BBC bans staff from attending London march against antisemitism

Published: NOVEMBER 24, 2023 20:34

Police officers walk outside the BBC building, near where a march for a protest in solidarity with Palestinians is set to begin, covered in red paint, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist terrorist group Hamas, in London, Britain, October 14, 2023. (photo credit: REUTERS/Susannah Ireland) — Police officers walk outside the BBC building, near where a march for a protest in solidarity with Palestinians is set to begin, covered in red paint, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist terrorist group Hamas, in London, Britain, October 14, 2023.

(photo credit: REUTERS/Susannah Ireland)

Jewish staff were refused permission to attend the march in London, in spite of the BBC's police to allow demonstrations in opposition to racism"

BBC staff, including Jewish staff, have been told that they are not allowed to march against antisemitism in the demonstration planned in London for this upcoming Sunday.

The BBC staff seeking permission to attend were denied permission under the contracted guidelines that prohibit employees from attending demonstrations deemed “controversial,” the Times stated. The same response was said to have been given to staff seeking permission to attend pro-Palestinian rallies.

Despite the BBC deeming the march against antisemitism “controversial,” the BBC’s own policy allows staff to demonstrate in “opposition to racism [which]is a fundamental democratic principle,” according to the Jewish Chronicle. This has led many to example the BBC’s refusal to staff as a double standard.

The BBC defends their decision

The BBC defended their actions in a statement, claiming that “The BBC is clear that antisemitism is abhorrent. We have established guidance around marches, which explains that different considerations apply depending on what you do for the BBC. Corporately, we have not issued any staff communication on any specific march this weekend, but this does not mean discussions that consider the guidance have not taken place between colleagues”

BBC HEADQUARTERS in London: ‘Do you honestly think that Israelis want war? Do you think we want to send our 18-year-old teenagers into battle?’ the writer asks. (credit: HENRY NICHOLLS/REUTERS)

The decision comes only days after the BBC’s former director called the network “institutionally antisemitic” in an article published by the Telegraph.

“The problems started almost as soon as Hamas began its horrific attacks on October 7,” Cohen wrote. “The BBC’s unwillingness to describe the burning alive of families in their homes, the rape of women and the murder of babies as a terrorist attack is now well known and stands in stark contrast with its reporting of other recent terrorist incidents.

“If it were possible, the BBC’s description of these massacres has actually become more egregious. BBC News has since described the pogrom of October 7 as a ‘cross-border attack’ as if it were a skirmish between two warring armies rather than the worst massacre of Jewish families since the Holocaust.”