Cllr Jo Bird – Birkenhead CLP –NEC candidate
Jewish Voice for Labour
Like many Labour party members, I was inspired to join the Labour Party by Jeremy Corbyn’s vision of socialism for the many.
My Jewish great grandparents were refugees from fascism in Europe. In my lived experience, the Labour party is a welcoming home. My positive messages often go viral. For example, over 37,000 people viewed my ‘Jews are welcome in Labour’ video ( https://youtu.be/tJ8wwPiPjD0 ) in October 2019.There is no place for antisemitism or any form of racism in our party. Our society and world needs more understanding and less hostility.
Raised by socialist, trade unionist parents in Birkenhead, as a teenager I collected food money for striking miners staying in our house in the 1980s. Recently, I’ve actively supported my union Unite and other trade unions campaigns against in-work poverty, for minimum wage for overnight care workers, against casualisation at Cammel Laird, for decent contracts at ASDA, as well as for democratic media in Ireland. Working with refugees, we set up an Arabic-Kurdish café and culture hub, because it is vital to offer safe sanctuary to every asylum seeker in our communities.
As your NEC representative, I will stand up for members, democracy and transparency at every opportunity. As Secretary of Wirral Labour Group, I ensure the rules of the Labour Partyand natural justice are applied fairly to everyone, regardless of status.
Working with co-operatives and trade unions for 26 years, I know how to democratise and de-carbonise the economy, from housing and renewable energy to manufacturing and transport.
I continue to play a leading role in successful community and election campaigns, such as truth and justice for victims of disasters, saving NHS Walk In Centres, winning hearts and minds and swinging vote shares to Labour e.g. from 24% to 36% in May 2018 local elections.
I was dismayed to be (briefly) suspended from Labour in March 2019. My play on the words 'due process' and my comments about not privileging racism against Jews over other forms of racism, were alleged to be antisemitic. I apologised for any offence caused - that was not my intention – and was quickly re-instated after huge public outcry.
CLP: Birkenhead, Merseyside
Membership number: A674976