Stop Funding Hate campaign group accused of amplifying ‘anti-Semites'
Followers of Stop Funding Hate, which runs campaigns against the Right-wing media, have used its Facebook page to post slurs about Marks & Spencer (M&S) supporting 'Nazis' and 'genocide'.
Stop Funding Hate claims to challenge 'all forms of discrimination without exception', but MPs say it has failed to act when Jewish people are the target of hatred on its own social media account.
The group has been targeting Marks & Spencer for advertising on GB News.
Comments from third parties that have appeared on Stop Funding Hate's Facebook page in recent months have included 'M&S support Nazis', 'M&S are a company run by misogynistic fascists' and 'I refuse to shop at M&S because I object to my hard-earned money being used to support fascists'.
Marks & Spencer, founded by Michael Marks, a Jewish immigrant, has been a favourite target of anti-Israel protesters, who object to the brand selling Israeli-sourced goods.
Stop Funding Hate is encouraging people to sign a petition calling on M&S to stop advertising on GB News's radio station, which has been supported by people who have in the past used remarks such as 'Jew vermin' and other anti-Semitic hatred.
Stop Funding Hate is run by Richard Wilson, a Jeremy Corbyn supporter who aims to 'defund' Right-leaning media outlets by running social media campaigns against companies that advertise with them.
The campaign group has received £100,000 from a foundation that receives grants from the taxpayer, The Telegraph reported in January.
It regularly retweets posts on X from people who say they are backing the anti-M&S petition. Some of those signatories of the petition have in the past posted vile anti-Semitic slurs.
One of them has in the past described Israelis as 'Jew vermin' and said 'Israel is a Jewish terrorist state'.
Another person whose support for the M&S petition was shared by Stop Funding Hate has previously said that 'Zionists are blood-hungry pigs', while others have described Israelis as Nazis and accused them of genocide.
Another anti-Semitic slur post by someone whose support for the M&S petition has been retweeted by Stop Funding Hate says 'Jews run the world'.
Having joined the UK commemoration of Holocaust Memorial Day, Stop Funding Hate stated: 'It's shocking that 75 years on, anti-Semitism is so widespread on social media. It's vital that we stand together in calling for more action.'
Jack Rankin, the Conservative MP for Windsor, said: 'Stop Funding Hate state that 'it's vital to speak out and oppose all forms of identity-based hate within our public discourse' while they themselves repeatedly platform and amplify vile anti-Semitic accounts across their own channels.'
Mr Windsor, who has worked with the Hostages and Missing Families Forum to ensure the safe return of Israeli hostages of the Oct 7 attacks, added: 'The organisation's supposed raison d'etre is to censor. They pore over news channels and social media accounts hourly, yet when Jews are the target, they can't even deal with the hate espoused by their own supporters.'
Richard Wilson, director of Stop Funding Hate, said: 'Stop Funding Hate has a proud record of opposing all forms of hate, including anti-Semitism.
'Most recently, we have been challenging GB News over its posting of a video on YouTube which aired dangerous anti-Semitic rhetoric, and we've been encouraging brands to exclude their advertising from the GB News YouTube channel in response to this.
'Stop Funding Hate would never knowingly amplify a social media account that was being used to spread hateful or otherwise problematic content.
'We will always take action to remove problematic comments posted on our Facebook page when we become aware of them.
'As with any organisation that has thousands of online interactions every year, there will sometimes be instances where an issue comes to light that we were previously unaware of.'
Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
25 minutes ago
- New York Post
Anchorage prepares for Trump-Putin summit as some pro-Ukraine protesters hit the streets
ANCHORAGE — Over 100 protesters, including many Ukraine supporters, took to the streets of Alaska's biggest city on Thursday night ahead of the highly anticipated meeting between President Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin. The demonstrators gathered on a popular street corner in Anchorage hours before the Trump-Putin summit in the 49th state — their first face-to-face sit-down in years in which they'll discuss finding peace in Ukraine. But many of the protesters, who appeared to be mainly Democrats, didn't have high hopes over the peace talks and expressed dismay that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wouldn't be present. 4 Lisa Engberg and Jo Bennett hold signs in protest of the Trump-Putin summit. Diana Nerozzi Barbara Hood, who has lived in Anchorage for 60 years, said she brought a large Ukrainian flag with her to make a statement. The flag is supposed to 'send a message' to both Trump and Putin — as she said the Russian leader could make peace 'in an instant' if he wanted to. 'I don't think it's what they're here for, I don't think it's what's going to happen,' Hood said of prospective peace. Trump is set to speak to Putin Friday morning at Elmendorf Air Force Base, where the two leaders will then hold a joint press conference. Trump has stressed that the talks with Putin are the first stage, where he will get more information on what the Russian dictator wants. Then, according to Trump, there will have to be an additional meeting with Zelensky present to get a final peace deal across, where there will likely be 'land swaps.' 4 Barbara Hood and Kathleen Tarr hold a Ukrainian flag in protest of the summit. Diana Nerozzi 4 Maryallen Lambert hold a sign in Anchorage. Diana Nerozzi Maryellen Lambert, another Anchorage resident, shared the view that Putin could achieve peace if he just 'got out of Ukraine.' 'That's all he has to do. Instead, he's probably going to manipulate Trump to try to cede different territories for a peace deal,' Lambert, who attends many anti-Trump rallies with 'Stand Up Alaska' said. 'I don't want them here in Alaska,' she went on. The signs at the protest, which was seemingly only attended by Democrats, ranged from questioning whether Alaska would be next in Putin's landgrabs, to calling for Putin to leave the state. 'Alaska stands with Ukraine,' read many signs. 4 Diana Nerozzi Trump gave a 75% chance of success in speaking to Putin in an interview with Brian Kilmeade Thursday morning — expressing optimism that they could have a civil conversation that would lead to a trilateral meeting with Zelensky.
The Hill
25 minutes ago
- The Hill
South Korea's president vows to restore 2018 inter-Korean military agreement to ease tensions
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea's new liberal president, Lee Jae Myung, said Friday he will seek to restore a 2018 military agreement with North Korea aimed at reducing border tensions and urged Pyongyang to respond to Seoul's efforts to rebuild trust and revive dialogue. Speaking on the 80th anniversary of Korea's liberation from Japanese colonial rule, Lee's overture came amid soaring tensions fueled by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's nuclear ambitions and deepening ties with Russia over the war in Ukraine. The 2018 military agreement, reached during a brief period of diplomacy between Kim and South Korea's former liberal President Moon Jae-in, created buffer zones on land and sea and no-fly zones above the border to prevent clashes. South Korea's previous conservative government suspended the deal in 2024, citing tensions over North Korea's launches of trash-laden balloons toward the South, and moved to resume frontline military activities and propaganda campaigns. The step came after North Korea had already declared it would no longer abide by the agreement. 'To prevent accidental clashes between South and North Korea and to build military trust, we will take proactive, gradual steps to restore the (2018) Sept. 19 military agreement,' Lee said in a televised speech. Lee said his government affirms 'our respect for the North's current system' and that the wealthier South 'will not pursue any form of unification by absorption and has no intention of engaging in hostile acts.' Lee said South Korea remains committed to an international push to denuclearize North Korea and urged Pyongyang to resume dialogue with Washington and Seoul. Amid a prolonged diplomatic stalemate with its rivals, Kim's government has made clear it has no intention of giving up the weapons it sees as its strongest guarantee of survival and would reject any future talks on denuclearization. 'Denuclearization is a complex and difficult task that cannot be resolved quickly,' Lee said. 'However, inter-Korean and U.S.-North Korea dialogue as well as international cooperation will help us approach a peaceful resolution.' Lee, who took office after winning an early election in June following the ouster of his conservative predecessor Yoon Suk Yeol over a brief imposition of martial law in December, has taken steps to repair ties with the North, including the removal of South Korean frontline loudspeakers that Yoon's government had used to blast anti-North Korean propaganda and K-pop across the border. It's unclear whether North Korea would respond to Lee's overture. Expressing anger over Yoon's hardline policies and expansion of South Korean-U.S. military exercises, Kim last year declared that North Korea was abandoning long-standing goals of a peaceful unification with South Korea and rewrote the North's constitution to mark the South as a permanent enemy. Lee's speech came a day after Kim's powerful sister mocked his government for clinging to hopes of renewed diplomacy between the war-divided rivals, and misleading the public by falsely claiming the North had removed its own frontline speakers as a reciprocal gesture toward the South. Kim Yo Jong also reiterated previous North Korean statements that it has no immediate interest in reviving long-stalled negotiations with Washington and Seoul, citing an upcoming joint military exercise between the allies as proof of their continued hostility toward Pyongyang. Analysts say North Korea clearly sees no urgency to resume diplomacy with South Korea or the United States, remaining focused on its alignment with Russia. Since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Pyongyang has made Moscow the priority of its foreign policy, sending thousands of troops and large quantities of military equipment, including artillery and missiles, to help fuel the war.
San Francisco Chronicle
25 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
South Korea's president vows to restore 2018 inter-Korean military agreement to ease tensions
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea's new liberal president, Lee Jae Myung, said Friday he will seek to restore a 2018 military agreement with North Korea aimed at reducing border tensions and urged Pyongyang to respond to Seoul's efforts to rebuild trust and revive dialogue. Speaking on the 80th anniversary of Korea's liberation from Japanese colonial rule, Lee's overture came amid soaring tensions fueled by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's nuclear ambitions and deepening ties with Russia over the war in Ukraine. The 2018 military agreement, reached during a brief period of diplomacy between Kim and South Korea's former liberal President Moon Jae-in, created buffer zones on land and sea and no-fly zones above the border to prevent clashes. South Korea's previous conservative government suspended the deal in 2024, citing tensions over North Korea's launches of trash-laden balloons toward the South, and moved to resume frontline military activities and propaganda campaigns. The step came after North Korea had already declared it would no longer abide by the agreement. 'To prevent accidental clashes between South and North Korea and to build military trust, we will take proactive, gradual steps to restore the (2018) Sept. 19 military agreement,' Lee said in a televised speech. Lee said his government affirms 'our respect for the North's current system' and that the wealthier South 'will not pursue any form of unification by absorption and has no intention of engaging in hostile acts.' Lee said South Korea remains committed to an international push to denuclearize North Korea and urged Pyongyang to resume dialogue with Washington and Seoul. Amid a prolonged diplomatic stalemate with its rivals, Kim's government has made clear it has no intention of giving up the weapons it sees as its strongest guarantee of survival and would reject any future talks on denuclearization. 'Denuclearization is a complex and difficult task that cannot be resolved quickly,' Lee said. 'However, inter-Korean and U.S.-North Korea dialogue as well as international cooperation will help us approach a peaceful resolution.' Lee, who took office after winning an early election in June following the ouster of his conservative predecessor Yoon Suk Yeol over a brief imposition of martial law in December, has taken steps to repair ties with the North, including the removal of South Korean frontline loudspeakers that Yoon's government had used to blast anti-North Korean propaganda and K-pop across the border. It's unclear whether North Korea would respond to Lee's overture. Expressing anger over Yoon's hardline policies and expansion of South Korean-U.S. military exercises, Kim last year declared that North Korea was abandoning long-standing goals of a peaceful unification with South Korea and rewrote the North's constitution to mark the South as a permanent enemy. Lee's speech came a day after Kim's powerful sister mocked his government for clinging to hopes of renewed diplomacy between the war-divided rivals, and misleading the public by falsely claiming the North had removed its own frontline speakers as a reciprocal gesture toward the South. Kim Yo Jong also reiterated previous North Korean statements that it has no immediate interest in reviving long-stalled negotiations with Washington and Seoul, citing an upcoming joint military exercise between the allies as proof of their continued hostility toward Pyongyang. Analysts say North Korea clearly sees no urgency to resume diplomacy with South Korea or the United States, remaining focused on its alignment with Russia. Since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Pyongyang has made Moscow the priority of its foreign policy, sending thousands of troops and large quantities of military equipment, including artillery and missiles, to help fuel the war.
