Labour's Gaza Betrayal with Owen Jones

Apr 26, 2024

Owen Jones, a Guardian columnist and passionate advocate for progressive alliances, dives into the Labour Party's controversial stance on Gaza. He discusses the palpable anger among UK Muslim communities over Labour's perceived complicity and their support for Israel's actions. The conversation highlights the ramifications of Labour's choices, including alienating key voters and ignoring humanitarian crises. Jones emphasizes the need for accountability and the importance of strategic voting for progressive candidates to address social justice issues effectively.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Books

Transcript

Episode notes

INSIGHT

Labour's Gaza Policy Issues

Labour leadership supports Israel's siege of Gaza and its so-called right to self-defense despite clear war crimes.
This stance alienates Muslim communities, angering them and raising doubts about voting Labour again.

INSIGHT

Authoritarian Labour Leadership

Keir Starmer's leadership is the most authoritarian in Labour's history, crushing left-wing voices and party democracy.
Labour's leadership ignores external pressure, which is necessary for any meaningful political change.

INSIGHT

Labour Complicity in Gaza Crisis

Labour's support for Israel's cutting off of water and energy to Gaza constitutes complicity in war crimes and genocide.
Labour's defense of such acts undermines their moral credibility and enables ongoing atrocities.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

The Labour Party is en route to form the next government of the United Kingdom with what most analysts describe as a landslide majority. The Conservatives have resided over a failed government, with Brexit, economic crisis and poor public services now associated with the Rishi Sunak’s lacklustre government. Labour’s leader, Keir Starmer is comfortably ahead in the polls and it is now openly stated that the tories may be out of government for a generation.

Yet on Gaza, Labour policy has been horrendous. It has given a green light to Israel from the very start of its genocidal campaign, with its frontbenchers including David Lammy, Wes Streeting, Emily Thornberry and Lisa Nandy making it very clear that they supported a siege of Gaza or the absolute right of Israel to self defence. Labour continued this position despite the carnage and despite the interim judgement by the ICJ that clearly stated Israel was committing a plausible genocide.

I have visited many Muslim communities in towns and cities across the UK and it is clear to me that our anger is palpable. There is a consensus forming that we can no longer vote for a party that has given the green light to killing on an industrial scale. To help us make a case against Labour, I have the pleasure today to speak to probably someone who is the most qualified to discuss the party, journalist and commentator Owen Jones. Owen has been a principled campaigner for Gaza and recently made the unprecedented move to leave Labour. He now calls for an alliance of independents and progressives.

Owen Jones is a Guardian columnist and the author of a number of book including The Establishment – And How They Get Away With It

Join our Patreon to get access to exclusive monthly Zoom calls: / thethinkingmuslim

You can also support The Thinking Muslim through a one-time donation: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/Donate

Purchase our Thinking Muslim mug: https://www.thinkingmuslim.com/merch

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.