Jewface and other David Baddiel racisms
Published
by
Richard Kuper
JVL Introduction
David Badiell has lectured us all on antisemitism as racism in his book Jews Don’t Count – an awful privileging of Jews as victims of racism.
He has recently condemned the casting of non-Jews in Jewish roles, reinventing the term Jewface in the process.
This is from someone whose career was built on the Minstrel Blackface tradition, someone with a lengthy history of racist provocation, as Gavin Lewis shows clearly here.
Despite this, his book is about to be turned into a Channel 4 television programme.
Protests to Channel 4 are welome.
This article was originally published by Labour Heartlands on Tue 21 Jun 2022. Read the original here.
Jewface and other David Baddiel Racisms
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It was Rachel Riley who said, “I don’t look like a typical Jew”, so maybe that rules her out of playing Jewish parts…
https://skwawkbox.org/2019/01/10/rosen-takes-riley-to-task-over-typical-jew-comments
Baddiel has form – he has also made a ‘pikey’ reference.
https://www.thejc.com/news/news/david-baddiel-apologises-after-being-accused-of-hypocrisy-after-footage-of-gypsy-joke-surfaces-6SP2fVvPmzyjCyahghPOuq
The antisemitism weaponisers are having a field day now with Baddiel’s programme and also Freedland’s forthcoming Jews. In Their Own Words at the Royal Court.
https://royalcourttheatre.com/whats-on/jews-in-their-own-words
The Labour right pretty much has the anti-Zionists under lock and key, and virtually the entire mainstream media and their pundits are on board with all of this.
Against this are John Ware’s libel action over Panorama against Paddy French this autumn which would be great if heard but I suspect Ware will pull out, and of course awkward happenings in Israel against the Palestinians are always probable.
I will be writing to Channel 4, I hope others will too.
Antisemitism has served Baddiel well, bringing him an expanded audience and an enhanced reputation for his flimsy and superficial book ‘Jews Don’t Count’ – really little more than an inflated pamphlet. Many others have benefitted from claiming victimhood while Jeremy Corbyn was leader of the Labour Party. Some of these will be contributing to a dramatised history of British antisemitism, to be staged at the Royal Court this September; entitled ‘Jews In Their Own Words’, it will be put together by the Guardian’s Jonathan Freedland from an idea by Tracey Ann Oberman. Rather than attempting a balanced account of the subject, the entertainment will reportedly focus on the contribution to British antisemitism of the left of the Labour Party (advance publicity features a sly teaser about the role played by ‘English irony.’ ) Like ‘Jews Don’t Count’ this production seems intent on reminding us that although Corbyn has been to all intents and purposes vanquished, those who labelled him an antisemite don’t intend to let the matter drop. Nor indeed does the Guardian: just yesterday I read on its website that Starmer’s team had worked hard at underlining the fact Starmer is not Jeremy Corbyn – “most strikingly by removing the whip from the former leader over antisemitism.”
This sort of thing will no doubt continue for some years yet – certainly for as long as there is advantage to be gained from smearing a life-long anti-racist with the vile taint of racism. It’s regrettable that the libel laws in this country don’t make it easy for people of modest means to sue for defamation; in any case the assault on Corbyn’s character has been so relentless that it is unlikely he would get a fair hearing during his lifetime.
For the moment there seems little hope of a just resolution of this shabby episode, and the thought that some fair-minded future historian of the period will provide one is pretty cold comfort. But events have a habit of surprising us. Already the public mood is turning against Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians; people are beginning to ask if there is really any point in pumping any more arms into Ukraine, and just last week a Union leader proved spectacularly successful in explaining to the public why his membership felt the need to go on strike. Despite the best efforts of his calumniators, Corbyn remains hugely popular, and if he is deselected at Starmer’s behest, it is possible that he will stand in North Islington as an Independent, win the seat, and use his victory to launch a new and unashamedly socialist party. One can only hope.
Excellent poliece and a elwell-constructed argument. I regret that, knowing very little about Baddiel, because I have no interest in football, I went to see one of his shows because it was about his Jewish family. That half of the show was fairly interesting and I could identify with some elements. The rest was painfully bad and I resolved never to repeat the experience.
Just sent channel 4 a message, hoping it will not show Baddiel’s programme. I’m also concerned that the Royal Court is putting on biased nonsense by Jonathan Freedland. Similar campaign needed.
It appears that The Royal Court has not only abandoned, but actually turned against its once proud boast of critical and progressive thought and drama. By placing itself at the service of Zionist apologists for – no, advocates and celebrators of – Zionist colonial oppression, it solicits the sort of pickets we did against The Green Berets…
I trust in this and for me it cannot come a moment too soon. “Despite the best efforts of his calumniators, Corbyn remains hugely popular, and if he is deselected at Starmer’s behest, it is possible that he will stand in North Islington as an Independent, win the seat, and use his victory to launch a new and unashamedly socialist party. One can only hope.” Thank you Kuhnberg.
As one gets older the link between racism and religion becomes more apparent, what is the way out of this situation? As a suggestion it has been put to me that we should mix all cultures and races thereby strengthening the whole and in a few generations removing any excuse to kill each other in war. I can quite see this will have very strong opposition from those who would keep us divided but ultimately the choice could be that, or we carry on as we are and annihilate ourselves.
Back to the Guardian; back to Channel 4; back to BBC……..when will the penny drop that these ‘so-called’ liberal/left-wing platforms are nothing more than charade, a pretence @ being an alternative to Rupert Murdoch & other establishment MSM organisations? Identity politics is no substitute for substantive economic issues as the 3 stooges continue to use anti-Semitism as a weapon to attack Jeremy Corbyn & Socialism. The class war is not over, except in the Guardian; Channel 4 & the BBC.
P.S. Why does JVL constantly use the Guardian as its primary source?
Baddiel & Freedman & Hodges, Ellman,Smeeth, Chief Rabbi & Starmer & co have proven to be the nastiest, racist, antisemites with any other colours these people hate.
As for Mr Corbyn well this man IS A DIAMOND, a politician with integrity who stands for all human beings which is quite the opposite for the names mentioned above.
I am horrified, disgusted & frightened that this mob of hateful people will not be challanged before its too late.
Their behaviour mimicks the same attitides that arose in Germany in the 30s, that drip drip of hateful language, using a stage to perform obscene mockery as though they are jokes. CABARET! 20th century style, except the chosen Zionists are the leaders proclaiming themselves as a chosen race…Baddiel & his pals ARE NOT FUNNY, RACISM IS NOT FUNNY & HATE IS DANGEROUS.
If anyone starts up a petition to prevent further incitement I will sign it.
Genuine Jewish people will be horrified that Zionists have grown in such numbers & are using ANTISEMITISIM as a shield in one hand & a missile in the other.
This must be stopped before this odious hatred takes over .
And regarding the “second factor is that Baddiel produces his own shows – sometimes with others such as Victoria Coren-Mitchell” – recently on the show Heresy, which is a Baddiel idea, Coren-Mitchell had yes Baddiel on the show and introduced him with: “..in the fearless corner of the BBC I am completely to say for example that Jeremy Corbyn [followed by Sailing By music indicating censorship] followed by “with a hardback copy of Jews Don’t Count by David Baddiel”.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0017kd4
Yet another antisemitism smear against Corbyn in the cosy world of BBC game shows. This is likely to go on for several more years.
What’s to stop us crowdfunding a legal case
Cherry pick the target and set the record straight
The mistake that JVL (and any other Jewish radicals milling about in the world) make is to think that we exist. The whole point is that there are ‘the Jews’ on one side and there is ‘the Left’ on the other. That’s the binary we should accept. We shouldn’t expect the media to present the possibility that there are Jews on or in this ill-defined or non-defined Left. To be fair, though, we are occasionally visible as ‘cranks’, ‘deranged’, ‘self-hating’, ‘as-a-jews’, ‘useful Jewish idiots’ or ‘kapos’. This is admittedly an existence of sorts. And it gives us a choice: either a) don’t exist or b) be so deranged and self-hating as to wish we didn’t exist. I look forward to a JVL statement on this to help us clarify this matter.