Veteran Labour MP refuses to apologise for retelling antisemitic ‘joke’
Harriet Harman says she retold the joke on TV in order to make a point, but angry Jewish leaders say she should apologise
The veteran Labour MP Harriet Harman has ignored a call from the Jewish Leadership Council for her to apologise after re-telling an antisemitic “joke” on Andrew Neil’s This Week show on BBC.
Ms Harman, former deputy leader of the Labour Party and the longest-ever continuously-serving woman MP in Parliament, was taking part in a discussion about “bad taste” jokes.
She said: “I’ve long been accused of being a humourless feminist and I’ll give you two examples that I protested about because they were offensive and hurtful”.
She then mentioned a rag magazine published by Guy’s Hospital in her early years as an MP, and — before re-telling the “joke”, claimed that “people like Andrew [Neil] say that these things are all right.”
But when Ms Harman re-told the offensive joke, concluding “that is not funny”, Mr Neil was outraged and refused to let her continue with her second example or to defend herself.
Later on social media Mr Neil wrote: “What was wrong was 1) Even to tell that so-called joke on live TV. 2) Claim I would like the joke. Appalling on both counts”.
He rejected suggestions that he had overreacted to Ms Harman, saying: “Really? How would [you] have handled being accused of liking a vile anti-Semitic slur?”
Mr Neil recently won praise for a hard-hitting address to the Holocaust Educational Trust’s annual dinner, in which he denounced antisemitism wherever it occurred.
Attempts to speak to Ms Harman were rejected by her office; instead the Jewish News was referred to her Twitter post in which she published an extract from her recent autobiography, A Woman’s Work.
In the post, which she entitled: “Anti-Semitic ‘jokes/banter’ perpetuate discrimination & hatred. No laughing matter”, Ms Harman wrote that after seeing the antisemitic “joke” and another racist anecdote, she had complained to Guy’s Hospital — which is in her constituency — and had referred the rag magazine to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
She wrote: “The South London Press ran an editorial condemning me for overreacting and being humourless. But the Jewish community and local black and Asian organisations were deeply appreciative when the hospital apologised.”
But Simon Johnson, chief executive of the Jewish Leadership Council, described the politician’s decision to repeat the story on live TV as a “staggering error of judgement”.
He added: “I cannot recall being so disappointed in a politician. Harriet Harman must surely know better than to repeat a vile Holocaust joke, irrespective of the point she was trying to make. She must apologise, and do so quickly.”
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
