Date:

March 3, 2010   

Dr. Louise Cainkar
Sociologist and assistant professor in the Department of Social and Cultural Sciences at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and author of the new book "Homeland Insecurity: The Arab American and Muslim American Experience after 9/11". Her areas of expertise include Arab American studies; Muslims in the United States and immigration integration.

Date:

February 24, 2010   

Dahr Jamail
Award-winning independent journalist, world renowned for documenting the human cost of the Iraq war, and author who has reported from the Middle East for seven years. He writes frequently to various media outlets and also reports on radio for Democracy Now!, and appears frequently on numerous TV and radio stations around the globe.

The new announcement this week by the top U.S. general in occupied Iraq that he could slow the exit of U.S. combat forces from Iraq; the current situation in occupied Iraq; and the upcoming elections there. We will also talk about Afghanistan as violence and US troop commitment there surges.
 

Membership Drive

Date:

February 17, 2010   

Greta Berlin
A U.S. human rights activist, an advocate for justice for the Palestinians since the early 60s, co-founder of Free Gaza Movement, who was on board the first ship to break the Israeli siege on the occupied Gaza Strip and deliver medicine. Greta is planning to go back soon to deliver more supplies. In one of her previous visits to occupied Palestine, Greta was shot by the Israeli occupation forces.
 

Membership Drive

Date:

February 10, 2010   

Noam Chomsky's Speech
Professor of linguistics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, political activist and writer, who has written and lectured widely on linguistics, philosophy, intellectual history, contemporary issues, international affairs and U.S. foreign policy. Chomsky is author numerous books and articles covering a wide range of topics.

“The Unipolar Moment and the Culture of Imperialism”: A speech made by Professor Noam Chomsky on December 3, 2009 at the 5th Annual Edward Said Memorial Lecture at Columbia University School for International Affairs.

Date:

February 3, 2010   

Dr. Zahi Damuni
One of the founders of Al-Awda, The Palestine Right to Return Coalition; who currently serves on its national coordinating committee (representing San Diego) and its executive committee as national treasurer.

Mark Shabib
A friend of Al-Awda (Houston Chapter), who works closely with the Palestinian refugees in Houston.

Dr. Ammar Altahhan
Iraqi refugee who currently lives in Houston, Texas. Dr. Altahhan was a medical doctor, business administrator and a computer expert in Iraq.

Farqad Al Ameri
Board Member at the Iraqi American Community Center in Houston, who works closely with the Iraqi refugees in Houston.

We will be talking with our guests about the Iraqi and Palestinian refugees who are arriving from Iraq to the U.S. (including Houston), and the efforts and programs made by Al-Awda (National & Houston) and the Iraqi American Community Center in Houston to support the refugees.

Date:

January 27, 2010   

Chris Hedges
A Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author of many publications including "War is a Force that Gives Us Meaning", "Collateral Damage: America's War Against Iraqi Civilians" and the best-selling “American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War on America". Hedges served for eight years as the Middle East bureau chief of The New York Times, and has written extensively on U.S. policy in the Middle East and other critical foreign policy issues.

Date:

January 20, 2010   

Professor Walid Khalidi's Speech at the UN
World-renowned Palestinian Historian and Scholar (born in Jerusalem); General Secretary and co-founder of the Institute for Palestine Studies; and author of numerous books and articles.
 
We will listen to professor Khalidi's keynote presentation about Jerusalem delivered at the UN Headquarters during a special meeting in observance of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

Date:

January 13, 2010   

Sheila Carapico
Professor of political science and international studies at the University of Richmond and the American University in Cairo. A contributing editor to Middle East Report, Carapico is also the author of Civil Society in Yemen: The Political Economy of Activism in Modern Arabia, and numerous articles and book chapters on Yemeni politics and society.

The fighting in Yemen between the Yemeni government and the Houthi & Al-Qaeda fighters and the U.S. involvement; the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Iraq, and the U.S. Foreign Policy towards the Middle East.

Date:

January 6, 2010   

Ambassador Maen Areikat
PLO (Palestine Liberation Organization) Representative to the United States, who served for 11 years at the Negotiations Affairs Department of the PLO, and took part in Palestinian-Israeli negotiations and was an official member of the Palestinian delegation at the Wye River negotiations in 1998.

Continuation of Arab Voices special coverage on the first anniversary of Israel's massacre & war crimes committed in Gaza. We will discuss various topics with Ambassador Areikat, who will be coming to Houston next week (checkout Arab Voices Community Calendar for the details).

Date:

December 30, 2009   

Dr. Norman Finkelstein - PART 2
An independent scholar who for many years taught political theory and the Israel-Palestine conflict. Dr. Finkelstein is author of several books including "Beyond Chutzpah: On the misuse of anti-Semitism and the abuse of history", "The Holocaust Industry: Reflections on the exploitation of Jewish suffering", and "Image and Reality of the Israel-Palestine Conflict".

Sami Abdel-Shafi - in Gaza
Palestinian (politically independent) who lives in Gaza City. He is co-founder and senior partner at Emerge Consulting Group; who serves on the board of directors of several non-governmental organizations, and writes and publishes economic and political analysis and provides commentary on Palestinian affairs in the international media.

HCJPP Demonstration
Remarks by several Houstonians who participated in the demonstration held on December 27 in Houston (organized by Houston Coalition for Justice & Peace in Palestine) to commemorate the 1^st anniversary of Israel's massacre & war crimes in Gaza.

Part 2 of the interview conducted with Dr. Finkelstein where he will talk about the Goldstone Report, the full support Israel gets from the U.S., the Palestinian Refugees issue, and the one-state vs. two-state question.
 
We will also interview Sami Abdel-Shafi (who lives in Gaza) about the current situation there one year after the Israeli assault.
 
We will also listen to remarks made by several Houstonians who participated in the demonstration held on December 27, 2009 in Houston (organized by Houston Coalition for Justice & Peace in Palestine) to commemorate the 1^st anniversary of Israel's massacre & war crimes in Gaza.

Date:

December 23, 2009   

Dr. Norman Finkelstein - PART 1
An independent scholar who for many years taught political theory and the Israel-Palestine conflict. Dr. Finkelstein is author of several books including "Beyond Chutzpah: On the misuse of anti-Semitism and the abuse of history", "The Holocaust Industry: Reflections on the exploitation of Jewish suffering", and "Image and Reality of the Israel-Palestine Conflict".

Hedy Epstein
85-year-old Holocaust Survivor (in which she lost both her parents). Hedy will be joining the more than 1,300 international delegates from 43 countries participating in a historic Gaza Freedom March, where the delegates will convene at the Gaza/Egypt border next week.

Christmas in the Palestinian City of Bethlehem, where Jesus Christ was born; Dr. Finkelstein's remarks about the Israel-Palestine conflict as we near the first anniversary of the Israeli massacre and war crimes in Gaza; and Hedy Epstein's participation in the Gaza Freedom March next week at the Egypt/Gaza border.

Date:

December 16, 2009   

Micha Kurz
Former Israeli Soldier and Master Sergeant with the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), who lives in Jerusalem and served as a combat soldier in the occupied Palestinian territories. He is co-founder of Breaking the Silence, an organization of former Israeli soldiers speaking out about their conduct in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. He is also founder and director of Grassroots Jerusalem, an organization mapping grassroots activities in and around Jerusalem.

Micha's own experience and his eyewitness account as an Israeli soldier while serving in the occupied Palestinian territories; the organization he co-founded, Breaking the Silence, and the testimonies it has been collecting and documenting of Israeli soldiers speaking about their actions and what they were told to do inside the occupied Palestinians areas; as well as the Grassroots Jerusalem organization.

Date:

December 9, 2009   

Robert Naiman
Policy Director and National Coordinator at Just Foreign Policy who edits the Just Foreign Policy daily news summary and writes a blog on Huffington Post. Naiman has studied and worked in the Middle East, and also worked as a policy analyst and researcher at the Center for Economic and Policy Research and Public Citizen's Global Trade Watch.

A discussion with Mr. Naiman about President Obama's Foreign Policy after almost one year in office, especially towards the Middle East. We will talk about the President's promises and talks before his election and his actions after he was elected.

Date:

December 2, 2009   

Reese Erlich
Freelance foreign correspondent who has covered the Middle East for 23 years (he was in Afghanistan this past summer). He is author of several books including the best-selling book "Target Iraq: What the News Media Didn’t Tell You", and his latest book "Conversations with Terrorists" will be published in 2010. Erlich has produced several major radio documentaries and has won numerous journalism awards.

A discussion about the U.S. Foreign Policy towards the Middle East and President Obama's decision to send more troops to Afghanistan.

Date:

November 25, 2009   

Law and Disorder
Special program about a major decision written by a federal judge that was brought against former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft for the illegal and unconstitutional detention of American Muslims. This program includes an interview with Lee Gelernt, ACLU Attorney, and Deputy Director of the Immigrants’ Rights Project, as well as an interview with Farhana Khera, first Executive Director of Muslim Advocates and the National Association of Muslim Lawyers, talking about a Lawsuit filed to Make Public the FBI’s Domestic Investigative Operational Guidelines.

Date:

November 18, 2009   

Faheem Kazimi
Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Islamic Education Center (IEC-Houston).
 
We will talk with Mr. Kazimi about the seizure by the U.S. Federal Government of the IEC-Houston building last week along with other mosques and a skyscraper in the U.S. that are owned by the Alavi Foundation, a New York-based foundation accused of being a front for the Iranian government.

Date:

November 11, 2009   

Salam Al-Marayati
Executive Director for the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC), who also works as an advisor to several political, civic and academic institutions in the U.S. seeking to understand the role of Islam and Muslims in America and throughout the world. Salam has written extensively on Islam, human rights, democracy, Middle East politics, the Balkan Crisis, and the Transcaucus conflict. Salam has also been deeply involved in interfaith activities.

The attack at Fort Hood in Texas, and the immediate trigger of anti-Muslim backlash, especially by the mainstream media.
 

Membership Drive

Date:

November 4, 2009   

Ali Abunimah
Co-founder of The Electronic Intifada, the leading Palestinian portal for information about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and its depiction in the media. Abunimah is an expert on Palestine and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, and author of One Country: A Bold Proposal to End the Israeli-Palestinian Impasse.

The worsening situation in occupied Palestine as a result of the ongoing Israeli occupation; Goldstone's Report “UN Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict”, and the new U.S. House Resolution 867 that calls on President Obama and the Secretary of State to "oppose unequivocally any endorsement or further consideration of Goldstone's Report".
 

Membership Drive

Date:

October 28, 2009   

Membership Drive
 

Membership Drive

Date:

October 21, 2009   

Yvonne Ridley
Award-winning British journalist, author, human rights activist and Muslim convert, who made international headlines when she was captured by the Taliban while reporting on the war in Afghanistan. Yvonne has worked for numerous media outlets and has visited Iraq and Palestine, including several trips to Gaza to break the siege imposed on it.

A discussion with Yvonne about her personal experiences as a journalist, her capture by the Taliban and later her conversion to Islam. We will also talk about her trips to the Middle East, including her trips to break the siege on Gaza, and also talk about her work to defend Islam, and much more.
 
Note: Yvonne Ridley will be speaking in Houston on Saturday, October 24 (click here for the details).

Date:

October 14, 2009   

Richard Goldstone's Report on Gaza
Head of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission to Gaza
 
Audio recording of Justice Goldstone's press conference held on September 15 about the committee's findings on Gaza, followed by the remarks he made at the United Nations Human Rights Council on September 29. In that report, Goldstone says Israel’s war actions against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip amount to war crimes and possibly, in some respects, crimes against humanity.

Date:

October 7, 2009   

Jeff Gates
A widely acclaimed author, attorney, investment banker, educator and consultant to government, corporate and union leaders worldwide; an adviser to policy-makers worldwide; former counsel to the U.S. Senate Finance Committee; and author of numerous articles and books including his latest book "Guilt By Association: How Deception and Self-Deceit Took America to War".

A discussion about Mr. Gates' latest provocative book "Guilt By Association: How Deception and Self-Deceit Took America to War", in which the author says "America’s credibility on the world stage has deteriorated due to a small group of elites and extremists who pledge allegiance to Israel”. In this book, former counsel to the U.S. Senate, Jeff Gates documents how Israeli agents and their “assets” in the U.S. manipulated policy-makers to wage war in Iraq and now seek to expand that war to Iran. Mr. gates presents a 60-year chronicle detailing betrayal, duplicity and deceit by a nation that has long feigned friendship with America in order to manipulate the U.S. military to wage its wars. Guilt by Association also shows how guilt by association was deployed to discredit the U.S. by its entangled alliance with the state of Israel, and how association is routinely used as a political tool either to accredit or discredit. In this book, Mr. Gates chronicles a long tradition of corruption and treason at the hands of foreign agents committed to advancing the Zionist cause through well timed crises, as well as the hidden influence that Israel exerted over the 2008 presidential elections.
 
This must-read book is described as “Breathless just reading it” by Noam Chomsky, “Explosively revelatory, powerful, compelling and certain to be highly contentious” by Ambassador Edward Peck, and “Magnificent, timely and persuasive” by Paul Findley.

Date:

September 30, 2009   

Syria, Palestine, Egypt & Lebanon @ the UN
Speeches/Remarks made at the Sixty-Fourth General Assembly Session of the United Nations held in New York this month covering various topics made by the Syrian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Walid Al-Moualem, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Palestinian Liberation Organization and President of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas, the Egyptian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, and the Lebanese President, Michel Sleiman.

Date:

September 23, 2009   

Dahr Jamail
Award-winning unembedded and independent journalist and author who has reported from the Middle East for over six years. He writes for the Inter Press Service, and Le Monde Diplomatique, among others. He also reports on radio for Democracy Now!, and has appeared on the BBC, NPR, Al-Jazeera and numerous other stations around the globe.

"The Will to Resist: Soldiers Who Refuse to Fight in Iraq and Afghanistan": A new book just released by Dahr Jamail in which he tells the hidden story of American soldiers turning against the war, and brings us inside the movement of military resistance to the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan. Dahr's comprehensive study of today's military resisters sheds new light on the contours of dissent within the ranks of the world's most powerful military.

Date:

September 16, 2009   

"American Muslims: Outreach for America"
Speeches made at the Council on American-Islamic Relations (Houston Chapter) 8^th Annual Fundraising Banquet held on August 15, 2009. The speeches cover various topics, but they all focus on the theme "American Muslims: Outreach for America", to reflect CAIR's goals and achievements of doing outreach for a better America.
 
We will listen to CAIR-Houston case successes given by Iliana Gonzalez, Civil Rights Coordinator at CAIR-Houston. The keynote address was given by former US Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney. Nihad Awad, Executive Director of CAIR-National was also in attendance and delivered a speech.

Date:

September 9, 2009   

Dr. George Bisharat
Prominent Palestinian-American, Professor of Law at the University of California's Hastings College of the Law, a frequent writer and commentator on events, law and politics in the Middle East, especially the Israeli-Palestinian problem, and author of the book "Palestinian Lawyers and Israeli Rule: Law and Disorder in the West Bank".

Date:

September 2, 2009   

Libya and Lockerbie: The Untold Story
Special program about Libya and the Pan Am Flight 103 bombing in Lockerbie. 
 

Date:

August 26, 2009   

Ralph Nader
Prominent Lebanese-American, political activist, former presidential candidate, consumer advocate, lawyer, one of the most unique, important, and controversial political figures of the past half century, author of countless books and publications, who was honored by Time magazine as One of the 100 Most Influential Americans of the Twentieth Century.

Various topics including Mr. Nader's views on President Obama's foreign policy, especially towards the Middle East and Afghanistan; bringing peace to occupied Iraq and occupied Palestine; mock executions by the CIA of suspected "terrorists" post-9/11; and much more.