Episode Details

In this episode, I host a conversation with Walaa Katoue of the Watermelon Foundation, Wesam Khalid of Justice for Palestine, and Beau Shaw of Independent Jewish Voices, activists advocating for Palestinian rights. They discuss the ongoing occupation of Palestine, the impact of colonialism, and the importance of global solidarity. The guests highlight the severe conditions in Gaza and the West Bank, drawing parallels to indigenous struggles in Canada. They emphasize the need for an arms embargo and sanctions against Israel, and call for a reevaluation of global structures that perpetuate oppression. The conversation underscores the power of grassroots movements and the critical role of individual actions in driving change. Join us as we explore the complexities of resistance, the importance of truth and reconciliation, and the collective effort needed to create a just world.

Welcome to Wesam, Walaa, and Beau

Jenny:

Welcome to The Gravity Well where you break down heavy ideas into small buckets you can handle. Your mission is simple. Help us work through your dilemmas and conversation and process. Together, you and your community will face your dilemmas and make the world a better place for all. In the spirit of truth, I acknowledge I’m a settler on stolen Blackfoot Treaty seven territory in Metis districts five and six lands. I take ReconciliACTION by seeking the wisdom of elders and individuals who aim to restore water, air, land, life or community. A healthy living relationship with the earth and each other is our guide.

I’m thrilled to have a couple guests here that have been leading the rallies for Palestine in Calgary. Please introduce yourself and your organization and a little bit about your background. Thank you.

Wesam:

Sure, my name is Wesam Cooley. In my activist work I go by the name Wesam Khalid. I am a member of Justice for Palestinians Calgary, which is a group that was formed in 2009 here, a community-based activist group to support the Palestinian call for boycott, divestment, and sanctions against the Israeli Apartheid government, and to support the Palestinian liberation struggle as a whole. I’ve been involved in Palestine activism for about 15 years, since my undergrad days. I know Walaa from way back. Being an activist around Palestine for that long, you witness a lot of horrors, but I have to say these last eight, or nine months have been the most horrifying that we’ve seen, certainly in my lifetime. We’ve been quite active over the recent period especially.

Jenny:

It’s incredible. The amount of energy it must take to do this every week, especially like you said, with how hard the information is to take it is tremendous. I am grateful to you both. Please take the time and introduce yourself, Walaa.

Walaa:

Thanks for having me. My name is Walaa Katoue. Like Wesam said, we go way back to our bright-eyed and bushy tailed university days. We thought the world was our oyster and we could conquer it all. It’s rather strange to be cognizant of how much time has passed since those days and how entrenched this all still is. My background is in psychology and I have been advocating for Palestine for as long as I know.

I’m not Palestinian myself, but my children are. I did it before them, for the Palestinians, and now I do it with that extra little bit of…I want them to know their home, their heritage, and their land.

This year, or the past year, since October, we co-founded the Watermelon Foundation for Justice. It’s a organization in Calgary, but we do have members from coast to coast, and it’s about advocating for Palestine, advocating for the rights of Palestinians here, and abroad, promoting their culture, the language, everything that is Palestine that they’re trying to erase. We want to keep it and