Afleveringen
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Today it is officially one year exactly since I started this podcast. I look back and reflect on this year and talk about the year ahead. What has changed, what has stayed pretty much the same, what has gotten much worse? I ask these questions at the political, personal and polito-personal (to coin a term) level. Thank you to everyone who has listened over the last year. I appreciate every single one of you. May we mark the 2nd year of this podcast with new achievements, new breakthroughs, new ruptures to this depressing, catastrophic existence.
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So I got rejected from yet another writing grant. But I persist. From now I'm gna focus on doing my work and hoping those listening/reading appreciate enough/are able to support me. This episode is basically a free-association personal ramble about stuff I've been thinking about re my work and what I'm reluctantly calling 'diasporic discomforts'. Very little politics in this one, except brief talk about the "ceasefire" in Lebanon.
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Zijn er afleveringen die ontbreken?
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It's finally happened. After 13 years of struggle, the Syrian people emerge victorious. What started as military operations in the north quickly escalated into country-wide revolt, built on decades of resentment, organising and, counter-revolutionary violence. Prisons liberated, Assad fled, and for the first time, in over a decade, Syrians are celebrating. They know, more than any of us, the work that comes now, but for now, let's celebrate with them.
This episode is dedicated to Omar Aziz, to Razan Zaitouneh, to Alan Kurdi, to all the brave fighters who were martyred by this regime, to all the ordinary men and women who dared to dream, to the organisers of the councils that sustained their communities through years of siege, to those who perished in refuge under the crushing weight of exile, to all the revolutionaries who are no longer with us: this moment is for you.
May this inspire all of us to dare to dream, to understand that sacrifice may well pay off, that the long struggle towards justice is but that: a long struggle. The people wanted the overthrowal of the regime, the people overthrew the regime. May we experience such joy in Lebanon, may the Palestinians experience such joy. May all oppressed peoples across the globe be victorious in their struggle against their oppressors. Oppression leads to resistance which oppression can never crush.
I have so many thoughts and feelings, so I share with you this episode. It of course is not expansive. Three main things I forgot to discuss:
The Israeli opportunism in this moment, bombing areas in southern Syria and seizing new territories.
Sednayel prison as a place not just of disappearance but wholesale massacres.
Accepting Syrian agency the way we do with Palestinians. Are you reading Syrian poetry? Listening to Syrian music? Engaging with Syrian twitter or insta? Centring Syrian voices? Are you accepting and trusting that Syrians understand their situation better than anyone else? If not, you may be falling for narratives that ultimately hurt Syrians and contributing to their erasure.
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But for now Syrians celebrate. Let's celebrate with them.
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These horrible two months seem to have come to an end. At least for the time being. A brief bittersweet moment amongst all the horribleness. I share they thoughts and reflections about the ceasefire deal that was announced just two days ago.
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I've been doing terribly. All of us are. But I can't go on like this. I will not cede them this victory.
This is possibly my most personal episode yet as I try to make sense of it all.
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What was meant to be a reflection on The Peoples Want festival ended up being a long discussion of how insane Germany has become. Doqsi (Egyptian living in Berlin) shares their experience and analysis of the current situation of the Palestine solidarity movement in Berlin as well as the intense and white supremacist crackdown from the state, the media, and liberal organizations. We do talk a bit about the festival but end up really lamenting that the safety we both sought in Europe is increasingly being chipped away.
Essay I make constant reference to:
https://criticalmuslim.com/explore/issues/halal/german-redemption-theology
The Peoples Want Links
Website: thepeopleswant.org
Instagram: instagram.com/lespeuplesveulent
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I had the extreme pleasure of spending the last week discussing and organizing with a group of activists and revolutionaries from across the global south. This happened at a conference hosted by The Peoples Want, a collective working on building genuine, strong internationalist bonds between struggles across the globe. Holding these conversations was intense but full of inspiration, especially at a time where I'm witnessing my world being destroyed, while everything feels empty of meaning, let alone hope. I share my reflections of this past week as well as brief comments on: the continued Israeli aggression on Lebanon, the impending U.S elections, and climate-crisis induced flooding in Spain and Saudi Arabia.
The Peoples Want Links
Website: thepeopleswant.org
Instagram: instagram.com/lespeuplesveulent
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What is liberalism? Who are liberals? Where do they stand in relation to the colonies? Where do they on genocide? I think the answer to the last question is pretty obvious to anyone paying attention over the last year. But regardless, I thought I'd do an episode sharing my reflections and understanding of liberalism, as a historical movement and political tendency that is riddled top to bottom with contradictions. History has shown that liberals are much friendlier to fascism than they are to anything resembling communism. We see this history repeating itself painfully clear. I share my, admittedly messy and incomplete, impressions on the matter.
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A question people have asked over the last year (and half a century). A constant mark of shame for the entire 'arab world' but also the beginning into a very serious inquiry - which I would contest has radical potentials that have yet to be fully explored. As I develop my next video essay, on this very topic, I'm doing this episode to just explore the things I'm thinking about out loud. I also provide some - incomplete - highlights on the latest developments in Lebanon and Palestine. One thing I definitely neglect to mention, specifically in southern Lebanon, is how great the losses are of Israeli soldiers who are trying to invade Lebanon. They cannot win real confrontations, so they use their aerial superiority to bomb hospitals and civilians.
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It's so difficult to speak. Confirming in words what we know, but cannot believe, is happening. Lebanon, my home, has been subjected to an unfathomable aggression by Israel over the last week. Over 1600 people have been killed, thousands more injured, and approximately 1 million people internally displaced! Almost all of this in almost two weeks. In this episode I share my reflections as a Lebanese, but also my bitter analysis based on what Palestinians have been showing us over the last year. Israel will not stop, it needs to be stopped. Otherwise we're all doomed.
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The criminal and vile escalation of Israel's aggression in Lebanon has forced 10s of thousands to flee the South. In lieu of a government, organizations, grassroots groups, and local communities have been stepping in and doing, essentially, the government's work - to provide for and protect its population. I'm dedicating this episode to talking about one of these groups, which has in fact been operating since 2020, and which I helped found. It's a group I'm proud to be a part of and whose members are the most inspiring, powerful, and caring comrades that a queer could ask for. I talk about the work we do, the context within which we work, as well as the necessity for mutual aid and community work in this time of war and displacement. Also just to note, I ofc don't claim to speak on behalf of the group, just as myself as a member and comrade.
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This is also a 'Fundraiser Episode'. Please donate what you can, become a member of our Patreon, or just share it with your friends, families, comrades and allies:
QMA Patreon -- https://www.patreon.com/qmalebanon
Reach out to this email for direct x-fer (bank, paypal,etc.):
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Referenced Materials:
My Old Essay's on Mutual Aid
https://thepublicsource.org/charity-mutual-aid
https://thepublicsource.org/charity-mutual-aid-2
Essay written by two members of QMA Lebanon
https://jeem.me/en/society/1286
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Love and Soldarity,
Ayman
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569 people killed in 2 days in Lebanon by the same people committing genocide in Gaza and moving to annex the West Bank. The Israelis are truly unhinged. Their aggression on the south of Lebanon has steadily increased over the last year. But yesterday was different. I provide an overview of what happened yesterday, Sept 23rd, and demonstrate that the Israelis are indeed speed-running through the playbook they have developed in Gaza over the last year. I share other thoughts on the issue in general as well.
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In the last 4 days, Israel has essentially declared war on all of Lebanon. With its mass electronic terrorist attack on Sept 17, followed by similar attacks the following down, and yesterday, Sept 20, they attacked the southern suburbs of Beirut with a bunker buster bomb. All told, Israel has killed more than 70 people and injured thousands of others. They have also increased their illegal, terrorising fly-overs across Lebanon and have drones that buzzed all throughout the night. They claim this aggression is all about deterring Hezbollah, but of course we know this is not the case - with yet another minister going on t.v. claiming that all of Lebanon is Hezbollah. The rogue fascist state of Israel is completely unhinged. What will it take to reign them in? I share my reflections on this as well as my feelings in this moment as a Lebanese person who is worried and heartbroken from my friends and family back home.
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42 years ago today, far-right anti-Palestinian Christian militias in Lebanon committed the most horrendous massacre of the 15-year long Lebanese civil wars. With the heavy support of Israeli forces, who were occupying Beirut at the time, these militias (most notably the Lebanese Forces) killed up to 3500 Palestinians and Lebanese over 3 days. In this first filmed episode of this podcast, I talk about this massacre, providing a brief overview of the lead-up to it, as well as its continued relevance to today.
Two brief notes:
Although filmed, this episode can still be listened to as normal (there are no visual elements except my face and hand-gestures).
This is not a thorough historical overview, which would require much more time and research. There are things I have left out, intentionally o forgetfully. Although I focus on the atrocities committed by far-right christian militias, I am of course aware they are not the only to commit massacres. I know people in my comments will be talking about the Damour massacre, committed by Palestinian factions. Although I acknowledge that no faction during the civl wars is innocent of committing atrocities, I reject the false equivalencies that many proclaim. The most egregious example of this, to my mind, is Ziad Doueiri's 2017 film 'The Insult'.
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Documentary on the Massacre
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'Hate' is a terrible way of understanding fascism and all forms of bigotry. Claiming to be against it seems to be more of a balm for the already protected subject, but does nothing for those that are violating, persecuting, and targeting by these violent structures. It is a moral statement, a pretty boring one, and not a political one. Despite this, its a very popular thing here in the imperial centers. I discuss this among other topics including: comments from my recent video essay (on Arab nationalism and colonialism), the Israeli invasion of the West Bank (specifically Jenin), and the floods in Sudan and Bangladesh.
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Its a genuine question. Is it even a thing? Or is there a better term/framework?I also talk about how it seems that tankies have finally realized Sudan exists and ofc are producing the worst takes - with it creating harm and distractions.
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'Organize' is one of those words thats used a lot but needs to be critically examined for each respective situation, space, struggle etc. In building strong, long-lasting, and powerful movements, we need to make sure that the human connections within are built on trust, respect, and duty - especially enough to deal with conflict. I share my thoughts on this as well as other things like how there was a public Swiftie concert 20 meters away from a Palestine protest in downtown Vienna, and how dystopic and surreal that was.
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I'm so tired.
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It's becoming increasingly difficult to talk about things, my feelings, my thoughts.
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In preparation for a video essay I'm developing, I decided to do an episode where I talk about the themes, arguments, and histories I've been examining and trying to synthesize. Definitely a ramble, but a potentially interesting one. Also, I have this weird tendency to emulate people's manner of speech when I read/listen to them too much (in this case, there are certain points, I'm basically just cosplaying as Edward Said).
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