Condemn the attack on George Galloway

Submitted by AWL on 3 September, 2014 - 12:02

Bradford MP George Galloway was hospitalised with a broken jaw and rib after being attacked in Notting Hill on 29 August.

The evidence suggests that Galloway was attacked because of his positions on and comments he has made about Israel-Palestine.

The man accused of attacking Galloway, Neil Masterson, has said in the press that he was bothered by Galloway's anti-semitism. Galloway's politics on Israel are very bad; Masterson seems to be a right winger, a defender of the Israeli government and its oppression of the Palestinians.

Politicians should not be physically attacked for expressing their opinions. No one should be. (Defending ourselves, our communities, etc, against the likes of fascists is a different matter.) Socialists must militantly defend freedom of expression and debate.

We have attacked Galloway's noxious politics, including on Israel-Palestine, and his role on the left many times over two decades. All the more reason to condemn what looks like a right-wing attack on his freedom of speech now.

Comments

Submitted by AWL on Fri, 26/09/2014 - 13:01

It is reasonable to call Galloway an anti-semite, but it doesn't follow that everyone who does it does so "reasonably", ie from a left-wing or even minimally consistent anti-racist point of view.

The evidence seems to suggest that the attacker is a right-winger and an anti-Palestinian chauvinist. That is relevant information, but information you seem determined to ignore.

The AWL has fought for decades against the left promoting George Galloway, but he is not a fascist like Nick Griffin. You could draw many comparisons between Stalinism and fascism, but there are important differences in terms of their supporters here. If right-wingers attacked a Morning Star seller we would defend the Stalinists against physical attack while condemning and fighting them politically.

Sacha Ismail

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