Reading the news, it would be easy to believe that the Green Party has adopted a policy to expel its Jewish members, prevent them from attending synagogue or at the very least scrutinise their activities outside the party. *None of that has happened* 🧵

The Party conference voted through a motion that declares Zionism *as it defines it* to be a form of racism. It also adds a few practical demands to the Party's existing position on Palestine, notably the call for the creation of a single democratic state

The motion defines Zionism as "a political ideology which called for the creation – and, now it exists, the continuity – of an ethnonationalist Jewish State in historic Palestine to the exclusion and/or domination of the non-Jewish population"

It states "the real, material manifestation of Zionism has been the historic and ongoing dehumanisation, displacement, dispossession, disenfranchisement and destruction of Palestinians ... based upon European settler-colonial systems of domination and oppression"

It also notes that these systems of oppression have "also created racial hierarchies between Jews of different ethnicities in Palestine."

Most importantly in the context of the current media storm "This motion is aimed at the political ideology and practice of Zionism, *as defined*, and not at the religious or ethnic background of those who may identify as Zionists. Not all Jews are Zionists and not all Zionists are Jews."

The motions' drafters have stated elsewhere that they do not accept that there are non-racist forms of Zionism, however, other definitions of Zionism - for example, if you call yourself a Zionist because of a belief in Jewish autonomy—are not covered by this motion and not declared racist

The motion's drafters have also made clear that this motion will not be used to target Jews who attend Zionist institutions, like synagogues, many of which call themselves as Zionist. This has now been reiterated by the leadership of the Green Party

Much ado has been made about an amendment to safeguard Jewish members that was voted down at the conference, what is missing from this conversation is that amendment conflated Jews and Zionism in a way that the motion itself is careful not to do...

It was also unnecessary, not only because the motion itself declares it does not target Jews, but because this is not a motion that changes the party's disciplinary procedure. It *cannot* be used to penalise Jews or anyone else for their associations and activities outside the party...

I am not saying that there is nothing to be criticised about this motion, I myself have been very torn over it as I know many other members of the Party have been, including I'm sure its leadership. But I'm noticing that there is some vital information missing in much of the discussion around it

First and foremost, *this motion was written by Palestinians* with the support of anti-Zionist Jewish allies (I was not one of the authors of the motion), and that is how it was presented to Party members, as a motion that represents Palestinian members of the Party ...

Many have said, and I've tended to agree, that declaring "Zionism is racism" creates an unnecessary, controversial ideological argument instead of focusing on practical solidarity. But Palestinians are asking us to recognise that Zionism is racism, and this debate is not isolated to the Green Party

We—especially those of us who are Jewish or have a relationship with Zionism—have a responsibility to listen to them, not to dismiss their position as an unnecessary distraction, or as an antisemitic measure. This motion is not about Jews, it is about Palestinians

Yesterday I was interviewed on Radio 5 live as a member of the Jewish Greens committee. I was interviewed alongside a Rabbi who painted a rosy picture of Zionism as a noble ideology and of Israel as a uniquely democratic and moral state...

As I listened back to the interview I found myself once again thinking "this is why this motion exists." The fact that three years into a genocide, it is still possible for someone to go on the BBC and talk about the country committing that genocide as a moral and admirable project ...

Many define Zionism as "the Jewish right to self determination." Let's be crystal clear. The right to self determination cannot, by definition, come at the expense of another people's right to self determination...

No people, no matter how persecuted, has the right to create a national state on a land that is another people's home. Yet Palestinians are forced to hear about Zionism as a valid "Jewish right to self determination", when this "right" has come at the price of their expulsion and destruction

This motion is just one example of how Palestinians are fighting back and asking for us to recognise the realities of Zionism as they have experienced it. One of the authors of the motion has lost over 40 members of their family in three years in the Israeli genocide...

Yet the story all over the news is about whether or not Jews are safe in the Green Party. That is not the story. Let's not let it be the story.