If You Were In Charge

Not In Our Name: JVP's Stefanie Fox on Jewish Anti-Zionism Amid an Expanding Iran War

What does it mean when the world's largest progressive Jewish organisation says "not in our name"? This week, Sanam and Kavita sit down with Stefanie Fox, Executive Director of Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), to explore the growing movement of Jewish anti-Zionism in America and beyond. Stefanie walks us through how JVP now three times the size it was three years ago is organising hundreds of thousands of Jews to withdraw their complicity from Israeli apartheid and genocide through boycott, divestment and sanctions campaigns, Israel bonds divestment at city and state level, and deep cultural work reclaiming Judaism beyond Zionism. From the mechanics of how American taxpayer money flows to the Israeli treasury, to the personal cost of leading a movement under legal attack and White House scrutiny, Stefanie offers a clear-eyed, hopeful account of what collective organising can achieve and why refusing the politics of despair is itself an act of resistance. We are also joined by Sanams daughter Soleh joins us from Cambridge. Where she gives her view on JVP and their role in the student protests over Gaza. If You Were In Charge is a radical leadership podcast about people, power, and possibilities, hosted by Sanam Naraghi Anderlini and Kavita Nandini Ramdas. Brought to you by ICAN. An ADA Production. Guest: Stefanie Fox, Executive Director, Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) Links: Jewish Voice for Peace Wrestling with Zionism storytelling project If You Were In Charge If You Were In Charge is brought to you by ICAN⁠ ⁠⁠⁠International Civil Society Action Network⁠⁠⁠⁠ Original Music, Little Monster Media  Executive Producer: Pearse Lynch This is an ⁠⁠⁠⁠ADA Production⁠ TIMESTAMPED CHAPTER MARKERS 00:00 – 00:33 | Cold Open 00:33 – 01:27 | Intro & Welcome Sanam introduces the episode. Soleh joins from Cambridge. 01:27 – 02:16 | How they got Stefanie 02:16 – 04:36 | Soleh on JVP's cultural impact Separating anti-Zionism from anti-Semitism. 04:36 – 06:28 | JVP's statement on the war on Iran 06:28 – 08:50 | Asymmetric warfare If Iran survives, it's winning. The logic of escalation on all sides. 08:50 – 09:40 | Iran's opposition & the monarchists Both regime and opposition willing to sacrifice the nation. Reza Pahlavi's MAGA-style approach. 09:40 – 11:04 | Global ripple effects Gas shortages in India, Sri Lanka rationing, Pakistan's crisis — the war's worldwide impact. 11:04 – 13:31 | Geography & supply chains Soleh's generation discovering the Strait of Hormuz. 13:31 – 14:13 | Language & culture 14:13 – 15:43 | Happy Nowruz 15:43 – 16:35 | Human cost of targeted killings Larijani's assassination and 100+ civilian deaths. 16:35 – 17:17 | Transition to interview Stefanie welcomed on. 17:17 – 20:07 | Who is JVP? World's largest progressive Jewish org for Palestinian rights. 100+ chapters. Three times the size it was three years ago. 20:07 – 21:05 | Growth amid horror More grassroots power than ever, yet the genocide continues. 21:05 – 23:45 | What is Zionism? Why anti-Zionism? Zionism as political ideology leading to expulsion and ethnostate. True safety through solidarity. 23:45 – 26:23 | Self-censorship & the anti-Semitism smear Sanam on 20 years of self-censorship in America. South Africa parallel. 26:23 – 28:42 | JVP's day-to-day work Three pillars: political, financial, cultural. BDS campaigns and Israel bonds divestment. 27:38 – 30:27 | Israel bonds explained 30:27 – 32:20 | BDS-proofing the economy How Israel uses bonds to underwrite the war economy. Public opinion shifting. 32:20 – 34:31 | Complicity & tax resistance Nuremberg tribunals, aiding and abetting through taxes. BDS as collective action. 35:03 – 39:50 | Culture shift Anti-Zionist Jews since the 19th century. Identity fusion only since 1967. Wrestling with Zionism project. 39:58 – 42:54 | Sanam on Iranian Jews & identity Iran's Jewish community. Being labelled anti-Semitic in America for criticising Israel. 42:54 – 44:44 | Anti-Semitism & Zionism as "cousins" Montague and the Balfour Declaration. Both ideologies rooted in Western nation-state building. 44:44 – 47:17 | Threats, lawsuits & Project Esther Five active lawsuits. Named in Project Esther. On a White House list. 47:17 – 48:46 | Q: Radical idea that should be normal? 47:59 – 49:56 | Q: If you were in charge of US policy? Full divestment, end US funding of Israel, invest in life-sustaining programmes. 50:02 – 51:13 | Q: Billionaire / What gives you hope? No billionaires. Hope = organising and refusing the politics of despair. 51:13 – 53:50 | Tangible wins $30 million divested from Israel bonds in the last month. Mamdani's election. 53:50 – 58:41 | If you were in charge of the media Manufacturing consent. The debunked NY Times piece. Passive voice on Gaza vs. Ukraine. Assassinated Palestinian journalists. 58:41 – 59:32 | Closing "Hope is great, but it's the strategy that really matters." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Iran War Reaction: The Cycle of Violence and Extremism

We begin with Sanam and Kavita discussing the war in Iran. Sanam shares what she is hearing from inside Iran as US and Israeli forces continue to strike across the country. Reflecting on the school strike, the sinking of a naval vessel by a US submarine, and the election of a new Supreme Leader. She considers where this chaos and violence may ultimately lead. Sanam and Kavita then sit down with Maya and Nancy Yamout, two extraordinary sisters from Lebanon who understand better than most the long-term consequences of war, extremism, and violence. Maya and Nancy Yamout are forensic social workers renowned for their deradicalisation work targeting Islamist extremists within Lebanon's prison system. Following the death of a mutual friend who had joined an extremist group, they co-founded the non-governmental organisation Rescue Me in 2011, focusing on rehabilitating at-risk youth and inmates. This conversation explores the complex world of countering extremism through personal testimony, rehabilitation, and community rebuilding in Lebanon. Maya and Nancy share their experiences working inside prisons, navigating family dynamics, and fostering empathy as a tool to prevent violence. If You Were In Charge is brought to you by ICAN⁠ ⁠⁠International Civil Society Action Network⁠⁠⁠ Original Music, Little Monster Media  Executive Producer: Pearse Lynch This is an ⁠⁠⁠ADA Production⁠ If You Were In Charge Website Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sanam on Pod Save The UK - "No Winston Churchill": is the special relationship over?

A world leader has been assassinated, schools and hospitals have been hit, and Donald Trump thinks that Keir Starmer is no Winston Churchill. It’s all kicking off as the US and Israel’s illegal war escalates across the Middle East. All of this with the open admission of no real plan for what comes next.  Struggling to absorb it all? Wondering if there’s another way? British-Iranian peace strategist Sanam Naraghi Anderlini MBE is here to fill us in. She joins Coco and comedian Sophie Duker, who is in the hotseat for Nish this week. Soaring oil prices was not the backdrop Chancellor Rachel Reeves was hoping for ahead of her second Spring Statement. Finalised before the conflict broke out, her economic plan was “Trumped” before it was even delivered - so where does this leave the UK? Plus - just as the UK gets dragged into this latest destabilising conflict, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood rips up the rules on UK asylum.  Got a burning question for Nish or Coco? Big or small - they will be answered in a special episode! Email: psuk@reducedlistening.co.uk  GUEST Sanam Naraghi Anderlini MBE, founder and CEO of the International Civil Society Action Network (ICAN) USEFUL LINKS Sophie Dukerhttps://thesophieduker.com/ If You Were In Charge with Sanam Naraghi Anderlini and Kavita Nandini Ramdas.https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/if-you-were-in-charge/id1770618616 CREDITS Sophie Duker - Live at the Apollo / BBC One Keir Starmer / XParliament TV PBS News Hour / YouTubeBBC News Zoe Gardner / IGManchester Evening News  Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media.Get in touch - contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.ukLike and follow us on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodSavetheUKInstagram: https://instagram.com/podsavetheukTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheukBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/podsavetheuk.crooked.comFacebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheukX: https://x.com/podsavetheuk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ben & Jerry's Co-Founder Ben Cohen Declares War on the Pentagon

Welcome back to a new season of If You Were in Charge. This week, we sit down with Ben Cohen, co-founder of Ben & Jerry's, who has built a life creating an ice cream empire while also becoming a passionate activist fighting against military spending, which he believes is irrational and immoral, and is used to keep ordinary people poor and oppressed. We explore his journey from ice cream to activism, and his unwavering belief in the power of collective action. This episode also features Sanam’s daughter, Soleh. Together, they discuss the ongoing Epstein fallout and why it is cutting through the media noise, Marco Rubio’s imperialist speech in Munich, and Iran—along with what America is going to do next. That's this week on If You Were in Charge, the radical leadership podcast about people, power, and possibilities, hosted by Sanam Naraghi Anderlini, founder of ICAN and a peace strategist who has worked with women in conflict zones for over thirty years, and co-host Kavita Nandini Ramdas, senior advisor to the International Planned Parenthood Federation and former head of the Global Fund for Women. If You Were In Charge is brought to you by ICAN⁠ ⁠International Civil Society Action Network⁠⁠ Original Music, Little Monster Media  Executive Producer: Pearse Lynch This is an ⁠⁠ADA Production key topics Ben Cohen's background and activism journey The role of business in social justice Campaign against militarism and Pentagon budget Ben and Jerry's stance on Gaza and Palestine Corporate social responsibility and social mission The importance of collective action and community engagement The influence of personal values on business decisions Strategies for engaging the public on social issues The intersection of peacebuilding and business Inspiration for young activists and entrepreneurs Chapters 00:00 Health Care vs. Militarism 01:50 Public Outrage: Epstein vs. Gaza 04:44 The Role of Youth in Activism 06:44 Political Extremism and Identity 08:50 The Absurdity of Militarism 13:02 Ben Cohen: Activism and Ice Cream 14:29 The Origins of Ben and Jerry's 15:13 Childhood Aversion to Militarism 17:42 Economic Violence and Lead Poisoning 20:57 Connecting Militarism to Everyday Issues 24:59 Human Security vs. National Security 25:26 Activism and Business: A Dual Role 30:44 The Game of Business and Social Responsibility 33:45 Innovative Financing and Community Engagement 35:10 The Balance of Wealth and Fulfillment 37:12 Corporate Responsibility and Social Justice 38:21 Ben & Jerry's Social Mission and Unilever 40:41 Political Stance and Corporate Complicity 42:43 Hope Amidst Outrage and Activism 47:01 Vision for a Better World 49:39 People Power and Collective Mobilization 51:32 Cultural Connections Through Ice Cream Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If You Were In Charge Trailer Season 3

Welcome back to a new season of If You Were in Charge The radical leadership podcast about people, power & possibilities from ICAN and ADA is excited to announce a new co-host! Kavita Nandini Ramdas, senior advisor to the International Planned Parenthood Federation and former head of the Global Fund for Women, joins host Sanam Naraghi Anderlini, founder of ICAN and a peace strategist who has worked with women in conflict zones for over thirty years.  Sanam and Kavita represent voices rarely heard in podcasting. Two powerful advocates for peace and social justice, women leaders with roots in India and Iran, who have built careers as global citizens at the highest levels. Launching officially Tuesday February 24th!  Welcoming an extraordinary range of guests including… Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh on advocating for survivors of sexual violence in war Ben Cohen, peace activist & founder of ‘Ben & Jerry’s’ on his battle with the Pentagon Alex Crawford, celebrated foreign correspondent, on this moment of global uncertainty If You Were In Charge is brought to you by ICAN⁠ International Civil Society Action Network⁠ Original Music, Little Monster Media  Executive Producer: Pearse Lynch This is an ⁠ADA Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices