AIBU to agree with Diane Abbott

@livelovebehappy

Abbott is telling me how I feel. How all black people feel.

When the height of the riots last year, white racist rioters were performing 'white driver checks' , most of my Jewish friends in London would have passed. All Irish travellers in a car would have passed, all white red haired drivers would have passed, NONE of us blacks would have passed.

This is her entire fucking point.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/far-right-race-riot-uk-b2591803.html

You could just imagine the furore, if a Jewish person had minimised other forms of racism. As usual, however, the Jewish community is the battering ram. I getting just a bit bloody sick and tired of witnessing it.

Plenty of people agree with her and even if they don't they shouldn't be abusing her

If only she gave pause for thought, before she repeated her ignorance.

@livelovebehappy

Abbott is telling me how I feel. How all black people feel.

When the height of the riots last year, white racist rioters were performing 'white driver checks' , most of my Jewish friends in London would have passed. All Irish travellers in a car would have passed, all white red haired drivers would have passed, NONE of us blacks would have passed.

This is her entire fucking point.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/far-right-race-riot-uk-b2591803.html

Perhaps a slightly less contentious way of saying the same thing; some jewish people 'look' jewish and people will assume they are jewish when they see them across the street. Some jewish people are not identifiably jewish when you see them.

These two groups of people will surely have different experiences of anti-semitism. The former might get shouted at across the street, the latter won't. That is what she is saying I think; not that antisemitism is less bad, but that some people will be less affected by it by virtue of not looking jewish.

It's wrong to abuse someone for their opinions too and is probably part of the reason why so many politicians have security now.
I'm sure people disliking her is not all down to racism. But the twitter thing should give people pause for thought

the abuse against her is not all down to racism it's because of what she says and what she stands for and frankly its wrong to accuse someone of racism because they criticise a black person.

As a black person, I've never heard anything but the truth come out of Abbots mouth.

Weird that, eh?

It’s not a fact, she can’t know what a Jewish person feels and has experienced.

Yes, which is why she should stick to discussing the racism experienced by black people, and not arrogantly think she can tell us how Jewish people feel as opposed to how black people feel. Honestly every interview she gives - the gift that keeps on giving….

Stating fact is minimising the experience of others???

Stating fact is minimising the experience of others???

And for people saying they can't stand her. At one point half of all abuse towards MPs on twitter was directed towards her. Is she really so unlikable that she deserves that? No, that's racism (and probably a bit of sexism thrown in) It became a bit of a thing to have a go a her when she fluffed those figures. While other MPs who said much stupider things didn't get nearly so much abuse.

Stating fact is minimising the experience of others???

Precisely. She should have talked about her own experience, instead she minimised the experiences of others whose prejudice she has never experienced.

And for people saying they can't stand her. At one point half of all abuse towards MPs on twitter was directed towards her. Is she really so unlikable that she deserves that? No, that's racism (and probably a bit of sexism thrown in) It became a bit of a thing to have a go a her when she fluffed those figures. While other MPs who said much stupider things didn't get nearly so much abuse.

I listened to the interview. She makes things up as she goes along. Of course Jewish people are mostly visibly Jewish. We have a large Jewish community in the North, and it is absolutely obvious on most occasions. Racism is racism. Fed up of people of colour thinking they have a monopoly of the label. It really was shocking hearing the rubbish coming out of Abbot’s mouth.

Yes, which is why she should stick to discussing the racism experienced by black people, and not arrogantly think she can tell us how Jewish people feel as opposed to how black people feel. Honestly every interview she gives - the gift that keeps on giving….

But it’s at best idiotic, at worse malign. Yes, you can instantly see skin colour in a way you can’t always see other things - but (a), in her constituency alone there are lots of orthodox Jewish people who, through their dress, are equally as instantly recognisable by their Judaism as anyone would be by their skin colour, (b) it suggests that people have the privilege of hiding their Judaism in a way black people can’t, which is crass (to say the least) given the history of Jewish persecution and the complete inability to hide from that persecution (not to mention that nobody should have to hide their ethnicity or see doing so as a privilege), (c) she compared Jewish people and Irish travellers to people with red hair, which is trivialising and comparing groups who have suffered genocide (Jews) and hugely low social and economic discrimination and disadvantage (travellers) with people who suffer social bullying, and (d) she did this in the context of the Labour Party being blind to antisemitism in its own ranks, including by the leadership at the time of which she was a senior part. And lastly, she said today that she didn’t understand why anyone would object to what she said, which given the discussion about it at the time must mean she hasn’t listened to anything anyone said. She doesn’t have to agree with the point of view, but to not even be able to state what it is must mean she’s either unwilling or unable to listen.

So no, I don’t think she’s right, and my sympathy is about level with the floor.