Right, so whilst the Green party leadership campaign headlines have been dominated by the plain speaking, policy laden campaign and associated support for Zack Polanski, there will of course be a deputy leader or leaders, depending on how many party leaders we end up with and with the brilliant Mothin Ali, the hero of Gipton and Harehills having thrown his flatcap into the race, the right wing media have had a meltdown, because Ali is Muslim. It doesn’t matter that he’s got a Yorkshire accent so thick he could pass himself off as one of the Tetley tea folk, we can’t have a Muslim leader, who are we going to scapegoat for all the ills of the world in our rancid publications and offensive tv programs?
So the media have come for him already, he’s no stranger to it though. He’s dealt with Stephen Yaxley-Lennon AKA Tommy ten-names, he’s even had Elon Musk come after him, but if he were to be elected and Polanski too, the Greens would have a Jewish leader from Salford and a Muslim deputy from Leeds, both calling out Israel over Gaza, both working in the interests of ordinary working class people and if those aren’t British values to you, then you’re the one with the problem.
Right, so that was a snippet there from Talk TV, apologies for confronting you with such a thing, but Mothin Ali being a Muslim and them being horrified at him running for Green Party deputy is what passes for headline news on Rupert Murdoch TV,
It was as I’m sure you will agree, a relentless smear campaign of a segment, not only distorting the truth but also weaponising racism, Islamophobia, and xenophobia to discredit a candidate whose only crime is representing real hope and authentic British values for working-class people.
This condemnation of Ali, fronted by right wing political commentators Peter C Barnes and Chloe Dobbs, was an amplified attack by media apparatus with an agenda to uphold the status quo, is not just a political hit job—it is a moral failing, but when does anything Rupert Murdoch’s name is attached to ever troubled by morality? The smears against Ali are part of a broader effort to delegitimise any political force that dares to challenge the broken neoliberal consensus that governs Britain today and just as we saw with the antisemitism scam that brought down Jeremy Corbyn, accusations of racism or justifying racism, as is at least in part the case here too, are the weapon of choice. In doing so, they target not just Mothin Ali but the communities he represents and the values he embodies.
Talk TV’s coverage of Mothin Ali there was nothing short of disgraceful. In one particularly egregious segment, political strategist Sam Armstrong—who once served as Robert Jenrick’s Head of Communications during his ill-fated Tory leadership campaign—suggested that the Green Party has “done a deal with the devil” in backing Ali’s candidacy. Athis from a guy, whose own political judgement was clearly lacking given Jenrick’s political trajectory, implies that Ali’s identity is synonymous with malevolence and a gain drew attention to the riots in Harehills last year, the implication being that somehow this is on Ali too. This is was not a show political analysis; it was a blatant attack, it was little more than thinly veiled Islamophobia in my view as well.
Chloe Dobbs, added fuel to the fire by questioning the loyalty of first and second-generation migrants to the UK. This type of rhetoric is not only unfounded but deeply offensive. It propagates the dangerous notion that British identity is reserved for a select few, that you an only have it if you are indigenous to these islands, all despite the immense contributions of migrant communities to the fabric of this nation, not least to bodies like the NHS which would have collapsed years ago without them as one prominent example. Dobbs didn’t stop there—she dragged Muslim Labour MP Tahir Ali into the fray, simply to double down seemingly on her racist insinuations. Such tactics are designed to isolate, alienate, and vilify Muslims in public life.
And Barnes himself was no better asking “Where did we go wrong to end up with this lot?”—a thinly disguised swipe at the Green Party and its Muslim candidates. It is not subtle. It is not clever. It is racism, broadcast live allegedly as informative programming.
What Talk TV and its ilk fail to acknowledge—or deliberately ignore—is who Mothin Ali actually is. So if you’re not familiar with the guy, then watch this:
Ali is Leeds through and through. In Gipton and Harehills, he has been a consistent, hands-on presence. When riots broke out in Harehills last year, as you saw in the beginning of that clip, Ali was not a participant; he was on the frontlines, confronting those driving the violence and physically intervening to stop it.
According to him “This is what councillors are supposed to do,” referencing that night where he rolled up his sleeves to de-escalate the chaos. Despite his courage and leadership, right-wing pundits, far-right agitators like Stephen Yaxley-Lennon aka Tommy Ten-names and even Elon Musk himself have attempted to frame him as a rioter or tried to link him to grooming gangs, in their bottom-feeding, racism.
Yet, in the face of these attacks, Ali has remained steadfast. He has spoken candidly about the torrent of hate he has received since becoming a councillor, saying that “nothing could have prepared me for the hate.” He has also received death threats. None of this has deterred him from serving his community, through garden projects that he spoke about there. Ali actually has a YouTube channel, My Family Garden, 56,000 subscribers, frankly deserves a lot more, yet now he’s stepping forward to seek a national role in shaping progressive politics in the UK.
Ali’s decision to run for deputy leader of the Green Party is not a political stunt. It is a natural extension of his community work and a bid to bring underrepresented voices to the national stage. His endorsement of Zack Polanski—a Jewish candidate—for Green Party leader is a testament to the inclusive, intersectional vision he holds. That the Green Party could soon be led by a Jewish leader and a Muslim deputy is a powerful rebuke to the false narrative of division being spun by the right and would be representative of British society and British values, because we are a multicultural nation and this inward looking white supremacist attitude of some, is out of step with the UK today. Why are some so afraid of becoming a minority in this country, because I can only assume it is because of how they treat other minorities, that such an idea scares them so much.
Indeed, both Ali and Polanski have faced abuse that underscores the very racism and prejudice their opponents seek to deny. Polanski has been accused of being a Zionist simply because he is Jewish—an accusation he has firmly refuted. Just as Polanski is not a Zionist, Ali is not a rioter. Both men are public servants, victims of a political and media culture that seeks to destroy rather than debate and what really scares these people is what they stand for and that is real, meaningful change.
The campaign against Mothin Ali is emblematic of how right-wing media weaponises identity to distract from systemic failures. Instead of addressing why parties like Labour have lost ground in areas like Gipton and Harehills, Talk TV chooses to scapegoat those stepping in to fill the void. Armstrong’s assertion that the Greens have “sensed Labour are weak” and thus aligned with a Muslim candidate reeks of paranoia and racialised fearmongering.
The Green Party’s rise in Leeds is not because of any “deal with the devil,” but because ordinary people are tired of being ignored. They are tired of living under a system that prioritises profit over people, war over welfare, and division over unity.
If British values mean anything, they must include fairness, equality, and decency. By these standards, Mothin Ali represents the very best of Britain. His actions during the Harehills riots demonstrate civic courage. His record as a councillor shows a commitment to social justice. His campaign for deputy leader is grounded in hope, not hate.
Contrast that with Talk TV’s behaviour—twisting facts, amplifying far-right voices, and giving a platform to those who question the basic humanity and patriotism of British Muslims. This is not journalism. It is propaganda.
The Green Party has not remained silent. Polanski and other party leaders have condemned the defamatory attacks, defended Ali’s integrity, and reaffirmed their commitment to inclusive politics.
The party has stood firm in its support, showing that a different kind of politics is possible—one grounded in solidarity, not scapegoating.
This is about more than Mothin Ali. It is about the kind of country we want to be. Do we allow our discourse to be poisoned by those who fear change and weaponise identity, those with large platforms at that, abusing that, to maintain the status quo? Or do we choose to amplify voices that speak for the marginalised, challenge injustice, and work to create a fairer society?
The attacks on Mothin Ali are a test for all of us—voters, viewers, and citizens. They test our willingness to think critically, to seek truth amidst noise, and to stand with those who are unfairly maligned. We as a nation fell for this once with Jeremy Corbyn, so lets not fail the test again. Let us meet that test, not by retreating into cynicism, but by engaging in the conversation and building a politics that reflects the best of who we are.
Mothin Ali deserves our support not in spite of his identity, but because of what he represents: the courage to serve, the strength to endure, and the vision to lead. And in the face of coordinated smear campaigns, that kind of leadership is exactly what Britain needs. And so just as I’ve given mt endorsement as a Green party member and councillor to Zack Polanski, I’m also giving it to Mothin Ali. If you join the Green Party before the end of July, so can you.
Zack Polanski has also faced his share of abuse too, the insurgent candidate for change to take the Green Party forwards as a national challenge to Reform UK as the likes of Labour and the Tories try to copy Farage’s outfit instead, get all the details of that story in this video recommendation here as your suggested next watch.
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