity being erased from this conversation?' Phillips responded: 'Don't try that one on me!' Jones notes that Phillips ignored Polanski's references to his own experiences of antisemitism, including an incident leading to arrests and a rally disrupted by Nazi salutes.
Jones also criticises Times columnist Janice Turner for writing that 'for Polanski, “Jew” is his political shield,' and fellow Times columnist Melanie Phillips for calling Polanski a 'menace to public safety' and accusing him of 'using his Jewish ancestry as a shield.' Jones argues that such attacks delegitimise Palestinian rights, pointing to Melanie Phillips' past statements denying the existence of the Palestinian people.
Jones concludes that British political discourse allows inflammatory statements about Palestinians while vilifying those who oppose their destruction. He highlights Phillips' subsequent comments on Times Radio, where he claimed the Green party draws support from an 'Islamist community that wants to kill Jews.'
