UK antisemitism rally splits Jewish community over Nigel Farage invitation

Thousands of people gathered outside Downing Street in central London on Sunday for a rally opposing antisemitism backed by more than 30 Jewish organisations. The event titled Standing Strong: Extinguish Antisemitism was organised in response to months of attacks on the British Jewish community including multiple arson attacks on Jewish sites and the stabbing of two Jewish men in Golders Green on 29 April. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch was expected to speak. Prime Minister Keir Starmer was considering attending. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage and Liberal Democrats leader Ed Davey were also invited.The decision to invite Nigel Farage triggered significant opposition within parts of the Jewish community before the march even began. More than 2,000 people signed an open letter coordinated by We Democracy calling on the Board of Deputies of British Jews and the Jewish Leadership Council to withdraw Farage's invitation. The letter described the fight against antisemitism as something that must be rooted in solidarity and opposition to all forms of racism and hatred and said it should not be led by political figures whose record had been associated with division, scapegoating and inflammatory rhetoric, as reported by The Guardian.Dr Ruvi Ziegler, a British-Israeli professor at the University of Reading, told The Guardian that the far right was offering Jewish people a bear hug and warned against accepting it. Critics of Farage's inclusion pointed not only to antisemitism claims made against him in the past but to his consistent hostility towards immigrants and refugees. Many British Jews are themselves descendants of refugees who fled to Britain following the Holocaust and other periods of persecution.Michael Wegier, executive director of the Board of Deputies, told Haaretz that Reform could not be ignored given its growing presence in British politics and its stated support for fighting antisemitism. He also explained why Green party leader Zack Polanski, who is Jewish, was not invited saying the Board did not believe he had done enough to address antisemitism within his own party. A Green party spokesperson said it felt like the world was upside down when Reform was invited and the Green party and its Jewish leader were not.The rally's organisers hoped the event would draw support from across British society and not just from the Jewish community. Writing in the Jewish Chronicle ahead of the march, columnist Stephen Pollard called on non-Jewish Britons to turn the event into what he described as a million mensch march, using the Yiddish term for a person of integrity. He said the moment had come for the silent majority to find its voice and show the Jewish community and the world that antisemitism was not being tolerated.Religious leaders from Muslim, Christian, Sikh, Hindu and Zoroastrian communities signed a joint open letter ahead of the rally telling British Jews the country belonged to them as much as anyone and that their communities would do everything they could to protect them from extremists. The letter was coordinated by the Together Coalition and was also signed by prominent business organisations and charities.