🎙️This week on the Sumud Podcast, we’re joined by Alana Hadid—creative director, activist, and storyteller. As the force behind Watermelon Pictures and host of The Seeds Podcast, Alana is working to reimagine media through a justice-centered lens. From launching the groundbreaking streaming platform Watermelon+ to preserving her family’s Palestinian legacy, Alana weaves creativity and resistance into every part of her life.

In this deeply personal conversation, Alana opens up about her childhood, her grandmother’s displacement during the Nakba, and the emotional journey of visiting her father’s birthplace in Safed. She shares the joys and heartbreak of advocacy, what it means to show up for Palestine through media, and why self-love is an act of defiance.

As the conversation unfolds, Alana also reflects on her mixed Palestinian-Irish identity, her path through political education and entrepreneurship, and the mental and emotional labor of public-facing advocacy. From her stepmother role to navigating online hate, she offers an honest and grounded portrait of what it means to live one's politics with love, purpose, and clarity.

🔑 In this conversation, we explore:

➡ Creating Watermelon+, a streaming platform by and for Palestinians

➡ Visiting her family's home in Safed and honoring intergenerational memory

➡ Why Alana sees liberation as her religion

➡ The mental toll of advocacy & the importance of therapy and healing

➡ Building a life rooted in justice, joy, and storytelling

This video is for educational purposes only. It provides historical and political analysis to inform and educate viewers.

📌Chapters:

00:00 – Introduction: Boycotts, Safe Platforms & Watermelon+

04:05 – Growing Up Palestinian-Irish in the DMV

08:29 – Family, Nakba Stories & Visiting Safed

17:34 – Identity, Religion & Liberation as Faith

24:44 – Cultural Power & Creative Resistance

33:41 – Self-Worth, Mental Health & Surviving the Spotlight

41:55 - Watermelon Pictures, Boycotting & The Seeds Podcast

52:09 – Reflection: Cooking, Sisterhood & Living a Grounded Life

📲 Follow Alana: @lanzybear

🇵🇸 Support and subscribe to: @watermelonpicturesco

🎙 Follow our host: @dredhasan

🌐 Learn more at: https://sumudpod.com

📺 Stream Watermelon+: https://watermelonpictures.com

#Palestine #SumudPod #AlanaHadid #WatermelonPictures #TheSeedsPodcast #FreePalestine #PalestinianVoices #CreativeResistance #Storytelling #Nakba #MentalHealth

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices