Episode 127: Gaza Genocide and Sporting Politics with Karim Zidan

Johanna is joined by journalist, short story writer, and translator Karim Zidan to discuss how Israel's war in Gaza and genocide of Palestinian people has impacted, and been shaped by, people's sporting politics. We urge listeners to subscribe to Karim's substack Sports Politika if you don't already. He begins by contextualizing a scary, recent incident: when he was targeted by Israeli far-right MMA fighter Haim Gozali, who responded to Karim's accurate reporting of his horrific statements by writing Karim's name and that of a news site on artillery shells destined to kill Palestinians. The Israeli military created a "dystopian nightmare" per Palestinian artist Hazem Harb by turning Gaza's oldest football stadium, Yarmouk stadium, into a site of horror and dehumanization: it rounded up Palestinians, stripped them to their underwear, and detained them in the stadium. The historical precedents abound. 

 

Karim complicates "what an athlete's actions are worth" regarding various kinds of athlete activism and political engagement. Although we are glad for the collective ceasefire statement from John Carlos, Tariq Abdul-Wahad, Kenny Stills, Layshia Clarendon, and more. And we wonder: how many people had to die before it came out? We end by critiquing Western sporting imperialism and racism in the Middle East, North Africa, and elsewhere for claiming to "lift up women oppressed by Islam" through sport. People are capable of liberating themselves using sport, such as Palestinian female karate champion Nagham Abu Samra tried to do by teaching girls and women in Gaza. Samra was murdered due to injuries from an Israeli airstrike in December.