A Labour party activist who lambasted a leading MP for not being “politically black” has been suspended from the party as its anti-Semitisim crisis deepens.
Marlene Ellis, part of the grassroots Corbynite group Momentum, rode to the defence of Ken Livinstone, branding him the latest victim of a Zionist conspiracy.
Marlene Ellis, far right, poses for a photo with Jeremy Corbyn and Diane Abbott -… https://t.co/c7sRsOFzqp #JezWeCan pic.twitter.com/P2tjbO2isr
— Rog On The Left (@RogOnTheLeft) June 6, 2016
Ellis railed at Corbyn for doubting the “honest intentions” of the unrepentant former London Mayor, who is himself suspended for repeatedly injecting Hitler into the news agenda for very little reason.
An angry social media post, first noted by The Spectator, saw Ellis admit to the suspension while linking to a blog post defending Livingstone.
However, this is not her first brush with political notoriety. Ellis has also hit out at Streatham MP Chuka Umunna – briefly a Labour leadership hopeful – for not being “politically black”.
#LondonSelects Diane Abbott for London Mayor! pic.twitter.com/LbXNUcmFs0
— Marlene Ellis (@Marlene0001) July 30, 2015
Ellis made a thinly-veiled reference to “some black MPs that don’t align themselves with being politically black” in a meeting with local Labour party members. The confrontation was leaked to the Evening Standard.
Rows over political blackness have become a hot-button issue in left-wing circles of late.
The National Union of Students recently went to war with itself over the term when it was suggested some members of the black campaign were insufficiently black.
Umunna is a favoured target of Corbynite activists who want to purge the party of political moderates. Ellis called him “very, very Right-wing”, and a leaked memo from Corbyn’s office dubbed him “hostile”.
Although Momentum formally denies having any policies geared towards de-selection of MPs, many of its leading lights have spoken warmly of the idea.
