London’s new mayor, Sadiq Khan, Muslim

I’ve always been confused about what to call it: England, UK, Britain, or Britannia? They are in my mind interchangeable. And just like that, the news from there became equally confusing. England is not normally on the radar of relevant Jewish news to us American Jews, and yet London is one of the most important capitals in Western Europe.

First it was news of the anti-Israel Jeremy Corbyn of the Labour Party and the anti-Semitism within that party.

Then there was the hullabaloo centering around former mayor of London Ken Livingstone, who suggested that Hitler made a deal with the Jews before WWII.

This news story was spinning out of control as quickly as the London Eye, when news of the new mayor of London elected as mayor Sadiq Khan, the son of a Pakistani bus driver.

Khan’s is the story of the rise of an immigrant child from the bottom rung of society to its crest. It’s inspiring. But given that he is the child of immigrants, and a British Muslim, racists have been having a heyday with his victory.

There is the entrenched English, Welsh, Scottish or Northern Irish cultures that Londoners apparently feel could be threatened if the mayor of London is of immigrant background. There is discomfort.

Sadiq Khan appears to be a fine gentlemen who will hopefully be a fine mayor.

As a Jew, I was touched that his first act in office was attendance at a Holocaust memorial service.

At the same time, some of the concerns surrounding him are legitimate. It’s got nothing to do with him being a Muslim, per se. It’s more a matter of where to place him on the spectrum of Islam.

Although he seems to be a citizen who respects all faiths and a leader who cultivates respect for all faiths, in the past Khan has appeared alongside Suliman Gani, a South London imam, at an event hosted by an organization that counts among its supporters Anwar al-Awlaki, a terrorist sympathizer.

True, I am sure when in political office or running for office, a whole range of politicians from the right to the left have appeared alongside unsavory characters at various public engagements. It’s par for the course.

But in this case, it has happened a number of times. It’s one thing not to vet a program once, quite another when the mistake is repeated, and especially when your party already has aroused concerns that it is anti-Semitic.

I am curious to watch and see where this new mayor goes.

Let’s hope he’ll take London to good places. Because whether you call it Britain, UK, England, or Britannia, what happens in an influential place like London matters to the world. It affects us all.

Let’s watch and hope for good things from London’s new mayor, Sadiq Khan.

Copyright Intermountain Jewish News