Antony Lerman traces his five-decade personal and political journey from idealistic socialist Zionist to controversial critic of Zionism and Israeli policies towards the Palestinians. As head of an influential UK Jewish think tank, he operated at the highest levels of international Jewish political and intellectual life.He recalls his 1960s Zionist activism, two years spent on kibbutz and service in the IDF, followed by the gradual onset of doubts about Israel on returning to England. Assailed for his growing public criticism of Israeli policy and Zionism, he details his ostracism by the Jewish establishment.Through his insider’s critique of Zionism, critical assessment of Jewish politics and analysis of the Israel-Palestine conflict Lerman presents a powerful, human rights-based argument about how a just peace can be achieved.

The Making and Unmaking of a Zionist: A Personal and Political Journey

Biographies & Memoirs

Lerman, Antony

Leaders & Notable People

Pluto Press

Whatever Happened to Antisemitism?: Redefinition and the Myth of the 'Collective Jew'

Review\n'Nobody unpacks the confusions currently circulating around antisemitism, nor the complexities of Jewish identity, better than Anthony Lerman. This elegantly written, erudite book is essential reading for all of us, whatever our identifications' 
Lynne Segal, author of 'Radical Happiness: Moments of Collective Joy'\n'We desperately need this book [...] An essential tool to understand the weaponisation of antisemitism and its dangerous impact on free speech, Palestinian rights, and the very real threat of actual antisemitism' 
Rebecca Vilkomerson, former Executive Director of Jewish Voice for Peace\n'An urgently needed book. The contemporary debate about antisemitism is both incoherent and appalling. Faced with this hot mess, Antony Lerman offers a cool, well-reasoned, deeply learned and morally courageous meditation on what antisemitism is and isn't' 
Peter Beinart, editor-at-large at 'Jewish Currents'\n'Powerful [...] This important book by a leading expert on antisemitism offers a nuanced history of the use and abuse of the fight against the world's oldest hatred. It powerfully unmasks the successful effort to twist the battle against antisemitism into a defense of the indefensible: Israel's subjugation of millions of people on the basis of their national and ethnic identity' 
Nathan Thrall, author of 'The Only Language They Understand'\n'The best book I have read on why anti-Zionism has been equated with antisemitism and how the 'new antisemitism' has been mobilised for political gain' 
Neve Gordon, co-author of 'The Human Right to Dominate'\n'This elegantly written, erudite book is essential reading for all of us, whatever our identifications' - Lynne Segal\nAntisemitism is one of the most controversial topics of our time. The public, academics, journalists, activists and Jewish people themselves are divided over its meaning. Antony Lerman shows that this is a result of a 30-year process of redefinition of the phenomenon, casting Israel, problematically defined as the 'persecuted collective Jew', as one of its main targets.\nThis political project has taken the notion of the 'new antisemitism' and codified it in the flawed International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's 'working definition' of antisemitism. This text is the glue holding together an international network comprising the Israeli government, pro-Israel advocacy groups, Zionist organizations, Jewish communal defence bodies and sympathetic governments fighting a war against those who would criticize Israel.\nThe consequences of this redefinition have been alarming, supressing free speech on Palestine/Israel, legitimizing Islamophobic right-wing forces, and politicizing principled opposition to antisemitism.

History

World

Bad News for Labour: Antisemitism, the Party and Public Belief

Jointly written by five leading voices on the topic, this book looks at the contentious issue of antisemitism in the Labour Party today, and sets out ways of addressing the problem while maintaining the integrity of the organisation. The first part of the book includes original material on public beliefs about antisemitism in the Labour Party, and the kinds of problems this poses regarding voting intentions and demoralization of the membership. The writers then investigate the institutional problems and policy decisions that prevented a coherent and well-planned response from the party, and how Labour can rectify this today. The book progresses to explore in depth the coverage of the issue in mainstream media outlets, and the partial accounts presented to the public. The writers focus on the debates around the IHRA definition, and the accusations made against David Miller which were eventually dismissed and set an important precedent. At the end of the book, Mike Berry provides a helpful chronological account of the arguments surrounding this issue from the beginning of Corbyn's leadership to the present.

Politics & Social Sciences

Berry, Mike

Philo, Greg

Miller,David

Schlosberg, Justin

Social Sciences

Jointly written by five leading voices on the topic, this book looks at the contentious issue of antisemitism in the Labour Party today, and sets out ways of addressing the problem while maintaining the integrity of the organisation. The first part of the book includes original material on public beliefs about antisemitism in the Labour Party, and the kinds of problems this poses regarding voting intentions and demoralization of the membership. The writers then investigate the institutional problems and policy decisions that prevented a coherent and well-planned response from the party, and how Labour can rectify this today.*BR**BR*The book progresses to explore in depth the coverage of the issue in mainstream media outlets, and the partial accounts presented to the public. The writers focus on the debates around the IHRA definition, and the accusations made against David Miller which were eventually dismissed and set an important precedent. At the end of the book, Mike Berry provides a helpful chronological account of the arguments surrounding this issue from the beginning of Corbyn's leadership to the present.

Religion & Spirituality

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Books by Lerman, Antony