From Egypt to Iraq to Palestine and beyond, the U.S. war machine is the vehicle through which America de-develops, subjugates, and extracts from the global south. In this episode, Yara and Rhiannon are joined by Miriam and Taher from the PYM to discuss "America's Forever Wars in the Middle East," the four-part course they recently taught about how the United States established and maintains its position at the top of the global geopolitical hierarchy, through the lens of its war-making and profiteering in the Middle East.  

You can access all four lectures and the course reading materials from "America's Forever Wars in the Middle East" for free by registering at www.peoplesforum.org/foreverwars

On the 38th anniversary of the First Intifada, a re-release of our episode on that revolutionary time period that transformed Palestinian society through both spontaneous revolt and the mass organization of a sustained uprising.

The Case Against Israel's Genocidal Soldiers

In this episode, Rhiannon interviews Jake Romm of the Hind Rajab Foundation to talk about the work HRF is doing to pursue accountability for the perpetrators of genocide in Gaza. They discuss what justice looks like after genocide, how international law can be used to isolate and disempower war criminals, and how legal accountability is one necessary step towards building a new world order where colonial genocide is a thing of the past.

With Israel's bombardment of Lebanon ongoing, we analyze the history and successes of the Lebanese resistance--the first Arab resistance formation to liberate their land from the Zionist entity--and discuss the interconnectedness of the Lebanese and Palestinian struggles against Zionism.

Popular Cradle is made in partnership with the Palestinian Youth Movement. Our editor is Soraya Shockley. Our artwork is by shenby G and Vivek Venkatraman. Our theme music is composed by Salma Taleb, and performed by Clarissa Bitar and Hesham Jermakani. Follow, like, and subscribe to us on YouTube, X, and IG - @popularcradle.

We traveled to the People's Conference for Palestine in Detroit to take part in one of the largest convenings of the Palestine movement ever in North America. In this first episode of a series recorded at the PCFP, join us to hear Mahmoud Khalil's keynote remarks and a one-on-one interview with Rhiannon, in which they discuss Mahmoud's time in ICE detention, what it means to be a political prisoner, and the duty--and power--of being a part of this liberation struggle.

We know the story of billionaire financier Jeffrey Epstein--yachts and private islands, sex trafficking and sexual abuse, close celebrity ties, and his mysterious death in a New York jail cell in 2019. But the Jeffrey Epstein scandal reveals more than just the criminal sexual exploits of the richest men in the world. Epstein's story shows us the true nature of the ruling class--the group of billionaires and government officials at the top of a global system of imperialism--and how they have worked closely together for decades to advance the Zionist project.

As the mass starvation of Gaza by Israel and the United States continues, the mask is off of Zionism's genocidal and fascistic nature. We discuss the history of Zionist propaganda and how it interconnected Israel and Judaism in order to justify the settler colonial and genocidal project, and the responsibility of our movement to oppose and confront this ugly propaganda machine.

Mahmoud Khalil is a political prisoner, but not the first or only one. As we watch students being abducted by ICE and deportations of migrants to prison camps in foreign countries, we reflect on the history that got us here. Mohammed and Rhiannon talk about the repression landscape we find ourselves in--attacks on immigrants, attacks on free speech, and what it all means for how we show up in our movement. 

Rhiannon is joined by two organizers from the Palestinian Youth Movement to talk about the Mask off Maersk campaign which targets logistics giant: Maersk. 

Maersk has delivered millions of pounds of military cargo to Israel over the course of the genocide. We talk about Maersk’s bloody history, the reporting that exposed Maersk’s role in genocide and the disruption that caused in the supply chain, and how longterm, sustained organizing like the Mask Off Maersk campaign is needed to confront the structures upholding zionism and build a people’s arms embargo. 

The Mask Off Maersk campaign employs a diversity of tactics which have already led to tangible wins. Just this past week, protesters blocked and occupied Maersk headquarters in Copenhagen, demanding that Maersk stop transporting military cargo to Israel and end all contracts with the Israeli Ministry of Defense. 

To keep up to date with the Mask Off Maersk campaign and learn how you can get involved, follow @maskoff_maersk on instagram and visit the campaign website at www.maskoffmaersk.com

After Phase 1 of the ceasefire agreement got underway January 19, we got together to discuss what we know about the ceasefire, how we're thinking about this moment, and what all of this means for the movement for Palestinian liberation here in the far diaspora.