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Guerrilla History — History
Guerrilla History

Guerrilla History is the podcast that acts as a reconnaissance report of global history for the activist left, and aims to use the lessons of history to analyze the present.

Your hosts are educators Henry Hakamaki and Professor Adnan Husain, historian and Director of the School of Religion at Queens University.

Follow us on social media! Our podcast can be found on twitter at https://twitter.com/guerrilla_pod, and can be supported on patreon at https://www.patreon.com/guerrillahistory. Your contributions will make the show possible to continue and succeed!

Follow the hosts, Henry can be found on twitter at https://twitter.com/huck1995. Adnan can be followed on twitter at https://twitter.com/adnanahusain, and also runs The Majlis Podcast, which can be found at https://anchor.fm/msgp-queens, and the Muslim Societies-Global Perspectives group at Queens University, https://www.facebook.com/MSGPQU/. The other shows of the Revolutionary Left Radio family can be found at revolutionaryleftradio.com.

Thanks to Ryan Hakamaki, who designed and created the podcast’s artwork, and Kevin MacLeod, who creates royalty-free music.

Latest Episodes:

Understanding the Conflict in Occupied Palestine - History & Geopolitics w/ Rabab Abdulhadi & Ariel Salzmann Oct 27, 2023

Show notes

In this important and wide-ranging episode of Guerrilla History, we bring on two esteemed guests, Professors Rabab Abdulhadi and Ariel Salzmann, to discuss the conflict in occupied Palestine, the bombardment in Gaza, attempts to legitimize the Zionist project that is the so-called State of Israel, and public activist movements. This is another really crucial conversation that builds off of our previous episode with Max Ajl and Patrick Higgins on Palestinian Resistance vs. the Zionist Project. If you find this conversation useful, please send it along to your comrades, friends, and family - we really need people to understand this!

Our guests recommend you to check out the work done by Jadaliyya, the Arab and Muslim Ethnicities and Diasporas Study Program/Teaching Palestine, the statement from the Institute for the Critical Study of Zionism, the statement from Birzeit University, and the work being done by Jewish Voice for Peace.

Rabab Abdulhadi is the founding Director and Senior Scholar of Arab and Muslim Ethnicities and Diasporas Study Program at San Francisco State University, co-founding Editorial Board Member of the Islamophobia Studies Journal, and Director/Principal Investigator of Teaching Palestine, as well as author of numerous scholarly works.

Ariel Salzmann is a professor of Islamic and world history at Queen's University, and her research addresses theories of state formation, histories of Mediterranean communities and Muslim societies, the transformation of market systems and the making of global capitalism. Her forthcoming book, The Exclusionary West: Medieval Minorities and the Making of Modern Europe, will be out in May 2024.

Help support the show by signing up to our patreon, where you also will get bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/guerrillahistory

Palestinian Resistance vs. The Zionist Project w/ Max Ajl & Patrick Higgins Oct 20, 2023

Show notes

In this critical episode of Guerrilla History, we bring on Max Ajl and Patrick Higgins to discuss some recent history and the ongoing situation regarding Palestinian resistance to the Zionist project and the ongoing bombardment on Gaza. Max and Patrick provide some absolutely crucial information here, so be sure to tune in, and forward the episode along to anyone you think would benefit from it.

Our guests recommend you to donate to the Middle East Children's Alliance, read the work of Electronic Intifada and Mondoweiss, as well as follow their respective social media pages @intifada and @Mondoweiss, and keep up to date with the Palestinian Youth Movement and Within Our Lifetime.

Max Ajl is a postdoctoral researcher at the Ghent University, and is author of the fantastic A People's Green New Deal. Read Max's other written work on his Researchgate page. Max also has a twitter page, but you must find it yourself!

Patrick Higgins is a researcher at the University of Houston's Center for Arab Studies. You can find Patrick's writings on the internet by searching for his name and his affiliation, or with the keyword Palestine.

Help support the show by signing up to our patreon, where you also will get bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/guerrillahistory

How the West Stole Democracy from the Arabs w/ Elizabeth Thompson [Remastered] Oct 13, 2023

Show notes

In this remastered episode of Guerrilla History (originally released in January, 2021), we were joined by Professor Elizabeth F. Thompson to talk about her book How the West Stole Democracy from the Arabs, about the historic Syrian-Arab Congress of 1920.

Elizabeth Thompson is the Mohamed S. Farsi Chair of Islamic Peace and Professor of History at American University. Her book was published by Atlantic Monthly Press, and is available here: https://groveatlantic.com/book/how-the-west-stole-democracy-from-the-arabs/

Help support the show by signing up to our patreon, where you also will get bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/guerrillahistory

The Mexican Dirty War: A War to the Death w/ Alexander Aviña & Benjamin T. Smith Oct 06, 2023

Show notes

In this episode of Guerrilla History, we bring on Benjamin T. Smith and his coauthor, returning fan favorite Alexander Aviña, to talk about an article that they just cowrote about the (ongoing) Mexican Dirty War for NACLA titled A War to the Death! This short article condenses the decades history of the Mexican Dirty War in advance of an upcoming Truth Commission report on state terrorism within Cold War era Mexico. As our guests highlight though, this dirty war never really ended. A great conversation, do us a favor and send it to comrades who are interested in Cold War Latin America, Mexican history, or state sponsored dirty wars, they will certainly find this useful!

Benjamin T. Smith is professor of Latin American history at the University of Warwick and author of several books, including The Dope: The Real History of the Mexican Drug Trade. Ben's website is available at thedope.co.uk, and he can be followed on twitter @benjamintsmith7

Alexander Aviña is associate professor of Latin American history at Arizona State University and author of Specters of Revolution: Peasant Guerrillas in the Cold War Mexican Countryside. Alex's website is available at alexanderavina.com, and he can be followed on twitter @Alexander_Avina

Help support the show by signing up to our patreon, where you also will get bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/guerrillahistory

The Mexican Dirty War: A War to the Death w/ Alexander Aviña & Benjamin T. Smith Oct 06, 2023

Show notes

In this episode of Guerrilla History, we bring on Benjamin T. Smith and his coauthor, returning fan favorite Alexander Aviña, to talk about an article that they just cowrote about the (ongoing) Mexican Dirty War for NACLA titled A War to the Death! This short article condenses the decades history of the Mexican Dirty War in advance of an upcoming Truth Commission report on state terrorism within Cold War era Mexico. As our guests highlight though, this dirty war never really ended. A great conversation, do us a favor and send it to comrades who are interested in Cold War Latin America, Mexican history, or state sponsored dirty wars, they will certainly find this useful!

Benjamin T. Smith is professor of Latin American history at the University of Warwick and author of several books, including The Dope: The Real History of the Mexican Drug Trade. Ben's website is available at thedope.co.uk, and he can be followed on twitter @benjamintsmith7

Alexander Aviña is associate professor of Latin American history at Arizona State University and author of Specters of Revolution: Peasant Guerrillas in the Cold War Mexican Countryside. Alex's website is available at alexanderavina.com, and he can be followed on twitter @Alexander_Avina

Help support the show by signing up to our patreon, where you also will get bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/guerrillahistory

China's Revolution & the Quest for a Socialist Future w/ Ken Hammond Sep 29, 2023

Show notes

In this episode of Guerrilla History, we bring on Ken Hammond to talk about his new book China's Revolution & the Quest for a Socialist Future! Here, we provide an overview of modern Chinese history, and Ken makes his case that China is still on the path to a socialist future. This was a fantastic survey of this history, and will serve as a great introduction to a forthcoming mini-series we will be doing with Ken on some specific events in modern Chinese History!

Ken Hammond is Professor of East Asian and Global History at New Mexico State University. He has been engaged in radical politics since his involvement in the anti-war movement at Kent State in 1968-70. He is a member of the Party for Socialism and Liberation, and an activist with Pivot to Peace. You can get the book we discussed in this episode from 1804 books.

Help support the show by signing up to our patreon, where you also will get bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/guerrillahistory

Organizing, Militant Unionism, & the Class War: The Fighting (Life &) Times of Jon Melrod Sep 22, 2023

Show notes

In this outstanding episode of Guerrilla History, we bring on Jon Melrod to discuss his new book Fighting Times: Organizing on the Front Lines of the Class War (use code FIGHTING to get 40% off)! In this episode, we discuss the life and times of Jon, who in many ways is a real working class hero. We talk about his early embrace of radical political ideology, his radical campus organizing, his 13 years fighting in and organizing within industrial factories in Wisconsin, his rise within the UAW, and his post-factory work as a lawyer representing political refugees and victims of police violence. This conversation is really inspiring, and we cannot recommend enough that you pick up the book, read it with fellow workers, and share this episode with those you think would benefit!

Jon Melrod is a journalist, activist, and lawyer that left the campus for the factory in 1973. For thirteen years, he immersed himself in the day-to-day struggles of Milwaukee's working class, both on the factory floor and in the political arena. Despite FBI surveillance and interference, Jon organized a militant rank-and-file caucus and rose through union ranks to a top leadership position in UAW Local 72. After this part of his career, he opened a law firm in San Francisco, successfully representing hundreds of political refugees. You can follow Jon on twitter @JonathanMelrod, and keep up with his latest work and read more about his story on his website jonathanmelrod.com.

Help support the show by signing up to our patreon, where you also will get bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/guerrillahistory

Dinosaurs and Decolonizing Paleontology w/ Aline Ghilardi, Juan Cisneros, & Tito Aureliano Sep 15, 2023

Show notes

In this episode of Guerrilla History, we have a fascinating discussion alongside three wonderful paleontologists based in Brazil about efforts to decolonize paleontology and restitute stolen fossils. These three have written some great articles on this topic, such as The moral and legal imperative to return illegally exported fossils, Colonial history and global economics distort our understanding of deep-time biodiversity, and Digging deeper into colonial palaeontological practices in modern day Mexico and Brazil. This is a crucial conversation, and one which we feel doesn't get nearly enough attention even within political circles like the one we operate in. #IrritatorBelongstoBr

Aline Ghilardi is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geology at UFRN. You can find the work that her (and Tito's) paleontology lab does at the website en.dinolab.com.br. Aline can be followed on twitter @alinemghilardi Juan Cisneros is a paleontologist and an Associate Professor in the Department of Geology at UFPI twitter @PaleoCisneros. Tito Aureliano is an Associate Researcher at DINOlab in the Department of Geology at UFRN. His work can be viewed at the same website linked in Aline's bio above. In addition, Tito and Aline co-run a multimedia science communication project titled Colecionadores De Ossos (Bone Collectors), which includes a YouTube channel, books, comics, and even a video game! Tito can be followed on twitter @tito_aureliano Help support the show by signing up to our patreon, where you also will get bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/guerrillahistory

Why Turkey Is Authoritarian w/ Halil Karaveli [REMASTERED] Sep 08, 2023

Show notes

This episode is a fully-remastered edition of a previous episode we released, where we brought on Halil Karaveli to talk about Why Turkey Is Authoritarian. This discussion was our second interview ever on the show, and while the format of the show has slightly changed over the last few years, this was really a tremendous discussion about an important work and topic. If you didn't catch this episode when it first came out, or if it has been a few years since you have listened to it, be sure to check it out!

Halil M. Karaveli is a Senior Fellow with the Turkey Center of the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute & Silk Road Studies Program Joint Center and editor of its publication The Turkey Analyst. His book Why Turkey Is Authoritarian: From Atatürk to Erdoğan is available from Pluto Books.

Help support the show by signing up to our patreon, where you also will get bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/guerrillahistory

Empire and the Deep State - American Exception w/ Aaron Good Sep 01, 2023

Show notes

In this fascinating and fun episode, Aaron Good comes on the show to discuss his book American Exception: Empire and the Deep State. This is a great conversation which focuses on Aaron's conceptualizing of exceptionism and how the American Empire works. This topic is critical for us, as the concept of "the Deep State" has been distorted by the right-wing, and obscures the workings of the actual Deep State here within the belly of the beast.

Aaron Good has a PhD in Political Science from Temple University. His dissertation, "American Exception: Hegemony and the Tripartite State," examined the state, elite criminality, and US hegemony. His book American Exception: Empire and the Deep State is available from Skyhorse Publishers, and he has a website and podcast of the same name which can be found at https://americanexception.com/. Aaron can be followed on twitter @Aaron_Good_.

Help support the show by signing up to our patreon, where you also will get bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/guerrillahistory

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