Maajid Nawaz's powerful monologue on the rise of anti-Semitism

8 December 2019, 14:51

In a powerful speech, Maajid Nawaz spoke of how anti-Semitism is a form of racism that the far left, far right and theocrats all advocate.

Maajid Nawaz asked if there was a point of no return with regards to anti-Semitism in British society - and have we reached it?

He spoke about the "one ring of racism" being anti-Semitism.

He explained why: "Racism against blacks and browns, people of colour, ethnic minorities, whichever word you wish to describe, coming from the right is usually directed from the right to people that look like me.

"But usually the left, the far left even, even the masked Antifa far left, doesn't attack people that look like me.

"On the other hand, if you look to other forms of racism, prejudice and bigotry, perhaps homophobia even, again, there are certain groups of society that discriminate against gay people and certain groups that don't.

"But there's one form of prejudice which, historically and today we witness it, is managing to unite disparate groups.

"Like the one ring that united evil people in Tolkien's saga around the evil Lord of Sauron and that one form of bigotry is anti-Semitism.

"It is no surprise to me that hating Jews is something that those on the far left advocate, those on the far right advocate, and the Islamist theocrats themselves also advocate.

It's the one form of racism that can bring the triple threat to liberal democratic values together. "

He then spoke about the typical stereotype of racists sometimes being 'skinheads'.

Maajid then said: "But, actually, if you look to how anti-Semitism works in today's discourse, is it any surprise to you that the former leader of the BNP, Nick Griffin, has voiced his support for people on the far left, including Jeremy Corbyn, who have taken certain views around these sorts of topic"

Maajid later said: "Racism is taking over our institutions and that's what we mean by institutional racism."

He cited the examples of three Conservative politicians being investigated, concerns over institutional anti-Semitism in the Labour party and racism and football matches.

He later told listeners that we could have learned from the Weimar Republic.

He first discussed the origins of fascism in Italy - which involved a merging of left-wing economics and right-wing xenophobia.

Maajid then moved on to Germany and the origins of Nazism - and then onto Britain and Oswald Mosley.

He explained that he cited these examples to warn against these phenomena happening here in Britain today.

Maajid later said: "It is my view that anti-Semitism is the one thing that unites all these extremes and that actually this is an effort for authoritarianism."