Corbynites get #WeAreCorbyn trending worldwide

Labour activists quickly got the hashtag #WeAreCorbyn to number one in UK Twitter trends on Thursday night, and to number three in worldwide trends.

After a week of stories about antisemitism in the Labour Party, Corbynites said they were using social media to fight back against the “smears” of the “MSM” (mainstream media) against Jeremy Corbyn.

Those joining the ‘Twitterstorm’ included shadow cabinet members, Labour MPs, candidates for Labour’s ruling body the NEC, party members and left-wing commentators.

Labour MP Chris Williamson, who has maintained his support for NEC candidate Peter Willsman, said members took a moment to join the Twitterstorm at a meeting he attended as part of his Democracy Roadshow.

Corbynsceptics were critical of the hashtag, with NEC member James Asser amongst those who expressed disapproval.

Others such as Tom Hamilton, a former adviser to Ed Miliband, thought the optics were poor and the show of support lacked strategy.

Jewish Chronicle writer Rosa Doherty described the hashtag as “insensitive” in the context of news around Corbyn’s relations with the Jewish community.

But many Corbynites appreciated the opportunity to celebrate the Labour leader’s record of campaigning for human rights and to show Corbyn “unfiltered by the media”.

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