The East is a Podcast

An extra large helping of Tankie Group Therapy featuring Sina, Mikey, Joe, Nick Estes and, in his debut, Adnan Husain, and also two surprise guests!  Watch the video edition on The East is a Podcast YouTube channel   Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast  

Conor McCabe (@CMacCaba) is a research fellow with Queen’s Business School, Queens University Belfast and editor of The Lost & Early Writings James Connolly (2024), published by Iskra Books. Download the book for free or purchase a copy here https://www.iskrabooks.org/lost-and-early-writings   Watch the fantastic conversation between Conor and Jay from Millenials are Killing Capitalism https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jj6oMP4mMyM&ab_channel=MillennialsAreKillingCapitalismLive%21   Video edition available on the East is a Podcast Youtube channel https://youtu.be/UMr1D29SB-A   TikTok played during the episode    Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast

Small therapy group convenes with Sina, Joe, and Alex. We talk about denial, shame, fear, historical lies and current ones. Watch the video edition on The Anti-Empire Project YouTube channel Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast

*Audio recording of a panel orgnized by friend of the show Frances Hasso. Video edition coming soon!* Convened by Dr. Frances S. Hasso, Professor of Gender, Sexuality and Feminist Studies, History, and Sociology, as part of The Palestine Seminar at Duke University https://gendersexualityfeminist.duke.edu/literary-gaza-hybrid Speakers “My Age is Thirty-five Years Old and Five Wars" Basman Aldirawi  Basman Aldirawi (also Basman Derawi) is a Palestinian and Gazan, a refugee from Bi’r al-Saba`, and currently in Egypt due to the aggression on Gaza. He works as a physiotherapist at the Gaza Ministry of Health and since 2018 has been a member of the Gaza Poets Society, the first spoken word community in Gaza. He has contributed dozens of stories and poems to many online platforms and publications, including We Are Not Numbers (2019), Light in Gaza: Writings Born of Fire (2022), and the We Are Not Numbers online platform that gives a voice to the victims of Israeli aggression in Gaza/Palestine. "The Demon of Gaza" Esmat Elhalaby Esmat Elhalaby is an Assistant Professor of transnational history at the University of Toronto. He works principally on the intellectual history of West and South Asia, particularly colonial and anti-colonial thought. “The 5 Stages of Grief, According to a Palestinian” Samah Serour Fadil Samah Serour Fadil is an Afro-Palestinian writer, editor and translator. Her work has been featured at the Yale University Art Gallery, Fresno State University and The Cantor Fitzgerald Gallery at Haverford College, among others.  “Tent in the Sky” Alaa Na`eem `Ali Al-Qatrawi:   Alaa Na`eem `Ali al-Qatrawi completed her PhD in 2022 in Arabic Literature and Criticism at the Islamic University in Gaza, focused on the poetry of Adonis. Her MA thesis at the Islamic University, which examined Ahmed Bakhit’s poetry, won the Award for Best MA thesis in the Humanities in 2015. Dr. Al-Qatrawi is an accomplished poet and short story and operetta writer, winning among others the Abdulaziz Al-Babtain Award for the best poetry collection in the category of young poets in 2022, first in the Union of Palestinian Writers Competition in 2015, first in the Ministry of Culture’s poetry competition among all Palestinian universities in 2013, first in short stories in the Arab world in the international competition organized by Chinese Books and Dar Fadaat Publishing House in Amman (2019), and first in the Letter to Jerusalem competition (2010). She works as an Arabic Language teacher in UNRWA schools at the elementary and secondary levels. She has previously worked as a linguist and screenwriter for UNRWA children’s programming. Dr. Alaa’s Instagram and Facebook pages. Sponsor Department of Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies, Duke University Co-Sponsor(s) Asian & Middle Eastern Studies Program (AMES); History Department; Middle East Studies Center (DUMESC); Asian American & Diaspora Studies Program

Asa Winstanley (@AsaWinstanley) is an investigative journalist with the Electronic Intifada and author of Weaponising Anti-Semitism: How the Israel Lobby Brought Down Jeremy Corbyn (2022).   Check out his latest bombshell on the widespread employment of the "Hannibal Directive" by the Zionist colonial military forces and police on October 7th, 2023.   https://www.asawinstanley.com/   Watch the video edition on The East is a Podcast YouTube channel   Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast      

Adam Horowitz (@mondowitz) is Executive Editor of Mondoweiss (@Mondoweiss)   Nora Barrows-Friedman (@norabf) is Associate Editor of The Electronic Intifada (@intifada), radio broadcaster, author, co-host of the EI Podcast and @thebriefpod   Watch the video edition on The East is a Podcast YouTube channel     Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast Check out the Anti-Imperialist Archive http://feeds.libsyn.com/437079/rss  

Tankie Therapy crew (Nora, Mikey, Alex, Joe, Sina, and Louis) gets together to reflect on one year after Al Aqsa Flood and the Gaza genocide. Watch the video edition on The East is a Podcast YouTube channel Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast

Roqayah Chamseddine (@roqchams) is a journalist and writer based in Lebanon and co-host of Delete Ur Account Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast Check out the Anti-Imperialist Archive http://feeds.libsyn.com/437079/rss  

**Note 2: Given everything that's happened, I've unlocked this episode for the main feed** *Note: This is the part of my conversation with Karim. We continued for another 45 mins! To listen to the entire episode, join The East is a Podcast Patreon. Help keep the show going and access hundreds of hours of bonus content!*  AUB professor and co-host of Makdisi Street Karim Makdisi (@KarimMakdisi) returns to the show after a five-year hiatus(!) to discuss the history of Israeli state terrorism against Lebanon and the decades-long histories of resistance that have confronted it.   Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast Check out the Anti-Imperialist Archive http://feeds.libsyn.com/437079/rss  

Louis, Mikey, Nora, Sina, Alex, and Joe join for our usual therapy session. We talk about the developing Israel-Lebanon war, the difficulty performing everyday life, Macklemore's new song, Hinds Hall 2, and the historical changes we're living through. Watch the episode on the Anti-Empire Project YouTube channel Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast Check out the Anti-Imperialist Archive http://feeds.libsyn.com/437079/rss  

*Note: This is the part of my conversation with Adnan. We continued for another hour! To listen to the entire episode, join The East is a Podcast Patreon for $5 a month. Help keep the show going and access hundreds of hours of bonus content.  Alternatively, you can watch the episode for free on our YouTube channel linked below* Adnan Husain (@adnanahusain) is a Medieval European and Middle Eastern historian at Queen's University and co-host of Guerilla History.  He returns to the show to talk in-depth about the meaning of the Crusades to our understanding of contemporary imperialism. Watch the video edition on The East is a Podcast YouTube channel Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast Check out the Anti-Imperialist Archive http://feeds.libsyn.com/437079/rss  

Kyle Ferrana (@KyleTrainEmoji) is a writer, software engineer, and tenant organizer.  He is the author of Why the World Needs China: Development, Environmentalism, Conflict Resolution & Common Prosperity (2024) Check out his latest article,"The Occupation of East Asia"  Watch the video edition on the East is a Podcast YouTube channel Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast    

Nora, Alex, Sina, Joe, and Mikey join for our normal therapy session just after Hizbollah's response and after a particularly rough week with the RNC and DNC disconnecting with multiple massacres in Gaza. We talk about our narrowing social circles and how we fend off the siren call of nihilism. Watch the episode on the Anti-Empire Project YouTube channel Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast Check out the Anti-Imperialist Archive http://feeds.libsyn.com/437079/rss

*Note: This is the first hour of my conversation with Adnan. We continued for another 45 mins! To listen to the entire episode, join The East is a Podcast Patreon for $5 a month. Help keep the show going and access hundreds of hours of bonus content.  Alternatively, you can watch the episode for free on our YouTube channel linked below* Adnan Husain (@adnanahusain) is a Medieval European and Middle Eastern historian at Queen's University and co-host of Guerilla History. Watch the video edition on The East is a Podcast YouTube channel Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast Check out the Anti-Imperialist Archive http://feeds.libsyn.com/437079/rss

  The International People’s Tribunal on US Imperialism: Sanctions, Blockades and Economic Coercive Measures condemns the Israeli assassination of Yasser Adnan Ibrahim al-Derawi, 31 year old attorney from Gaza, Palestine. He served as an expert witness in our Gaza hearing on May 13, 2023.   We recently learned of Yasser’s murder after local journalists searched for him to discuss his research on the Israeli blockade and other war crimes in Gaza, Palestine. They informed us that Yasser was targeted during an Israeli bombing campaign of his home in December 2023, following a series of letters he sent to the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court in collaboration with the Center for the Protection of Human Rights documenting Israeli war crimes in Palestine and Gaza specifically. He testified before the International People’s Tribunal (@sanctionstribunal) during the fifth day of an active Israeli bombardment campaign against Gaza. Two witnesses left the hearing abruptly because the homes near them were being bombed as they testified.  In the morning of Yasser’s testimony, he attended a fact-gathering meeting at Al-Shifa Hospital, which has since been completely destroyed by the Israelis and is described by the World Health Organization as “an empty shell with human graves.” He explained that this meeting was to document Israeli atrocities committed during the May 2023 bombardment. In his powerful testimony before the Tribunal, he stated repeatedly that the “Israelis don’t distinguish between women, children, elderly. They kill all civilians without distinguishing between targets. They declare war on civilians, targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure.” He noted the use of internationally banned weapons and cited multiple violations of international law, including Article 33 of the Geneva Convention. He stated that the Israeli objective is to “destroy the Palestinian will to resist and live.” Yasser was keenly aware of the US role in perpetrating war crimes against Palestinians and the people of Gaza. He noted that the Israelis cannot make any decisions unless they get an agreement from Washington DC, and that just two days prior, the US blocked the condemnation of Israel before the Security Council. “We call it the United States of imperialism, that’s what supports the Israelis.” Yasser concluded his testimony with the following statement: “We join this Tribunal with the hope that we can prosecute the apartheid regime of Israel. We are ready to present any evidence that you want us to provide to document and show the crimes of the Zionist occupation in Gaza…. We’ve asked multiple times for the International Criminal Court to open an investigation into these crimes, but the Court is slow to respond.” The People’s Tribunal on US imperialism understands that international institutions such as the ICC are rooted in legacies of colonialism and shaped by the diktats of US imperialism, which materially and politically supports the settler colonial state of Israel as its imperial outpost. This has undermined the international community’s ability to take the action needed–action Yasser so powerfully called for in his testimony–to prevent the genocide currently underway in Gaza. Had the world heeded the calls of Yasser and other Palestinians, we could have prevented the deaths of over 186,000 Palestinians and the extensive destruction and waste of life, land and infrastructure produced by this imperialist-zionist assault on the Palestinian people. Despite its limitations, Yasser was committed to working within the framework of international law. He held a Masters degree in Public Law and his dissertation was entitled “The Powers of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court.” At the time of his assassination, he was attending a doctoral program in International Criminal Law, and had participated in numerous conferences advocating for Palestinian liberation. He was actively training to participate in prosecuting Israel in international legal fora and was a member of the War Crimes Protection Committee of the Center for the Protection of Human Rights. Yasser is survived by his wife and children. We send our profound condolences to his family during this unimaginable time of grief. In addition to this personal loss, we understand Yasser’s martyrdom as a loss for the Palestinian national liberation movement, as well as for the international community of anti-imperialist lawyers. The best way we can honor Yasser is to continue his fight for justice and accountability for Zionist crimes and for the liberation of Palestine, from the river to the sea. https://solidarityiran.org/2024/08/20/israel-assassinates-sanctions-tribunal-expert-witness-in-gaza/   https://sanctionstribunal.org/

The group gets together after two weeks of assassinations, literal mask-off moments, and massacres. The idea of the "single issue voter" arises - but perhaps it's a single-issue empire. Sina, Nora, Alex and Mikey all join for our therapy session. Watch the video edition on the Anti-Empire Project YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alYojyLDoZE Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast Check out the Anti-Imperialist Archive http://feeds.libsyn.com/437079/rss

Friend of the show Louis Allday (@Louis_Allday) guest hosts a conversation with Fida Jiryis, author of Stranger in My Own Land: Palestine, Israel and One Family's Story of Home (2022) Read an excerpt of the book here https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/sep/27/no-place-like-home-my-bitter-return-to-palestine Watch the episode on our YouTube channel https://youtu.be/NIcKWLqQ9iE Date of recording: July 9, 2024   Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast Check out The Anti-Imperialist Archive http://feeds.libsyn.com/437079/rss    

Another session of Tankie Group Therapy featuring the old crew: @justinpodur, @norabf, @karaokecomputer, @rosendo_joe,  @alexander_avina, and Urorientalist.The session seemed to revolve mostly around Ansarallah ("Houthis") statements after they attacked Tel Aviv and were bombed by Israeli F-35s. The disconnect between their response and Western solidarity. And then we got the news of Biden stepping down, so some quick reactions to that at the end. Watch the video edition on Justin's fantastic YouTube channel Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast Check out the Anti-Imperialist Archive http://feeds.libsyn.com/437079/rss    

Founder of Liberated Texts and longtime supporter of the show Louis Allday (@Louis_Allday) returns to guest host an episode with Mary Turfah (@maryturfah) about her article on Zionist sadism.  Watch the episode on our YouTube channel "Running Amok"  https://thebaffler.com/latest/running-amok-turfah Liberated Texts https://liberatedtexts.com/ Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast Check out The Anti-Imperialist Archive http://feeds.libsyn.com/437079/rss    

Friend of the show Alex Aviña guests hosts an episode with geographer Taylor Miller about the intertwined systems of carceral border control policing the US/Mexico border and Palestine.  Watch the video edition on The East is a Podcast YouTube channel "A Pause, On Possibility"  https://www.averyreview.com/issues/65/a-pause-on-possibility The University of Arizona's Institutionalized Border Violence https://thenewinquiry.com/the-university-of-arizonas-institutionalized-border-violence/ Consider supporting the show www.patreon.com/east_podcast Check out The Anti-Imperialist Archive http://feeds.libsyn.com/437079/rss