Jess Barnard opposed Labour right councillor who recently started ‘trot jamboree’ smear
The chair of Young Labour – already under attack by the Labour right for wanting to invite Palestine Solidarity Campaign to speak at the Young Labour event at the party’s conference this month – has been informed that she is under investigation by the party for Twitter exchanges with a Labour right councillor in which she says that she was ‘challenging transphobia online’.
Worse, the news came at one in the morning and at a time of great stress because of the pile-ons already recently instigated against her by right-wingers. Barnard wrote to the whole NEC to ask for their help:
The tweets were part of a series of exchanges with a right-wing Labour councillor who recently described the World Transformed festival of ideas a ‘trot jamboree’ and attacked Welsh First Minister Mark Drakeford for agreeing to speak on the ‘Universal Basic Income’ principle at the event, which runs alongside Labour’s conference.
Labour leader Keir Starmer conspicuously failed to make any public show of support for Jess Barnard when she was attacked last week. His silence has continued, though he appears to have plenty of time to tweet about the US Open tennis.
The councillor in question has now locked his Twitter account.
SKWAWKBOX needs your help. The site is provided free of charge but depends on the support of its readers to be viable. If you can afford to without hardship, please click here to arrange a one-off or modest monthly donation via PayPal or here to set up a monthly donation via GoCardless (SKWAWKBOX will contact you to confirm the GoCardless amount). Thanks for your solidarity so SKWAWKBOX can keep bringing you information the Establishment would prefer you not to know about.
If you wish to republish this post for non-commercial use, you are welcome to do so – see here for more.
Eventually the left will prevail, but this will be a pyrrhic victory. And the right knows it, so they’ll carry on for as long as they can… Labour, despite taking the lead for the first time in 2021 in a YouGov poll this week, will never win the GE in 3 years. So a minimum of 8 more Tory years is guaranteed… Welcome to the one party state.
Ben Lapointe, we arrived at “the one party state” since at least my adult lifetime if not DECADES b4🧿
The GREATEST preservatives & TONICS served in “the one party state” r dreams + illusions that we’ve just arrived… despite walking here with Johnson, Starmer, Blair on our backs… while feeding them “honey”… TONS of it on tap🧿
BUT be glad 4 any positive!!! Fridays on a roll r proving 2 b Good News Fridays. UPLIFTING news!!!
AIR-MILES ANDY – Council Palaces Betty’s favourite son, has been officially served with papers re allegations of complicity with one Jeffrey Epstein & G Maxwell.
CONGRATULATIONS 🎉🧿🎉🧿🎉🧿 to the victims who despite every hardship, including intimidations, ATTACKS, ridicule etc etc etc have done as we all should SPEAK up for what is correct.
👑🌟🏏👑🌟🏏👑🌟🏏
Labour have now recinded the letter of investigation. It was an “error”.
To quote Aaron Bastani on twitter
“an error is cc’ing the wrong person in an email not opening an investigation into someone, finding examples & contacting them.
It’s one thing it happened at all, it’s almost as bad that Labour spokespeople are lying about it. Why cover for this garbage”?
Starmer is a meglomanic, totally unfit to be PM.
Unfortunately populist right wing politicians have jumped on the trans bandwagon because they see votes in it and the whole anti-woke thing. Personally, I’ve always been pretty uninterested in the whole thing. I’ve always been a feminist but that’s been corrupted by people like Birchill and Greer who’ve politicised ‘white feminism’. Since I’ve had trans people who’ve become part of our predominantly white working class community I’ve changed my opinion and now support trans rights. The people who are against trans people are mostly cultural conservatives who’ve never met one and are frightened of them, insecure men, the hard right, who’d probably like to have sex with them and feel ashamed, crazy white feminists and politicians who’d jump at the chance to exploit anything. Unfortunately ‘woke’ has become a derogatory term that conjures visions of bearded liberals wringing sweaty hands.
Feminism has always been the vehicle of extending career opportunities for comfortable bourgeois women. who can always work from home. Feminism from the outset did not seek equality but only parity with the males of their own class (see Sylvia Pankhurst versus mother PPC Tory Party) & has never worried about ‘equal opportunities for poorer women. The class war is not over despite what Blair & SteveH say.’
Being investigated by this Stasi-lite outfit is increasingly seen as a socialist mark of distinction.
If a Labour Councillor has made transphobic comments then surely they should be under investigation , not a young woman who sought to defend trans rights. However in my opinion Jess has been targeted not because of her exchange with this individual but because of the stand she took in relation to Palestine. As she is someone who does not hate Palestinians and believes in working towards ending their mistreatment by Israel she is automatically deemed to be an antisemite by Labour Friend of Israel in chief Keir Starmer and the other “Friends”.
Jess can expect to be hounded out of the party. I have no doubt someone is currently scouring her social media history in the hope of finding a post or comment condemning Israeli human rights abuses which will be construed as antisemitic and Jess will be expelled from the party.
“..If a Labour Councillor has made transphobic comments then surely they should be under investigation…”
No.
Members and people generally should have the right to make comments without having to fear their being ‘taken down and used in evidence’ against them. There is something profoundly wrong about these perpetual witch hunts. The fact that the Labour Party employs large numbers of people (who I suspect are assisted by persons working for the state, the armed forces and police) constantly sifting through the social media, emails and other communications to uncover examples of people thinking for themselves.
Nothing the Stasis did, or any of the intrusive snooping in past history comes anything close to this Labour Party monitoring of members opinions.
If a Labour Councillor makes what can be construed to be transphobic comments it would not be at all surprising. What is surprising is that the Party sacked the Community Organisers needed to bolster the membership and its support in society and directed its staff efforts to drive out socialists who understand that the struggle for social justice makes the cause of the Palestinians an important front in a war to replace barbarism with socialism.
Bevin, Not so many years ago Gays were routinely vilified by all and sundry. They were demonised in the press. People felt at liberty to insult and humiliate them. They were dismissed from their jobs and shunned by their churches. Many were beaten up, some were killed.
Times have changed and there is legislation in place to protect Gays so the knuckle draggers among us have to be more subtle. Trans people are now where Gays were 30 odd years ago and people feel free to mock insult and hurt them physically and emotionally. People who join in the abuse of any person or any minority group do not deserve to be Labour councillors.
Trans people are now where Gays were 30 odd years ago
…and there’s WAY fewer of them, remember.
The key complaint in this saga is the absence of due process. A set of protocols, principles and standards which operate on the basis of objective evidence rather than individual subjective opinion.
Consequently, the first order of business in this discussion is to define the terms being bandied about. Who is defining the terms being used here and on what basis?
The second order of business is consistency and reciprocation. Is the argument about due process being applied consistently and is it extended to all or just particular instances to suit specific convenience?
This may help provide some context:
https://davehansell.substack.com/p/joining-the-dots
Sorry Smartboy……I have never commented in my lifetime on any of the so called gay scene despite having lived for a couple of years in Brighton and Hove.I dont promote bigotry or any of the other isms but I will not be told what to think.A Councillor should not venture into Isms if they have any sense and responsibility as a elected councillor.I have known many gays and transpeople and have no problem with them but the day that they infringe on my private life and family which is slowly becoming increasingly worrying then thats the day I say no further..Freedom to be normal or mr and Mrs average is not a Crime….For now?
Joseph, None of us should have to face insults and abuse because we are Gay , trans, BAME , disabled etc. You have frequently posted about how hard your life was due to the bigotry of your fellow countrymen so you of all people should know that it is wrong to abuse someone who is different. Their lack of tolerance caused you to suffer greatly and having endured this I am sure you would not wish to inflict similar hurt on a Trans person.
Dont be silly smartboy as I made it clear that a person such as a councillor should be very careful about making comments on isms.Now just because I dont think its a great idea for the trans lobby to curtail free speech it doesn’t mean I support bullying or thuggery against anyone(only torys)and I have never made a negative comment regarding a persons sexual orientation.But again dont tell me what to think or whats morally correct,I am old enough and expeienced enough as a former international activist i to decide whats acceptable the same as Bevin and millions of other normal everyday people ….get over yourself and chase the knights misfits not us..Ordinary joe socialists comrade.!
I wouldn’t dream of telling you what to think Joseph or try to curtail free speech but intolerance breeds violence and hatred as you know only too well
I realise that this is no joke but ‘nobody should expect the Spanish Inquisition’.
Steve Richards…..The witchunt is looking for any excuse to nail the lady,unfortunately for them she knows how to deal with it.Her fightback ups the ante and makes her a target as long as the knight is the leader of the Labour party.Shame on the leaders witchunt and the very real damage it does to all of those fit up by this cruel and fanatical Labour party leader.
After a debate with Chris Williamson at the Arms Fair Protest in Liverpool, may I ask why Chantelle Lunt was given a platform alongside Jeremy Corbyn but Chris was refused? Whose priorities?