RTA: Omar Barghouti

This week on Reset the Algorithm, we talk with Omar Barghouti, the Co-founder of BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) a Palestinian-led movement for freedom, justice and equality. The clarity and focus with which Omar expresses the goals of Palestinian Liberation is incredibly admirable. With this organization, they aim to utilize peaceful tactics to place pressure on repressive institutions in an effort to end complacency and free the Palestinian people from occupation. From his time at Columbia University in 1985, where he participated in anti-Apartheid protests and encampments to his thoughts on the encampments of college campuses today, Omar and Moj discuss what it means to resist and how we can truly bring about change through nonviolent strategies. It is not lost on us that conversations like this are challenging for some to hear and that those with different lived experiences might find the topics covered to be very difficult to process. Exposure does that. Our goal with this program and the entire mission of our organization is to be in conversation with EVERYONE, to talk through the lived experiences of MANY, and to break out of our algorithmic echo-chambers. This process is inherently uncomfortable and painful. We know, because it is for us too. But now more than ever, we must listen, we must learn and we must show grace, so that we can move forward in building a world that is safe and fair and healthy for ALL OF US. We know it isn’t easy, but we trust that it is incredibly worth it, and we hope you join us in the journey.