AIBU - the Green party has become a racist organisation?

[Twiglets1]

The Green Party of England and Wales has been declared a racist organisation by the Board of Deputies of British Jews.

The Jewish body, which is the largest in the UK, was responding to the "Zionism is racism" policy motion passed at the Green Party's conference earlier this month.

Board of Deputies president Phil Rosenberg said a vote passed by 118 votes to one to declare that the Greens had, "by adopting an antisemitic platform, become a racist party".

I agree with this assessment but AIBU?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ckx2qyd17eqvo

I understand your concerns.

What I find reassuring however is how quick the Labour Party, Conservative Party and Liberal Democrat party were to distance themselves from this motion and say they wouldn’t form a coalition with the Greens while it is place. It’s currently due to stand for 2 years I believe.

Also reassuring that the European Greens immediately distanced themselves from the Green party of England & Wales.

Zionism has obviously caused a great deal of harm and there are many, many Jews who oppose it. Zionism is not Judaism.
That said, I think the Greens were incredibly stupid to pass that motion. Many people don’t know what Zionism is and how it differs from Judaism so it just makes them sound awful. It’s a nuanced issue which deserves a nuanced discussion.
I am, and always have been, a passionate defender of Jewish people and oppose anti-semitism. What Jewish people have had to put up with throughout history and still today is disgusting. I also oppose what happened to the Palestinian people. You can hold both ideas in your head but it’s complex and can’t be summed up in a soundbite.

Definitely you can have sympathy for both sides in the Gaza war, I do myself have sympathy for ordinary Palestinians. That’s a separate issue in my mind to whether the Green Party is a racist organisation.

While it may be true that many people don’t actually know what Zionism is, I don’t think that is likely to be true of the 3 big political parties that have distanced themselves from the Green Party as a result of this motion.

I also don’t think it’s likely to be true of the European Green Party that they don’t understand the nuances of the word Zionist.

I think the people who proposed this motion and rejected the amendments knew exactly what they were doing. They are not stupid. They have taken a term that has many meanings, including the way most Jewish people use it, refused to state that they mean 'political, expansionist Zionism', refused to formally clarify that Jewish members would not be disciplined for attending community and religious settings considered zionist' ( why not, if they really only meant political Zionism' and not all forms of Zionism'?) In an attempt to stay within the law they verbally mealy mouthed said ' Oh it's not a disciplinary matter according to Green Party rules' while actively discriminating against Jews. They know full well that their support for Hamas and their declaration of a desire for a ' single Palestinian state' is expansionist in itself and will inevitably lead to the murder of all Israelis ( including the Arabs who have taken refuge because they were Gay etc) They also know they have no rights to demand that. It's not up to them. Yet they still did it. I hope they get what they want and drive the environmentalists out to form a real Green Party. Then we will really see who the people left are, all in one place.

Yes it has become a party of hatred disguised as being caring about the Palestinian cause

The Labour Party has a real issue with antisemitism under Corbyn and The Green Party now have it lead by Polanski who only cares about his own political ambitions

membership means nothing when it comes to votes you will still hear Corbyn supporters bang on about this all it means is this case as with Labour under Corbyn they parties attract antisemitic voters

I feel for those who have worked hard for the Green Party, they led the way in awareness and changing government policy

It’s a disgrace, when the need for a strong and committed environmentalist party has never been greater.

Putting aside all the hateful stuff the party is now into. This is currently the feeling of everyone I know talking about the Green Party. Zippy has really cocked up a party that would have held a stronger and stronger voice during the next 30 years or so

He has

and that is a real shame. In five years I believe he shall be history (hopefully much sooner) a shameful history for the Green Party and politics in general

Exactly.200000 people is not a lot in the scheme of voting numbers, and most of them will be the same people who joined Labour under Corbyn. Polanski didn't increase the vote in Holborn and SP. once you add Andrew Feinsteins votes to the previous GP votes. Feinstein is a traveller from Momentum/ Your Party etc. It's the same far Left anti semites moving from one party to another, collecting Islamic fundamentalists along the way, overlooking their religious fundamentalism in a way they don't afford any other religions.

To be accurate, Lubna Speitan’s bestie was jailed for a plot to blow up a backpack filled with rat poison dipped shrapnel at Heathrow Airport.

She also continued to defend him, despite him having pleaded guilty.

Agree they are utterly vile. Any supporters must be unhinged IMO

Given that the motion has been approved as legal and will stand for two years, do any of you think other organisations will adopt it? What about local authorities or educational institutions? This is my worry.

Caroline Lucas, where are you and what are you doing, why have you watched this happen?

She spoke out against it and the Greens for Palestine are trying to get her kicked out.

This is the position of most people on what the Green party has done

It is interesting that it is only those that claim to be anti racist or that call for the destruction of a single country don't hold the same position

One hundred percent agree with this

The policy was made and voted for as an act of racist hate. Simply that, nothing more and nothing less. The people behind it knew what they were doing and that it would be used by Jewish haters to somehow validate their own prejudice. We have seen this on mumsnet and in social media already, the pure joy of some very horrible human beings about this policy getting voted some people obviously find delicious.

They’ll have no credibility whatsoever if they do that. It will be clear that they are a party of foreign activists, hopelessly co-opted.

Excellent post.

I think she didn't foresee the momentum. Polanski got such a ringing endorsement, when elected as leader, and he wanted the same as Lucas - to replace the Labour party. As others have posted, it is a faction of Labour that joined them and this is the way it was heading ....

No way.

No reputable mainstream organisation will adopt it after the fierce backlash, in my opinion.

Definitely people in some organisations and institutions that would love to adopt this position

However likely be classed as illegal if taken to court because of the racist situations that could arise from it they can't if they have any common sense

Some may try it eventually though, which will get very messy and expensive I imagine

The whole 'the 'good' Greens who cared about the environment have been displaced by the Gaza obsessives who have taken over the party' narrative (which is demonstrable, it's the antisemites who were kicked out of Labour - see e.g. Chris Williamson attending the conference) isn't necessarily the whole story.

There are a notable number of people who used to be environmental activists who are now spending more time on Palestine. Greta Thunberg is the famous one, but a lot of people who used to be activists for Extinction Rebellion or Just Stop Oil are now getting themselves arrested for Palestine Action instead (co-founded by Richard Barnard, previously of Extinction Rebellion). Elderly people used to lie down in the road for Just Stop Oil, now it's holding placards of support for a proscribed terrorist organisation.

How many of those were Green Party members who, far from being displaced have merely switched interests?

I definitely have my suspicions about the leadership of the NEU.

Well if that's you saying that, there really must be something amiss.

I agree. It's a hot potato that the Greens are stuck with. The worry is the conditions created, in which it came to pass. In 2026, how on earth could this motion even have been on the table.