Oppo

In Canada, the political discourse on the news coming out of Israel and Palestine has given Backbench host, some “serious whiplash.” Discussions happening online seem extremely polarized, making it difficult to have productive and nuanced conversations. In this episode, Mattea sits down with Muhannad Ayyash, a Palestinian Professor of Sociology, and Jeremy Appel, a journalist and author, to get to the root of this contention. They unpack the role of lobby groups, the conflation of anti-semitism and anti-zionism, the role of grassroots organizing, and the rising incidents of alleged hate-motivated attacks. Host:  Mattea RoachCredits: Aviva Lessard (Producer), Noor Azrieh (Producer), Caleb Thompson (Audio Editor), Annette Ejiofor (Managing Editor)Guests: Muhannad Ayyash, Jeremy AppelBackground reading:Lobby group pushes Canada to conflate anti-Zionism with antisemitism –  The BreachWeaponisation of anti-Semitism is bad for Palestinians – and Jews –  Al JazeeraCIJA Has Taken Nearly 25% Of MPs