Why new Scottish Labour MP was inspired to fight antisemitism and thinks its getting worse in Scotland

A new Scottish Labour MP has claimed antisemitism is getting worse in Scotland, partly down to social media.

Joani Reid, who was elected in East Kilbride and Strathaven earlier this year, explained the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn was what inspired her to more actively support the Jewish community.

Now the new chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group Against Antisemitism, Ms Reid revealed the incidents she’d witnessed to The Scotsman, and why she’d taken the role.

She said: “I got involved in the kind of fight against antisemitism quite a few years ago when I was a Lewisham counsellor in Southeast London, and it was during the Corbyn era, and I felt a huge sense of duty and responsibility to help support the Jewish community and fight against the massive rise in antisemitism that we saw at that point, and then I became a cabinet member for safer communities.

“It's always kind of been in the background throughout my life. If you're from the left, you grew up in the left, you've been involved in a left of centre party for all your adult life, take a step back and think about it and antisemitism has been there throughout that time.

“Obviously, it was at its worst when Corbyn was leader, and I thought I either have to actively do something to support this community and fight against the hate that they were experiencing, or I had to leave the party.

“I think the party's done everything that it can to tackle it. It's certainly not just an issue in the Labour party, it's an issue across the left and the whole political left.”

A protester lifts a placard bearing portraits of six Israeli hostages whose bodies were recovered by the army from the southern Gaza Strip, during a rally by families and supporters of the hostages in Tel Aviv on September 2, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip between Israel and the Palestinian militant Hamas movement. (Photo by Jack GUEZ / AFP) (Photo by JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images)

Ms Reid also revealed people had made antisemitic comments to her since she’d got the role, reaffirming its importance.

She said: “It’s bad in Scotland as well, there’s a much smaller Jewish population as well, I’m not from a part of the world where many Jewish people reside, I don’t represent a community where Jewish people reside, but my God do I know a lot of antisemites because I’m part of the left.

“Some examples, I’m talking to people, they’re asking how’s parliament, and I’m telling them I’m in the APPG for antisemitism, and we don’t actually have time for me to tell you some of the responses I’ve had.

“One was a lifelong friend, a man I adore, he’s much older than me, he’s been friends with my mum and dad for a long time. This was his response: ‘Do you know who funded the Holocaust? I’ve seen evidence the Jews funded the Holocaust’.

“The number of people who’ve questioned why I would want to do something like this shows that it's an issue because nobody would question that if it was any other group. It’s rife and it’s getting worse because of social media.”

Ms Reid also insisted opposing antisemitism did not mean supporting the Israeli Government.

She added: “I think Netanyahu is an absolute unmitigated disaster for the Israeli people, I believe strongly and passionately in a two state solution, but I want to try and separate, although they are linked in terms of the spikes that we see in antisemitism, it’s really important to separate the two.

“It goes without saying you can criticise the Israeli government without being antisemitic.”

The Jewish charity Community Security Trust (CST) warned in August that reports of antisemitic incidents in the UK in the first half of this year reached a record high.

From January to June 2024, the CST recorded reports of 1,978 anti-Jewish hate incidents, up from 964 in the first half of 2023.