Greens are forcing Labour’s hand on Gaza
JVL Introduction
Wise words below from Andrew Feinstein, the independent candidate who stood against Keir Starmer in 2024 and slashed his vote in half.
As the backlash against the Green Party for daring to pass a motion “Zionism is Racism” mounts, Feinstein is at pains to emphasise that their debate on Palestine has reflected a wider debate in the country which directly challenged the Starmer government’s attitude to the genocide.
There is no doubt that the solidarity movement with its the mass demonstrations on the streets has contributed massively to Labour’s significant – but still half-hearted – shift on Gaza.
And not just on that issue: the shift mirrors debates around rent controls, wealth taxes and public ownership and the public understanding that it has consistently been let down by the major political parties.
Electoral politics matters but it is not enough; nor is simply being a “megaphone” for protest which can’t change the character of state power. Both are essential.
The future of the Green Party is yet to be determined: “Capitulating to the current status quo on what is deemed politically “acceptable” is not going to bring about the systemic change that is needed.”
In this era of transition, affirms Feinstein “we have to accept that democracy can be uncomfortable, and these discomforts are a necessary part of progress and of the democratic process itself”.
This article was originally published by openDemocracy on Thu 15 Oct 2026. Read the original here.
Andrew Feinstein: Greens are forcing Labour’s hand on Gaza
The Green Party’s ‘Zionism is Racism’ motion proves that uncompromising left-wing pressure is successfully shifting Labour’s stance on Gaza.
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Excellent article. The last thing the Greens should do is capitulate to establishment pressure to conform on Israel/Zionism and wider policy issues. It won’t appease those who want to destroy the Greens, and it’ll lead the party into a quagmire of compromise and de facto right-wing “centrism”. It’s really OK for there to be a discussion about policy in a democratic party and for some people to disagree.
Firstly I believe that Jack Polanski was right to use that statement. Zionism is Racist. In fact the Israeli leaders are Zionists and have broken International Laws for Decades. What we have now, that calls itself the Labour Party, is a Party that is a long way off from being a truly Socialist Party.
So far, Andy Burnham has tip toed when it comes to Israel, him and Ed Miliband have not called out Israel in the strong terms that many of us wanted to see. They are still sending Arms to Israel, while at the same time saying they are not Arming the Settlers that are Bulldozing Palestinians homes and murdering those that try to stop them. If they truly cared, they would be saying No Arms to the Apartheid State of Israel of any kind.
there is a contradiction as Jews are not a race. Edwin Montagu made this observation in 1917 so the Balfour Declaration was re-worded from ” homeland for the Jewish race ” to “homeland for the Jewish people. A recent writer’s boo is titled ” the Myth of the Jewish People”. Jews are adherents to a range of Judaisms rather than a people as of differing ethnicities. Not all fathered by Abraham — some by Ghengis Khan.
A wise article indeed.
I was particularly struck by Feinstein’s observation that “Capitulating to the current status quo on what is deemed politically ‘acceptable’ is not going to bring about the systemic change that is needed.”
In terms of proportional representation, the Labour Party won the most undemocratic general election in British history in 2024, gaining an overall majority of 172 seats although only 33.7 per cent of the people who voted put a cross against the name of the Labour candidates.
If the Green Party takes clear and courageous political positions – as it did when recognising the inherent racism of Zionism – it will undoubtedly be attacked by other parties and the establishment media. But public support on issues such as the genocide in Gaza, the public ownership of water and a wealth tax will continue to grow.
Green Party members and supporters should take heart from the fact that of the 411 Labour MPs elected to the present parliament, 231 are first-timers – which means that every one of them was hand-picked and vetted by Starmer and his allies. They were, without exception, deemed politically reliable. Those 231 MPs are now living (albeit handsomely) on borrowed time. They have a choice: start being unreliable and show your electorate some moral and political courage or start thinking about your next job
My view is that the recent Green Party conference made the right decision on Zionism and, in doing so, exposed the political and moral emptiness of our present government.