Status/الوضع

عربي تحت
An untold story for most, the women's movement that headed and sustained the First Intifada was a source of tremendous popular power and useful lessons. Noah Black sat down with the director of the award-winning film Naila and the Uprising, Julia Bacha, to discuss this history and more. The film was produced by Rula Salameh and Rebekah Wingert-Jabi.

الجندر والاحتجاج وسياسة الفيلم: مناقشة مع جوليا باشا حول "نائلة والانتفاضة"

يتحدث نوح بلاك مع جوليا باشا مخرجة الفيلم الحائز على جوائز "نائلة والانتفاضة" ، لمناقشة التاريخ غير المروي عن الحركة النسائية التي قادت الانتفاضة الأولى وشكلت لها مصدر قوة شعبية هائل.

Direct download: Julia_Bacha_FINAL_CUT.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

عربي تحت
Noah T Black sat down with Ermin Sinanovic of the Center for Islam in the Contemporary World to discuss Islam on the Edges. Sinanovic touches on the importance of moving beyond the MENA region in Islamic studies, breaking down the center-periphery distinction, and transnational Muslim identities.

الإسلام بعيداً عن المركز: إرمين سنانوفيتش حول الهوية الإسلامية عبر الوطنية

يلتقي نوح بلاك مع إرمين سنانوفيتش الذي يتطرق إلى أهمية عدم اقتصار الدراسات الإسلامية على منطقة الشرق الأوسط وشمال إفريقيا، وضرورة تفكيك التمييز بين المركز والأطراف والهويات الإسلامية العابرة للحدود.

Direct download: Ermin_Sinanovic_Interview_FINAL.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

عربي تحت
Max Ajl speaks on his recent article in The Journal of Peasant Studies with Omar Dahi. They cover the blind spots in and utility of agrarian studies. Ajl also touches on the need to include considerations of the national question and war in studying agro-ecology.

المنطقة العربية وسؤال الدراسات الزراعية: حوار مع ماكس عجل

يتحدث ماكس عجل عن مقالته الأخيرة في مجلة دراسات الفلاحين مع عمر ضاحي. ويتطرق اللقاء إلى الدراسات الزراعية من حيث فوائدها ونقاط قصورها وضرورة إدراج اعتبارات القضايا القومية والحرب في دراسة البيئة الزراعية.

Direct download: Max_Ajl_Interview_-_Agrarian_Studies.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

عربي تحت
On this episode of Quick Thoughts, co-founder and CEO of Kerning Cultures Network, Hebah Fisher speaks about how the first venture-funded podcast company in the Middle East came to be and is navigating the COVID-19 era, and how to incorporate current events into shows that are not focussed on breaking news.

Interviewed by Paola Cossermelli Messina
August 14, 2020 | English

حول " تقنين الثقافات" وصعود التدوين الصوتي في الشرق الأوسط

تتناول هذه الحلقة ظهور أول مشروع ممول لشركة تدوين صوتي في الشرق الأوسط خلال عصر COVID-19، وكيفية دمج الأحداث الجارية في البرامج التي لا تركز على الأخبار العاجلة.

Direct download: Fisher_Final_Master_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Status Host and Jadaliyya co-editor Mouin Rabbani speaks on the question of the annexation of the West Bank based on what is happening currently.

Interviewed by Bassam Haddad
September 17, 2020 | English

Direct download: Mouin_Rabbani_Quick_Thoughts_Final.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

عربي تحت
In the wake of the Israel normalization deal with Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, Ilan Pappé speaks about where this new development leaves the question of Palestine as well as the general state of human rights and civil rights in the region.

Interviewed by Khalil Bendib
September 18th, 2020 | English

Courtesy of Voices of the Middle East and North Africa (VOMENA)

فلسطين في أعقاب صفقة التطبيع الإسرائيلية مع البحرين والإمارات

في أعقاب صفقة التطبيع الإسرائيلية مع البحرين والإمارات العربية المتحدة، يتحدث إيلان بابيه عن هذا التطور الجديد في قضية فلسطين وآثاره على الحالة العامة لحقوق الإنسان والحقوق المدنية في المنطقة.

Direct download: 11_am_friday_sept_18_2020_voices_of_the_middle_east.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

عربي تحت
Malihe Razazan spoke to Human Rights Watch (HRW) Iran Researcher Tara Sepehri Far about Nasrin Sotoudeh's hunger strike and the criminalization of peaceful protests in Iran. Sotoudeh is an Iranian human rights lawyer, who was arrested in 2010 and started her second hunger strike this year in August to protest the inhumane treatment of Iranian political prisoners during the COVID pandemic.

Courtesy of Voices of the Middle East and North Africa (VOMENA).

أسباب إضراب نسرين ستوده عن الطعام احتجاجاً على ظروف السجن الرهيبة في إيران

تحدثت مليحة رزازان إلى الباحثة الإيرانية في منظمة هيومن رايتس ووتش تارا سبهري فار حول إضراب نسرين ستوده عن الطعام وتجريم الاحتجاجات السلمية في إيران. ونسرين ستوده محامية إيرانية في مجال حقوق الإنسان كانت قد اعتقلت في عام 2010 وبدأت إضرابها الثاني عن الطعام هذا العام في أغسطس احتجاجاً على المعاملة اللاإنسانية للسجناء السياسيين الإيرانيين خلال جائحة كورونا

Direct download: nasrin_sotoudeh.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

On this episode of Environment in Context, Huma Gupta and Danya al-Saleh speak to Nadia Christidi, a PhD candidate in History, Anthropology, and Science, Technology, and Society at MIT and an arts practitioner. Her dissertation research explores how cities that face water supply challenges, which are expected to intensify with climate change, are imagining, planning, and preparing for the future of water; the cities she focuses on are Los Angeles, Dubai, and Cape Town.

How do we imagine, think about, and represent environmental crises around water and climate change? Water management and climate change have previously been considered the exclusive purview of environmental scientists, engineers, economists, security analysts, or policymakers. However, Nadia Christidi explains how an anthropological approach can help us understand the political practices and economic rationalities of water governance based on her fieldwork in Dubai. Specifically, we discuss how these ecological imaginaries around water are conditioned by social and political forces, ranging from considering water to be an infinite resource, a commodity that is produced, or an extreme landscape that serves as a testbed for technological innovation.

References
1. Nadia Christidi's Website: Nadiaalissa.wordpress.com
2. Gökçe Günel. “The Infinity of Water: Climate Change Adaptation in the Arabian Peninsula.” Public Culture 28.2 (May 2016): 291-315.
3. Michael Christopher Low. “Desert Dreams of Drinking the Sea, Consumed by the Cold War: Transnational Flows of Desalination and Energy from the Pacific to the Persian Gulf.” Environment and History 26.2 (May 2020): 145-174.
4. Toby Craig Jones. Desert Kingdom: How Oil and Water Forged Modern Saudi Arabia. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2011.
5. Candis Callison. How Climate Change Comes to Matter: The Communal Life of Facts. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2014.

Direct download: Christidi_Interview_Final_Master_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

الخضر شودار ولد بالجزائر و يعيش في شيكاغو. درس بجامعة تلمسان ثم وهران و تخرج من جامعة فلوريدا في الآداب الفرانكومغاربية، و عمل أستاذا في جامعة فلوريدا و ميشيغان. يعمل الآن محاضراً في جامعة شيكاغو.

يصدر له قريباً:
(الجهة الأخرى من الأشياء (ديوان شعر)

ملمسك ناعم كموت شجرة، مختارات للشاعر الفرنسي آلان بوسكيه مترجمة عن الفرنسية.

In this interview, the Algerian poet Elkhidr Choudar talks about his beginnings as a poet, his vision of poetry and the Arab poet in the context of his/her tradition and the wider international context and influences.

He also talks about the influence of continuous travel in his poetic experience and the doors and windows that translation of poetry into Arabic opens.

Interviewed by Osama Esber
August 25th, 2020 | Arabic

Direct download: ElKhidr_Osama_Final_2_Master_1.mp3
Category:Poetry -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

In the second episode of “1979 Generation,” Jadaliyya’s Iran Page co-editor, Manijeh Nasrabadi interviews Shahla Talebi on the liberation of political prisoners, the intersection of gender, class and revolution, and the emergence of “proletarian feminism.”

Shahla Talebi is Associate Professor of Religious Studies in the School of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies at Arizona State University. Shahla was a student activist who participated in the 1979 Revolution, lived through the Iran-Iraq war, and left Iran for the U.S. in 1994. She is the author of the critically acclaimed memoir, "Ghosts of Revolution: Rekindled Memories of Imprisonment in Iran", published by Stanford University Press in 2011.

(Photo by Hengameh Golestan)

Direct download: Shahla_Talebi_.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

On Tuesday, August 4th, a massive explosion rocked Beirut and sent a giant mushroom cloud into the sky. The blast, which struck the city with a force comparable to a 3.5 magnitude earthquake, destroyed much of the country’s main port, flattened and damaged hundreds of buildings, including three hospitals, and a huge number of businesses and homes. So far, 135 fatalities have been counted, 300,000 have been displaced and over 5000 have been injured. Hundreds of people are still trying to know the whereabouts of their loved ones who went missing.

To get a better picture of what happened in Beirut and the economic and political crisis compounded by the covid-19 pandemic that is pushing the country to the brink of economic collapse, Shahram Aghamir spoke with Ziad Abu Rish the Co-Director of the MA Program in Human Rights and the Arts, and Visiting Associate Professor of Human Rights, at Bard College. Ziad is a 2020–21 Research Fellow in the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies at Georgetown University. His research explores state formation, economic development, and popular mobilizations in the Middle East, with a particular focus on Lebanon and Jordan. He serves as Co-Editor of Arab Studies Journal and Jadaliyya. He is also a Research Fellow at the Lebanese Center for Policy Studies (LCPS).

Photo by Hiba Al Kallas

Direct download: chemical_explosion_in_Beirut_Status.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Lebanese/American filmmaker Jude Chehab describes her experiences of the August 4th explosion in Beirut, recent protests in the city, and how these events lead her and others to organize grassroots rebuilding and transparent relief efforts in the Lebanese capital.

Donate now via PayPal to help support those impacted by the explosion in Beirut. paypal.me/judechehab

Interviewed by Paola C. Messina
August 9th, 2020 | English

Direct download: Chehab_Final_Master_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

In his brand-new book, "Genocide in Libya: Shar, a Hidden Colonial History" due out in two weeks, University of New England Professor Ali Ahmida meticulously documents the tragic story of a systematic genocide of the Libyan people by Italian colonial authorities a century ago, as well as the methodical cover up that ensued.

Despite a dearth of recorded materials, most of which were classified or destroyed, through painstaking interviews with genocide survivors and their descendants, Professor Ahmida manages to accomplish a seemingly impossible task by reconstructing bit by bit a shameful episode from the brief but devastating history of Italian colonialism in north Africa, thanks to the enduring memory and steadfastness of the martyred people of Libya.

Courtesy of Voices of the Middle East and North Africa (VOMENA).

Direct download: 11_am_Friday_July_24_2020_Voices_of_the_Middle_East_and_North_Africa_.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Renewable, clean sources such as solar and wind energy have become an important part combatting the climate crisis and its impacts, but can we divorce the environmentally friendly technologies from the conditions under which these are developed and implemented? And what happens when renewable energy development becomes synonymous with colonial expansion and political repression?

Israel’s feverish plans to build the largest onshore wind farm in the occupied Golan Heights are a good example of why the conversation about a decarbonized economy may not be abstracted from considering prevailing power structures and systems of oppression including colonialism.

Malihe Razazan spoke with Muna Dajani and Wael Tarabieh, an activist and co-founder of Al-Marsad | The Arab Centre for Human Rights in the Golan Heights, which is an independent, not-for-profit international human rights organization located in Majdal Shams, in the Occupied Syrian Golan. The center was founded in October 2003 by a group of lawyers and professionals in the fields of law, health, education, journalism and engineering, along with human rights defenders and other interested community members.

Muna Dajani holds a PhD from the Department of Geography and Environment at LSE. Her PhD research aimed to examine the distinctive livelihood practices by which water use and farming acquire political subjectivity in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights and Al Battuf Valley in the Galilee. She is now the Research Officer in a collaboration project between Birzeit University and LSE entitled ‘Mapping Memories of Resistance: the untold story of the occupation of the Golan Heights’

Wael Tarabieh, the co-founder of al-Marsad, The Arab Centre for Human Rights in the Golan Heights is an independent, not-for-profit international human rights organisation located in Majdal Shams, in the Occupied Syrian Golan. The centre was founded in October 2003 by a group of lawyers and professionals in the fields of law, health, education, journalism and engineering, along with human rights defenders and other interested community members.

Direct download: Occupied_Golan_interview_status.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

In recent decades, the six members of the GCC, which includes the Gulf Arab monarchies of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain, have lured millions of mostly low skilled and semi-skilled workers from South and Southeast Asia and Africa. For the past few months, the migrant workers in these monarchies have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impact.

To understand the plight of these millions of migrant workers and the history of labor migration in this region, Shahram Aghamir spoke to Assistant Professor Andrea Wright, who is in the Department of Anthropology and the Program in Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at William & Mary.

Courtesy of Voices of the Middle East and North Africa (VOMENA).

Direct download: VOMENA_Edit_AWhite2.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

Co-editors of Jadaliyya's Environment Page, Huma Gupta and Gabi Kirk, discussed with Kali Rubaii how ecologies of war have produced multiple waves of displacement and have intimately shaped the lives of displaced Iraqis through the materiality of cement.

ناقش هوما جوبتا وغابي كيرك ، المحررين المشاركان لصفحة البيئة في جدلية ، مع كالي روباي كيف أنتجت بيئات الحرب موجات متعددة من النزوح وشكلت بشكل وثيق حياة النازحين العراقيين من خلال مادة الأسمنت.

Direct download: Kali_Rubaii_FINAL_AUDIO.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

The Environment in Context podcast discusses the role of Islamic Financing in the development of the global Green Bond industry. In June 2017, Malaysia was the first country in the world to issue a green sukuk in order to finance a solar power plant. Sukuk are asset-backed financial certificates that were developed over a millenia ago, which are compliant with the Islamic principle of Shari’ah.

http://www.statushour.com/en/Interview/3485

Guest: Aneil Tripathy
Interviewed by Huma Gupta and Bassam Haddad

Direct download: Tripathy_Final_2_Master_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

In this interview, which is featured as a part of the launch of the new Jadaliyya Environment page, Malihe Razazan speaks to four of the page's co-editors: Danya Al-Saleh, Brittany Cook, Huma Gupta, and Owain Lawson. They discuss critical approaches to covering the environment, what the new Jadaliyya page seeks to contribute to these conversations, and the need to decolonize our analysis of the environment, energy, and climate change.

Direct download: jad_environ_page_interview_final.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

In this episode, we explore the impact of sponsorship on football as a whole and the impact that globalized money from the Middle East has had on the club game. This includes the very humble beginnings of sponsorship on football shirts, a review of some of the classic kits to emerge in the era of sponsored shirts, which big club was slowest to embrace the monied culture of shirt sponsors, and where our presenters think the next source of large-scale sponsorship money will come from around the globe. Why Middle Eastern governments are so eager to jump on the football shirt sponsor wagon is dissected as are the impacts we have already seen. What else could happen because of it, and what the reaction is intended to be from the regime perspective? We also delve into the coronavirus cancelations, La Liga and Serie A’s potential solutions, Barcelona’s potential collapse, what occupation Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simione’s wardrobe reminds the show of, and what sort of unprecedented natural disaster would happen if Spurs won the league in the opinions of our hosts. Also, there are important historical lessons about the difference between a King and a Sultan.

Direct download: RFP_Episode_3.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Another installment in the Security in Context series, this panel on the causes and consequences of Turkish invasion of northern Syria specifically on the future of Kurdish movements featuring Omar Dahi, Utku Baliban, Ahmet Tonak, and Zumray Kutlu.

Direct download: Kurdish_Movements_Podcast_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

This discussion between Noah Black and Artist Zeinab Saab traces the journey of Zeinab as an artist over the course of shifting through several mediums. They touch on the themes in Zeinab's work as well as how the context of an artist drives their creative process.

Direct download: Zeinab_Saab_FINAL_2_24_2020.mp3
Category:Art -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

The third installment in the Security in Context series, this critical discussion of US military plans for climate change features Michael Klare, Betsy Hartmann, and Anne Hendrixson.


This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by COVID-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Stats: Coronavirus and Anti-Asian Racism in the United States
- 100 hate crimes against Asian Americans on average according to reports.
- Over 2,000 incidents of xenophobia and racism against Asian Americans.
- In New York City, Chinese businesses have seen a drop of 30-80 percent in sales.
- 47% of incidents occurred in businesses.
- Over 30% of incidents occurred in public spaces.
- Asian women were disproportionately targeted by racist incidents, with 70% of victims being female.
- 40% of incidents directed towards people of Chinese descent.
- Over ⅔ of incidents involved verbal harassment.

Hosted by Noura Erakat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: 2020.04.17_Anti_Asian_Racism_Rough_AUDIO.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

On Germany: 11 April 2020

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by COVID-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Look out for upcoming episodes in the coming week(s). Listen to the previous episodes in the series on Gaza here, Dublin here, Cairo here, the first interview on Iran here, the second interview on Iran here, on San Francisco here, on Doha here, on Vancouver here, and on punishment in Palestine here.

Hosted by Noura Erakat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa
Stats: Germany

Total cases: 125,452
Total deaths: 2,871
Total recovered: 57,400
Total active cases: 65,181
Total in serious/critical condition: 4,895
Total cases per 1 million people: 1,497
Total deaths per 1 million people: 34
Total tests carried out: 1,317,887
Tests per 1 million people: 15,730
First recorded case was on January 27.
Placed an order for 10,000 ventilators.
40,000 intensive care units across the country.

Hosted by Noura Erekat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: 2020.04.13_Germany_AUDIO.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by Covid-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Statistics - As of March 2020
- 5,000 Palestinian prisoners currently in Israeli jails.
- 432 in administrative detention.
- 183 children.
- 43 female prisoners.
- Since 1967, over 800,000 Palestinians have been imprisoned.
- 4 Palestinian prisoners confirmed to be infected with coroanvirus.
- 50 Palestinian homes demolished
- Since 1967, 18,000 houses Palestinian homes have been demolished
- 6,000 homes were demolished immediately after the 1967 war.
- Home demolition as collective punishment: https://www.btselem.org/topic/punitive_demolitions

Hosted by Noura Erekat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: 2020.04.08_Punishment_and_Prison_audio.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

On Vancouver: 2 April 2020

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by COVID-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Canada
- Total cases: 12,924
- Total deaths: 214
- Total recovered: 2,322
- Total active cases: 10,388
- Total in serious/critical condition: 120
- Total cases per 1 million people: 342
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 6
- First recorded case was on February 23.
- Total tests carried out: 302,745
- Tests per 1 million people: 8,021

British Columbia specifically
- Total cases: 1,174
- Total cases in Greater Vancouver area: 541
- Total deaths: 35
- Total recovered: 673
- Total active cases: 466
- Total in serious/critical condition: 64
- First recorded case was on January 27.
- Total tests carried out: 47,352

Hosted by Noura Erekat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: PITOC_-_Vancouver_Audio_Only.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by Covid-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

US Statistics
- Total confirmed cases in the US: 133,146 (as of 2pm on 3/29)
- Total deaths in the US: 2,363 (as of 2pm on 3/29)
- Case fatality rate in the US: (#deaths/#confirmed cases): 1.6% (as of 11pm on 3/27)
- Total cases per 1 million people in the US: 402(as of 2pm on 3/29)
- Total deaths per 1 million people in the US: 7
- First case recorded in the US: January 20 (Snohomish, Washington)
- Total number of test kits available: I wish I knew!
- Total number of tests performed daily: 65,000 (as of 3/26)
- Total number of tests performed: ~685,000 (as of 11pm on 3/27)
- Tests per capita in the US as whole: 177 tests per 100k people.
- NY has the highest testing rate: 627 tests per 100k people.
- Total number of ventilators: ~172,700 (~160,000 available +12,700 in national stockpile)
- After Trump enacted the Defense Production Act on 3/27, factories like GM are mandated to begin manufacturing ventilators - as many as 10,000/month.
- Total number of ICU beds: ~925,000
- Total number of ICU beds per 1,000 people: 34.7
- Water security in places like Flint, Michigan. Under pressure the state issued a moratorium of water shutoffs.
- Nearly 3,000 households are without running water
- A number of states/communities are struggling as COVID-19 is spreading in homeless populations and among SRO/housing project residents.
- Homeless people are at double the risk of contracting the virus.
- Cramming 200-300 people in a single homeless shelter is the norm in many cities, increasing the likelihood of transmission.
- 30% of homeless people have chronic lung disease, according to a study published last year.
- The U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness estimates that there are 567,700 homeless people in the country.
- While San Francisco Mayor London Breed announced a $5 million emergency fund and public health order to help vulnerable populations, including the homeless, many activists insist that is not enough.
- In Boston, 8 homeless people have already tested positive for the virus.
E.g. Population density is one of the factors in community spread in NYC
- New York City, Westchester, Nassau, Suffolk, Rockland, Orange, and Erie county are the hardest hit areas in New York State. They are also all the top 10 most densely populated counties in the state.

Hosted by Noura Erekat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: PITOC_-_SanFran_Audio_Only.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by Covid-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Data shown is as of April 1, unless stated otherwise.
Qatar
- Total cases: 781
- Total deaths: 2
- Total recovered: 62
- Total active cases: 717
- Total in serious/critical condition: 6
- Total cases per 1 million people: 271
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 0.7
- First recorded case was on February 28.
- Carried out almost 9,000 tests (as of March 18).

UAE
- Total cases: 664
- Total deaths: 6
- Total recovered: 61
- Total active cases: 597
- Total in serious/critical condition: 2
- Total cases per 1 million people: 67
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 0.6
- First recorded case was on January 28.
- Carried out more than 220,000 laboratory tests across the country (as of March 30).
- Evacuated over 1,700 nationals and "those accompanying them" from countries abroad.
- Opened drive-through testing facility that can service 600 people a day, with priority given to the elderly, the pregnant and those with underlying health problems.

Saudi Arabia
- Total cases: 1,720
- Total deaths: 16
- Total recovered: 264
- Total active cases: 1,440
- Total in serious/critical condition: 31
- Total cases per 1 million people: 49
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 0.5
- First recorded case was on March 1.
- State authorities seized over 5 million masks that were hoarded by businesses and people.
- Released 250 immigration detainees to help contain the spread of the virus.

Oman
- Total cases: 210
- Total deaths: 1
- Total recovered: 34
- Total active cases: 175
- Total in serious/critical condition: 3
- Total cases per 1 million people: 41
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 0.2
- First recorded case was on February 23.

Kuwait
- Total cases: 317
- Total deaths: 0
- Total recovered: 80
- Total active cases: 237
- Total in serious/critical condition: 13
- Total cases per 1 million people: 74
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 0
- First recorded case was on February 23.
- Brought back more than 2,700 citizens from countries abroad.

Bahrain
- Total cases: 567
- Total deaths: 4
- Total recovered: 316
- Total active cases: 247
- Total in serious/critical condition: 2
- Total cases per 1 million people: 333
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 2
- First recorded case was on February 23.
- Carried out almost 19,000 tests (as of March 20).

Hosted by Noura Erekat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: PITOC_-_Doha_Audio_Only.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by Covid-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Statistics - as of March 29
- Total confirmed cases: 38,309
- Total confirmed deaths: 2,609
- Total confirmed recoveries: 12,391
- Total active cases: 23,278
- Total open critical or severe cases: 3,206 (14%)
- Average daily number of deaths in past week: 136/day

Some prominent figures who have died from the disease: Mohammad Mirmohammadi (Member of the Expediency Council), Nasser Shabani (Senior Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Commander), Fatemeh Rahbar (conservative politician and four-time Parliamentarian, died before the start of her fourth term)
Some prominent figures who have contracted the disease: Iraj Harirchi (Deputy Minister of Health), Ahmad Amirabadi Farahani (MP, Qom), Ali Akbar Velayati (Senior Advisor to Supreme Leader Khamenei for International Affairs)

Some important dates:
January 26th: Government claims COVID-19 has not and will not spread to Iran
On February 19, the Ministry of Health announced two confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the city of Qom, which is a center for religious learning in the country. The Ministry later announced that both individuals died. On February 21, new cases were reported in Tehran and the province of Gilan. Parliamentary elections were held to record low turnout despite the risk of spreading contagion.
On March 9, approx. 70,000 detainees are released on medical furlough
On March 13th, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei implies that the virus might be a "biological attack"
On March 19th, March 20th, and March 25th, there were revolts of incarcerated people in Tabriz and in two cities in the province of Lorestan in response to COVID-19 fears and to new lockdown measures introduced in wake of the spread of COVID-19.

Hosted by Noura Erekat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: PITOC_-_Iran_Audio_Only_Part_2.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by Covid-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Iran - data shown is as of March 29.
- Total confirmed cases: 38,309
- Total deaths: 2,640
- Total recovered: 12,391
- Total cases per 1 million people: 456
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 31
- First case recorded on February 19.
- About 6,000 people are being tested daily (This data is based on an article written on March 14).
- Estimates put the death toll at around 3.5 million by late May, when the outbreak is expected to peak.

Hosted by Noura Erekat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: PITOC_-_Iran_Audio_Only_Part_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by Covid-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Cairo
- Total confirmed cases: 442
- Total deaths: 21
- Total recovered: 95
- Total cases per 1 million people: 4
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 0.2
- First case recorded on February 14.
- At least 97 foreigners who visited Egypt since mid-February showed symptoms of, or tested positive for the virus.

Hosted by Noura Erekat and Bassam Haddad
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez
Directed by Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa

Direct download: PITOC_-_Cairo_Audio_Only.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

This podcast takes you to several cities/countries affected by Covid-19 to discuss social, economic, and political challenges facing their societies, with emphasis on the most vulnerable groups and on what this pandemic reveals about the human condition (wow, big phrase). Based on personal and incisive conversations with various interlocutors on location, we hope both to learn from others and to provide some solace as we address how we are collectively experiencing and dealing with similar challenges.

We will be speaking with our guests, one or several at a time, via Skype, and will try to have brief, informative, and non-draining calls within 20-30 minutes.

Dublin Statistics - (numbers shown are in for the entirety of Ireland unless stated otherwise)
- Total confirmed cases: 539 (in Dublin)
- Total deaths: 7
- Total recovered: 5
- Total cases per 1 million people: 269
- Total deaths per 1 million people: 1
- First case recorded on February 19.
- 17,992 tests carried out so far, 93% returning as negative.
- Nearly half of all coronavirus cases in Ireland are in Dublin.
- It is estimated that there could be 15,000 cases in Ireland by the end of the month.

Hosted by Noura Erakat and Bassam Haddad
Research by Naim Mousa
Production Set by Khalid Namez
Edited by Alicia Rodriguez

Direct download: PITOC_-_Dublin_Audio_Only.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

In this interview with El Kontessa, Huda Asfour highlights her trajectory from visual arts and graphic design to becoming one of Cairo's most sought after DJ's. Experimenting with Shabi music and Mahraganaat to produce fresh mixes with a clear identity is what sets El Kontessa apart.

Direct download: El_Kontessa_FINAL.mp3
Category:Music -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

UCLA Professor and Bernie Sanders surrogate challenges both Silicon Valley and the Ivory Tower of academia to find the the heart of technological emancipation from Egypt's Tahrir Square to US politics.

Direct download: Ramesh_Srinivasan_Interview_FINAL.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

The prominent Egyptian revolutionary socialist and host of popular online series "To Your Left" discusses his Marxist political literacy, the struggles faced by and future aspirations of leftists in post-revolutionary Egypt, the rise of Bernie Sanders in the United States, and the new ways to make political economic literacy fun for the country's youth with a new savvy show.

Direct download: tarek_a_shalaby_on_2020-02-12_at_01.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In this interview, artist and filmmaker, Dima Yassin, discusses her long overdue visit to Iraq at the height of the country's revolution. She reflects on the sociopolitical transformations happening in the country, the role that women play in the uprising, and her new film shot from Baghdad's revolutionary epicentre, Tahrir Square.

Direct download: Dima_Yassine_Final_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

How are the politics of Islamic studies gendered, and what does this mean for the field? Professor Kecia Ali's keynote speech addressed this and other questions at the 17th Annual Duke-UNC Middle East and Islamic Studies Graduate Student Conference.

Courtesy of the Islamicate Graduate Student Association (IGSA) https://heellife.unc.edu/organization/igsa
https://islamicstudiesconf2020.web.unc.edu/

Direct download: Kecia_Ali_Talk_final.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In this interview, Jonathan Adler, managing editor of Tadween Publishing, sits down with Ziad Abu-Rish to discuss The Dawn of the Uprisings, the growth of Jadaliyya as an archive, and the current wave of protests across the Middle East and North Africa.

About the Book
The Dawn of the Arab Uprisings sheds light on the historical background and initial impact of the mass uprisings that have shaken the Arab world since December 2010. The book brings together the best writers from the online journal Jadaliyya, which has established itself as an unparalleled source of information and critical analysis on the Middle East. 



The authors, many of whom live in the countries affected, provide unique understanding and first-hand accounts of events that have received superficial and partial coverage in Western and Arab media alike. While the book focuses on those states that have been most affected by the uprisings, it also covers the impact on Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Palestine, and Iraq.



The Dawn of the Arab Uprisings covers the full range of issues involved in these historic events, from political economy and the role of social media, to international politics, gender and labor, making this the ideal one-stop introduction to the events for the novice and specialist alike.

To read more about this book, follow this link:
https://tadweenpublishing.com/collections/books/products/dawn-of-the-arab-uprisings-1

Direct download: Tadween_Talks_-_Ziad_Abu-Rish_on__The_Dawn_of_the_Arab_Uprisings_.mp3
Category:History -- posted at: 12:00pm EDT

Status host Omar Shanti traces Raï throughout its history from its inception in the 1930’s until the early 2000’s. This podcast episode will analyze Raï not as a strictly musical phenomenon, but as a vehicle for articulating and embodying complex narratives. In the tradition of Schade-Poulsen (1999), it will treat Raï as a total social fact defined by the situated practices of performance and listening - which in the age of records also translate to production and consumption.

Direct download: Transgressive_Imaginaries_-_Nation_and_Identity_through_Rai.m4a
Category:Music -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In this timely interview with Ziad Abu-Rish, VOMENA's Shahram Aghamir asks about Lebanon's economic crisis, it's worst in decades. Part 1 features discussion on the roots of the economic crisis and its connection to developmental failures. Part 2 centers on the protest movement and the implications of the coronavirus.

Direct download: Ziad__Lebanon_part_2.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In this timely interview with Ziad Abu-Rish, VOMENA's Shahram Aghamir asks about Lebanon's economic crisis, it's worst in decades. Part 1 features discussion on the roots of the economic crisis and its connection to developmental failures. Part 2 centers on the protest movement and the implications of the coronavirus.

Direct download: ziad_interview_part_1.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

From Hong Kong to Chile, from Lebanon to India, from Iraq to Colombia, from Algeria to Argentina, from Iran to France, from Sudan to Haiti, from Ecuador to Guinea and beyond, “Protest is the new normal,” as Serge Halimi recently wrote in Le Monde diplomatique. Yet, we're confronted with a paradox: we are also living through another global wave - the rise of right-wing, authoritarian-populist forces, movements, and strong men around the world: Orbán in Hungary, Modi in India, Bolsonaro in Brazil, Erdoğan in Turkey, Salvini in Italy, Duterte in the Philippines, Sisi in Egypt, and lest we omit ourselves: Trump in the United States.

How do we make sense of this apparent paradox? How should we understand these momentous global developments? Are the various protest movements around the world connected somehow? If so, what are their common features or through lines? At the same time, what are specific dynamics and characteristics that make each case distinct? One can't address all of the aforementioned countries in a single panel discussion, but on January 20, 2020 (Martin Luther King Jr., Day) the Center for International and Area Studies at Northwestern University hosted a panel discussion that examined five of them - Lebanon, Hong Kong, Chile, India, and Iran.

Direct download: Global_Protests_Panel_2020.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Please Note: The City of Vancouver, where this interview was conducted, is on the unceded territories of three First Nations: the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh

This interview is about Istanbul’s Tarlabaşı neighborhood, where a decade-long urban transformation project continues to shape politics of the city, impacts the lives of residents, and reveals the political economy of Turkish construction businesses. Alize Arıcan tells us about her award-winning research on how delays shift power dynamics between builders and politicians, and how communities living around the construction site make use of these delays to remain in the neighborhood. She argues that delays should be understood not as failures of urban transformation, but as generating new forms of accumulation and dispossession, as well as resistance to these processes. As plans for residential luxury buildings and business complexes displace neighborhood residents including Kurdish and Roma communities, West African immigrants, Middle Eastern refugees, and trans sex workers, those who are still living in the neighborhood come up with strategies to remain resilient. We talk about a range of issues tied to urban transformation in Turkey’s cities, including: historical landmarking and property expropriation, displacement of marginalized communities who depend on informal economies, long-term relationships between companies and the government, the pervasive practice of subcontracting, and the effects of the current economic downturn.

Resources:

From Home to Real Estate: Urban Redevelopment on the Axis of Speculation in Istanbul: https://www.jadaliyya.com/Details/31310/From-Home-to-Real-Estate-Urban-Redevelopment-on-the-Axis-of-Speculation-in-Istanbul

Ekümenopolis and Beyond (Podcast in Turkish with English translation of transcript): http://statushour.com/en/Interview/119

Networks of Disposession: https://burak-arikan.com/networks-of-dispossession/

It is About the Park: A Struggle For Turkey’s Cities: https://www.jadaliyya.com/Details/28789

Bio-Istanbul: A Speculative, Segregationist, and Sustainable Urbanism: https://www.jadaliyya.com/Details/31785/Bio-Istanbul-A-Speculative,-Segregationist,-and-Sustainable-Urbanism

Meydan Politics: Taksim in Flux After Gezi: https://www.jadaliyya.com/Details/32242

Direct download: Alize_Arican_Interview.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 5:02pm EDT

Courtesy of VOMENA.

The tension between the countries entered a dangerous phase when on January 3rd the US assassinated Maj. Qasem Soleimani, the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force, in a drone strike at Baghdad International Airport. The assassination had been ordered by Donald Trump.

The killing of Maj. Qasem Soleimani put in motion a series of events that many people feared may lead to another devastating war in the Middle East - but for now there seems to be a worldwide sigh of relief as the U.S. and Iran both appear to signal a desire to avoid further conflict.

So, how did it all begin? Why did the US decide to assassinate Soleimani, and what are the ramifications of this move on Iranian domestic and regional policies as well as the future of any possible negotiations between the US and Iran?

To explore these issues, Shahram Aghamir spoke with Mohammad Ali Kadivar – an Assistant Professor of Sociology and International Studies at Boston College, whose work contributes to political and comparative-historical sociology by exploring the interaction between protest movements and democratization - and Mansour Farhang, Professor emeritus of international relations at Bennington College, who served as the Islamic Republic of Iran’s first ambassador to the U.N. from 1979 to 1980, stepping down in protest after Khomeini's government did not release the 52 Americans held during the embassy siege.

Direct download: The_US-_Iran_tension_status.mp3
Category:Politics -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

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