Greens adopt policy treating Zionism as racism

[Twiglets1]

The Greens have formally adopted a policy which equates Zionism with racism, a move that will dismay the bulk of the party’s MPs and has alarmed some Jewish members.

In a vote on Sunday at the party’s annual conference in Brighton about whether to back a motion which calls for Zionism, the movement for a Jewish state, to be “treated as any other form of racism”, it passed by 1,022 votes to 813.

The motion, which is now formal policy for the Greens in England and Wales, also calls for a single Palestinian state in place of Israel “with equal rights for all”.

Four of the party’s five MPs have condemned the motion, as did Caroline Lucas, the former leader who was the Greens’ first MP.

Adrian Ramsay, who co-led the Greens before Polanski, said in a statement he would vote against it, as it set out what sort of Palestinian state should exist without taking into account the self-determination of Israelis and Palestinians.

Siân Berry, another of the MPs, made the same point.

Carla Denyer, the Bristol Central MP who was co-leader with Ramsay, said the wording “risks alienating a significant proportion of Jewish people, including those who vehemently disagree with the Israeli government”.

Another Green MP, Ellie Chowns, said the motion “risks fuelling division, and risks undermining the party’s ability to advocate effectively for justice and peace”.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/oct/04/green-party-votes-adopt-policy-zionism-racism

Yes, i know what you mean.I imagine a lot of people in the party (I have close friends in it) are broadly favourable to Palestine, maybe decry Israel’s actions in Gaza, but they’re not extremists like these people are. Green Party extremists are proper loons, I’ve mostly come across them on “trans rights” and they are awful.

We all know why their story is not important. No Jews no news.

But asking this perfectly rational question will get a furious response. And probably a nasty personal attack on the side.

Oh yes. I raised it at a "stall" against Genocide in my town centre. I said I was pleased they were against genocide and asked about Sudan.
I was faced with aggression, so beat a hasty retreat.

I am genuinely surprised (and tbh relieved) at the amount of shock, disgust and disbelief that this policy being passed by the Greens is causing across the board. This thread is a good example. When I think of all the threads that have been on MN since October 2023 where these exact lines have been pushed, where people have defended the marches where 'Zionism is racism' has been a recurring theme, where people have said 'I don't see antisemitism, just legitimate criticism of Israel' - it's THIS. This is what has been going on. It's fairly unsurprising to anyone who has been paying attention that these sort of opinions are not rare on the hard left, but deeply embedded to the point where a political party now has them as policy. That Israel shouldn't exist at all. That people who think Israel should be allowed to exist as a Jewish state are despicable racists who should be hounded out of society. 'Anti Zionism' doesn't mean 'anti people who support genocide' it means 'anti people who hold a perfectly normal opinion about the existence of Israel'.

I wonder if people who have till now been happily going on with these opinions with what to me has looked like very little pushback are suddenly having their 'Are we the baddies?' moment.

Lets hope so. Because, yes, they are!

Polanski loses Holborn
Ali wins a coup
Viola - a full blown Islamist party

Hateful, useful fucking idiots. Like every marcher for Palestine.

If this happens they’ll be so firmly in the wilderness I hope they’ll never be invited to join in with other parties on the left.

👿

I headed over to CITME to see what they're saying and it seems remarkably quiet on the matter.

Those asking what Polanski will do about it? What can he do about it?

He’s not that intelligent but almost certainly has the nous to know how tenuous his own position is.

He’s on the biggest gig of his life as the leader of a political party and if he screws this up the only thing that awaits him is Celebrity Big Brother and Dancing on Ice. He’s not charismatic, likeable or talented enough for any of those.

Apologies for the levity but that’s exactly where ZP will be in 3 years time.

I think this will happen

The less than one percent voted thing is totally fuckwittery. Yes not many people voted but that means people stood back and let it happen rather than actively voted against it.

Only a relatively small percentage of nazis actively were involved in sending Jews to the gas chambers. However all nazis did let Jews be persecuted and killed.

Lack of action against prejudice is not a defence

It would be nice to think so but I think it's the board.

I wouldn't have dared start this thread on the Conflict in the Middle East Board as they always get nasty & the personal attacks start in 3, 2, 1 ...

More moderate people post on the Politics board. But yes, it has been lovely to hear some new voices and chat with like minded people.

Yes, there were a small number of perpetrators, but large numbers of collaborators and bystanders.

Dancing on ice ... break a leg, pal

The standing back reminds me of Pontius Pilate washing his hands.

Already dancing on very thin ice but as long as there’s a leather clad man in bondage gear next to him he’ll be fine.

"the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing" Edmund Burke (Philosopher)

😂

That's right: we're good people and we're not going to stand by and do nothing.

No shit Sherlock.
CITME (as I know you know) is an absolute cess-pit.

Yes, I'm not going back there any time soon.

Yep, it's so appalling I can't usually face reading it, let alone posting, even though the absolute shite spouted there needs a lot of challenge. I admire Twiglets1 and others who have the stomach for it.

Also...
DH, who is politically quite aware, has twice expressed his astonishment at this vote by the Greens.

I told him this evening that it had been on its way for at least 3 years.

He hasn't been looking hard enough. He thinks I'm a bit OTT about antisemitism - perhaps he'll revise that opinion now.

I agree this would have gone differently on a different board but even outside of CITME some people usually pop up to declare everyone genocide supporters or whatever.

It's getting a lot of pushback on twitter too, Green Party councillors resigning, the European Green Party statement, some Amnesty guy resigning, Labour MPs reporting the Green Party to the police.

It might have been nice if people had cottoned onto what it meant when this sort of thing is being chanted on the streets. "Oh, so that's why Jews might be intimidated by the marches".