Green Party adopts policy defining Zionism as racism

• The motion passed at the Green Party of England and Wales’s annual conference on Sunday, 4 October.
• It says Zionism, as defined in the motion, should be treated like other forms of racism.
• The policy also calls for a single democratic state across historic Palestine, with equal rights for all.
• Delegates rejected an amendment that would have ruled out using the motion to pressure or discipline members over links to Jewish community institutions.¹²

The vote turned a contested proposal into formal party policy. The motion defines Zionism as a political ideology that privileges one ethnic group through the subjugation of others. It says it addresses that ideology and political practice, not the religious or ethnic background of people who identify as Zionists.¹

Its demands go beyond terminology. The motion backs Palestinian self-determination and calls for a single democratic state throughout historic Palestine, with Jerusalem as its capital. The Independent reported that it also restates support for the right of return, the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement and a full arms embargo on Israel.¹²

The motion had been submitted to the party’s spring conference but was not reached before that meeting ran out of time. It returned for the Brighton conference, where the vote exposed sharp disagreement within the party. Four of its five MPs publicly opposed it; party leader Zack Polanski did not vote.¹²³

The rejected amendment would have said the motion must not be used to “pressure, proscribe or discipline” members because of affiliation with Jewish community institutions. That rejection establishes the wording was not added as a safeguard; it does not establish that any member has been disciplined.¹²

The motion assigns implementation to the party’s Anti-Racism Policy Working Group “as appropriate” and in line with its ordinary practice. The reports do not specify what steps the group will take or how the policy will affect internal decisions. A Green Party spokesperson told The Independent that conference had made its decision after a “serious and deeply felt” debate, and reiterated the party’s opposition to racism and commitment to equality, justice and human rights.¹²

Footnotes

1. The Guardian, “Green party votes to adopt policy that equates Zionism with racism” ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶

2. The Independent, “Green Party members pass ‘Zionism is racism’ motion” ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

3. The New Arab, “Inside the UK Greens’ debate over landmark anti-Zionism motion” ↩