Candidate who defended mural shortlisted for parliamentary seat
Ealing councillor who appeared to back mural of hook-nosed bankers added to parliamentary shortlist
An Ealing councillor who previously defended an East End mural featuring several antisemitic tropes has been shortlisted for a parliamentary seat.
Aysha Raza was added to the shortlist for Ealing North to replace Labour MP Stephen Pound, who will not be seeking re-election at the next election.
Raza was reported to the party by the campaign group Labour Against Antisemitism over several social media posts, for which she later apologised.
She previously appeared to defend the controversial East End mural painted by graffiti artist Mear One, which depicts hook-nosed bankers playing a game of Monopoly on the backs of workers.
“Controversial mural in the East End being painted over for being depicted antisemitic! #OneRuleForYou&AnotherForUs and #FreeSpeech,”she wrote in 2012.
In 2013, she tweeted that she had been “traumatised by the hours spent in that Zionist shop” after buying a suit.
Speaking to Buzzfeed News, Raza apologised “for any hurt my words caused” and revealed she had undertaken antisemitism training with the Jewish Labour Movement.
“As the only candidate who lives in, and has a track record of representing our diverse Ealing North community, I am confident that local members will recognise that I fully understand the importance of representing the interests of everyone in our community, regardless of religion, race or background,” she added.
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