Rachel Riley has been embroiled in an online row after editing a photo of Jeremy Corbyn at an anti-apartheid protest as she accused him of racism.
In a photo posted on Twitter, the Countdown presenter could be seen wearing a T-shirt of the Labour leader holding a placard, which read: “Jeremy Corbyn is a racist endeavour.”
However, the original image actually showed Mr Corbyn being led away by police during an anti-apartheid rally in 1984, with the sign reading: “Defend the right to demonstrate against apartheid; join this picket.”
READ MORE: Baroness Helena Kennedy: Prince Andrew 'would risk arrest' if he speaks to FBI about Epstein
Riley, who is Jewish, has been a vocal critic of Labour’s handling of anti-Semitism and has regularly accused Mr Corbyn of failing to properly address the issue.
I didn’t feel comfortable knowing my workplace was to be full of racists tonight. I don’t endorse Boris, but I do endorse #NeverCorbyn. Please see my pinned thread if you still don’t understand why. #LeadersDebate #LabourAntisemitism https://t.co/X93TcqOGjX pic.twitter.com/m8yZimVnHY
— Rachel Riley 🍊 (@RachelRileyRR) November 19, 2019
Ahead of the TV debate between Mr Corbyn and Boris Johnson at MediaCity in Salford on Tuesday, she tweeted: “I didn’t feel comfortable knowing my workplace was to be full of racists tonight. I don’t endorse Boris, but I do endorse Never Corbyn.”
The tweet attracted criticism online, with some accusing her of hypocrisy and alleging that removing the reference to apartheid was itself offensive.
However, actress Tracy Ann Oberman – who has also criticised the party over anti-Semitism – tweeted: “Saw @RachelRileyRR was trending. Assumed she’d had her and Pasha’s baby. NOOOO just another massive evil organised Corbyn Troll Army pile on. They hate because they know you’re getting your message out there Rachel. Stay strong #NeverCorbyn.”
Riley responded to criticism by referencing claims that Nelson Mandela declined to meet Mr Corbyn’s anti-apartheid movement CLAAG (City of London Anti-Apartheid Group).
She said on Twitter: “Without feeding individual ignorant trolls, this is why I have no qualms using this photo to highlight Corbyn’s racism.”
During the ITV Leaders’ Debate between Mr Corbyn and the Prime Minister on Tuesday, the Labour leader said anti-Semitism was “an absolute evil and scourge within our society”.
When asked further about the issue by host Julie Etchingham, Mr Corbyn responded: “I have taken action in my party, where anyone who has committed any anti-Semitic acts or made any anti-Semitic statements, they are either suspended or expelled from the party and we’ve investigated every single case.”
After the debate, Jewish Labour Movement national secretary Peter Mason alleged the claim that every case had been investigated was a “lie”, adding: “There are at least 130 outstanding anti-Semitism cases, some dating back years, that still haven’t been dealt with.”
A spokesman for the Labour Party declined to comment on the incident involving Riley.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel