Episode 004: The Charade
This week Lara and Michael discuss the latest Israeli elections and the voter suppression that rules in the "fauxonly" democracy in the Middle East: 5 million Palestinians whose lives Israel controls in the occupied West Bank and Gaza cannot vote in these elections at all whereas Palestinians who live within the territory declared Israel in 1948 and are technically allowed to vote have been the target of racist campaign rhetoric by political candidates and are filmed as they vote to deter them from voting. Michael talks voter suppression in the US as well as his shocking experience working on both Bernie Sanders campaigns. Lara comments on the latest move by the US to give 15 million to Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza for COVID-19 and expresses frustration with the U.S. policy on Palestine under Democratic administrations. Lara shows how thus far Biden IS Trump on Palestine (not an exaggeration and she has the receipts to prove it). Michael explains to Lara what gefilte fish is.
To consult the sources used in the preparation of this episode, please see:
Books
Before Their Diaspora: A Photographic History of The Palestinians 1876-1948 (Walid Khalidi)
Except for Palestine: The Limits of Progressive Politics (Marc LaMont Hill and Mitchell Plitnick)
Articles/Videos
Israel is supposedly the only democracy in the Middle East, yet 4.5 million Palestinians under its control can’t vote (The Independent) Note that this article is from 2015 when the Palestinian population in the occupied West Bank and Gaza was closer to 4.5 million. As of 2021, the population is 5.2 million.
Itamar Ben-Gvir can only hurt Israel’s standing in the world - analysis (Jerusalem Post)
The “hero” who murdered 29 Palestinians (Electronic Intifada) This article refers to the racist rhetoric used by Itamar Ben-Gvir who was recently elected to the Knesset.
In the US and Israel, voter suppression is the ruling parties’ game plan (972+ Magazine)
Clueless or racist? Florida House passes anti-protest bill as Floyd death trial unfolds | Opinion (Miami Herald) [Correction: During the podcast, Michael inadvertently referred to this bill as law. While it has passed in the Florida house of representatives, at the time of the writing of this post it is currently being debated before the Senate]
Israel’s Netanyahu enters plea in court in corruption trial (BBC)
Binyamin Netanyahu: “Arab voters are heading to the polling stations in droves” (The Guardian)
Israeli elections: A look at the final, deadlocked results (Independent)
The Democrats Aren’t a Left-Wing Party — They Just Play One on TV (NY Mag)
Re Bernie Sanders’ campaign infighting and infiltration by staffers connected to the democratic elite:
Re organization of democratic elite against Bernie Sanders:
Democratic Leaders Willing to Risk Party Damage to Stop Bernie Sanders (New York Times)
Super PACs Run By Ex-Sanders Advisors Rake In Millions In Dark Money (Medium)
Former Aides to Bernie Sanders Form a Super PAC to Support Joe Biden (New York Times)
DNC Caught Attempting To Sabotage Bernie Sanders (The Young Turks)
Krystal Ball rips report saying Obama would intervene to stop Sanders (The Hill): “In a recent Politico magazine profile, Obamaland issued what sure appears to be a warning shot. Apparently, the former president doesn’t intend to weigh in on the Democratic Presidential Primary with one notable caveat, apparently he would have to speak up if Bernie Sanders was on track to win the nomination. According to Ryan Lizza’s reporting: “Obama said privately that if Bernie were running away with the nomination, Obama would speak up to stop him.”
15 million to Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza (ABC News)
US: Israeli settlements no impediment to peace but may not be helpful (The Guardian)
US ‘disappointed’ by ‘unhelpful’ settlement tenders (The Times of Israel)
Biden reversed Trump’s sanctions on International Criminal Court officials. What happens now? (The Washington Post): When we recorded this episode, Biden had not reversed a single Trump-era decision re Palestine. However, since its recording, Biden lifted the sanctions Trump imposed on the International Criminal Court and its chief prosecutor. While this is a positive development, it is long overdue given the gravity and the unprecedented nature of these measures, a sign of US exceptionalism, and their impact on the rule of law (which is why prominent organizations like the International Bar Association and private practice and government attorneys alike issued statements strongly condemning these sanctions). Also, activists must maintain the pressure on the Biden administration - Israeli press has already reported that lobbying efforts are underway to pressure Biden’s team to convince the next prosecutor to drop the case against Israel in the ICC.
Franz Fanon: Global Social Theory: “Fanon’s key works are Black Skins White Masks, A Dying Colonialism, The Wretched of the Earth, and Toward the African Revolution. Black Skins White Masks was published in 1952 but did not gain widespread recognition until the late 1960s. This was one of the first books to analyse the psychology of colonialism. In it Fanon examines how the colonizer internalizes colonialism and its attendant ideologies, and how colonized peoples in turn internalise the idea of their own inferiority and ultimately come to emulate their oppressors. Racism here functions as a controlling mechanism which maintains colonial relations as ‘natural’ occurrences. Black Skins White Masks is written in an urgent, fluid style. It is both analytical and passionate, part academic text, part polemic. The book has provided a powerful and lasting indictment of racism and imperialism.”
Biden will not condition aid to Israel 'period, full stop', campaign adviser says (Middle East Eye)
Extraordinary rendition: “Extraordinary rendition, also called irregular rendition or forced rendition, is the government-sponsored abduction and extrajudicial transfer of a person from one country to another with the purpose of circumventing the former country's laws on interrogation, detention, extradition and/or torture. Recent renditions have been carried out (for example) by the United States government.”
Black site: “In military terminology, a black site is a location at which an unacknowledged black operation or black project is conducted. It can refer to the facilities that are controlled by the CIA and used by the U.S. government in its War on Terror to detain enemy combatants.”
Americans Still Favor Israel While Warming to Palestinians: “Gallup's annual update of Americans’ views on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict shows Israel remains well-liked in the U.S. At the same time, Americans’ favorable views of the Palestinian Authority are at a new high of 30%, as is the percentage sympathizing more with the Palestinians than the Israelis (25%). Similarly, Americans continue to be more inclined to want the U.S. to pressure the Palestinians than the Israelis to resolve the Mideast conflict. But support for emphasizing pressure on Israel is also at a new high of 34%, with a majority of Democrats taking this position for the first time.”
Israeli occupation cost Gaza $16.7 billion in past decade - UNCTAD estimates (UNCTAD)
Palestinians report 93% voter registration for upcoming elections (Reuters)
Palestine: “The earliest occurrence of this name [Palestine] in a Greek text is in the mid-fifth century b.c., Histories of Herodotus, where it is applied to the area of the Levant between Phoenicia and Egypt.”...“The first known occurrence of the Greek word Palaistine is in the Histories of Herodotus, written near the mid-fifth century B.C. Palaistine Syria, or simply Palaistine, is applied to what may be identified as the southern part of Syria, comprising the region between Phoenicia and Egypt. Although some of Herodotus’ references to Palestine are compatible with a narrow definition of the coastal strip of the Land of Israel, it is clear that Herodotus does call the “whole land by the name of the coastal strip.”...“It is believed that Herodotus visited Palestine in the fifth decade of the fifth century B.C."..."In the earliest Classical literature references to Palestine generally applied to the Land of Israel in the wider sense.”
Israel’s Jewish National Fund is Uprooting Palestinians – Not Planting Trees
Gefilte Fish Haters, Here's Why You Should Reconsider Your Stance (Food & Wine)
