06 October 2002
David Beaumont, former treasurer of MSF London Region, has been expelled from the union on allegations of “antisemitism”. As a Jewish member of MSF, active for decades in the anti-racist movement, I totally reject this absurd and unfounded allegation, which I consider damaging to the real struggle against real antisemitism.
In the first place, the allegation is palpably absurd. David Beaumont is both a colleague and a friend. I know him as an opponent of any form of racism or prejudice. He has never, in word or action, suggested, implied or hinted at even the most discrete element of anti-Jewish sentiment. If the consequences of the allegations were not so serious, the whole imputation would be laughed out of existence.
The allegation appears to be that, by using the song “If I Were a Rich Man” as background music for his website LYONSweb, David was making a racist slur against the General Secretary of Amicus-MSF. Roger Lyons. This charge could clearly only have any validity if David actually knew that Roger Lyons was Jewish. He states that he did not know this, and that, as soon as objections were made, he replaced the music.
David would not be alone in his ignorance of Mr Lyons ethnic and religious background. When I have discussed this matter, in MSF and elsewhere, the universal response has been “I didn’t even know Roger Lyons was Jewish!” As a close observer of Jewish communal affairs for many decades, I have never come across any mention either of Mr Lyons’ involvement in the organisations of the Jewish community, or of any particular commitment by him to “Jewish” issues. Interestingly, a search on the web for the key words “Roger Lyons” and “Jewish” turns up only references to the allegations against David Beaumont, and no mention of any other Not only is it not surprising that David Beaumont did not know that Mr Lyons is Jewish; in fact, it would have been very surprising if he had known.
So the allegation that David knowingly and deliberately made a racist slur against Roger Lyons is clearly invalid. Nevertheless, it could be argued (though this does not seem to have been argued in this case) that, irrespective of Mr Lyons’ ethnic origin, the use of the song “If I Were a Rich Man” on the website was itself an anti-Jewish act. This allegation, too, would be palpably absurd.
Far from being an attack on Jews and perceived Jewish values, the song, from the musical “Fiddler on the Roof”, is a triumphal assertion of Jewish identity in the face of racism and adversity. The musical is based on the stories of the early twentieth century Yiddish writer Sholom Aleichem. Most of the people involved in the adaptation of the stories to a musical were themselves Jews, as were the two best-known performers of the song, Zero Mostel and Chaim Topol. It is a standard melody, played regularly at Jewish weddings, barmitzvahs, and other social and family gatherings. There is therefore no foundation for any allegation that the song, per se, is antisemitic.
Although it developed from Jewish culture, and is often associated with Jews, the song is widely performed by other artists, and has been recorded hundreds of times. Like several other songs (eg, “Money” by Pink Floyd, “Money Makes the World Go Around” from Cabaret, “Money, Money, Money” by Abba), it has often been used to illustrate references to money, with no reference to its Jewish associations. In a recent case brought to the New Zealand Advertising Standards Authority, the board dismissed a suggestion that the use of this song in a financial advert was antisemitic, and found that “the song had life of its own analogous with Dickens characters. . . it was a universal song and not in any way limited to a particular ethnicity or religion.” (http://www.asa.co.nz/decisions/FULL/D0196.rtf).
The allegation against David Beaumont is thus entirely groundless. It is so patently false and spurious, one wonders why it was made in the first place. In the circumstances, I can only assume that there was a clear intention to short-circuit the normal investigative and disciplinary process.
The rules of MSF make clear that a complaint against a member shall be investigated by the member’s branch, except in cases where the allegation is of financial impropriety or racist behaviour. Thus, making a complaint of antisemitism effectively removes the disciplinary process from the member’s branch.
Although David’s expulsion from the union has now been revoked, the allegation itself has not been withdrawn. This is a serious attack on his character, since the trade union movement rightly considers allegations of racism to be an important matter. To allow the charge to remain, even if the union NEC has decided not to expel David for it, would be to place a question mark against his character, and would affect his ability to work effectively in the trade union and labour movement.
I am particularly concerned at the effect of this unfounded use of an allegation of antisemitism on the struggle against racism. To make such a palpably false accusation, apparently for reasons of short-term political and administrative convenience, is to undermine both MSF policy against racism, and the fight against all forms of racism, including anti-Jewish racism. We all know Aesop’s fable of the boy who cried “Wolf”. The danger is that many people, seeing this cynical manoeuvre, will falsely dismiss other charges of antisemitism, even if they are well founded. To that extent, Roger Lyons, and the NEC of MSF, have done a disservice to the fight against racism, which they claim to support.
My solidarity with David, as a colleague under attack, is reinforced by my anger, as a Jew, at this misuse of the charge of antisemitism. David Beaumont has suffered an injustice, and the anti-racist cause has been weakened, in pursuit of a vendetta within MSF.
Roland Rance