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Tag: palestine

Episode 216 [in English]: Creators for Gaza

Published November 12, 2024

Sheyam Ghieth is an artist, organizer, Egyptian propagandist, and repeat podcast guest after 4 years! 

Sheyam is a co-founder of Creators for Gaza, a SWANA-led mutual-aid network connecting artists and amplifiers with Palestinian families facing genocide. Check it out to donate or get involved as an artist!

They also discuss their work drawing connections between disease and colonialism in genocidal states, building COVID-19 and Palestine solidarity, especially in the face of mask bans meant to attack pro-Palestine protesters. This work includes their Zine “mask up we need you” (in collaboration with @rimo_skyo).

We also talk about how we’re showing up with our communities lately, and Sheyam highlights @swanarosepdx community center as a home for the SWANA diaspora. We talk about the importance of community care *and* alone time for introverts, and the importance of taking time for trust-building in identity-based spaces.

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Episode 213 [in English]: Yaffa

Published February 4, 2024

Yaffa is a trans displaced Palestinian activist, engineer, death and birthing doula, peer support specialist, and artist. They are the Executive Director of Muslim Alliance for Sexual and Gender Diversity and recently released their book of poetry Blood Orange, raising funds for queer and trans Palestinian work. 

In this episode, Yaffa reads a poem from Blood Orange, and we reflect on the cognitive dissonance of diaspora, wondering “which cut from your paycheck killed your cousin.” Yaffa discusses their work in peer support, and how we can find alternatives to an individualized, compartmentalized, escapist framing of self care, witnessing each other’s realities while removing the expectation to immediately change things.

They also explain how their work as a death doula informs their perspective on the importance of separating our understanding of death from tragedy. Death is a natural, transitional process, and isn’t in itself the tragedy of a genocide. Rather, the tragedy lies in the unjust ways in which death is forced upon people prematurely. 

They talk about their work with MASGD and how using defining “Muslim” broadly by racialization rather than faith allows the organization to flexibly respond to the needs of various oppressed groups. They also discuss ethical funding models within a nonprofit structure, and how only taking funds without conditional strings attached can better equip an organization for quick mobilizations and shifts of focus, as demanded by the needs of a community.

We also talk about fruits (Yaffa oranges, watermelons as a Palestinian symbol, and more)!


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