The Palestine Pod

This week Lara and Michael reconnect with artistic intellectual Amanda Seales to talk about the release of her book What Would the Ancestors Say. We dive into the attempts to cancel Amanda from performing standup, how recommitting to the written word is revolutionary in a time when everything is controlled by crypto-fascist oligarchs, and Amanda calls Lara jolly. 

This week Lara and Michael sit down with Omar Zahzah the author of the recent book on big tech censorship called, Terms of Servitude Zionism, Silicon Valley, and Digital Settler Colonialism in the Palestinian Liberation Struggle. Omar has written for the Electronic Intifada, Mondoweiss, and other publications. He covered the story of Michael's Instagram being deleted by Jordana Cutler, and is a strong advocate for Palestinian liberation. 

This week Lara and Michael sit down with Jenin, the Palestine representative of CODEPINK to discuss Francesca Albanese's report "From economy of occupation to economy of genocide." We talk about how Airbnb and other corporations profit from the forced displacement of Palestinians. The company has over 300 listings in illegal settlements in the West Bank and we chat about the upcoming litigation against the company, as well as the campaigns spearheaded by CODEPINK to encourage people to boycott Airbnb. 

This week, Lara and Michael sit down with Abdulrahim Harara, owner of Jerusalem Coffee House in Oakland, California. They explore Abdulrahim’s family history in Palestine and his vision for the café as a space for community organizing and connection. The conversation reflects on the importance of building community in the face of state violence designed to isolate and fragment. The episode concludes with Abdulrahim’s account of the incident that led to Jerusalem Coffee House becoming a target of the latest wave of lawfare, involving the DOJ, the ADL, and other Zionist organizations.

This week, Lara and Michael speak with Palestinian-American comedian Sammy Obeid. They discuss the ups and downs of working in comedy as a Palestinian in this current moment and critique how complicit media narratives distort reporting on those killed by Israel as part of the ongoing genocide, for example by making it seem like such individuals died of "natural causes" as opposed to as a result of targeted state violence. Sammy also shares an anecdote involving a stay at Michael’s apartment.