"What did it take for so many Americans to not see w/ Melani McAlister
The brothers welcome Melani McAlister, professor of American Studies at George Washington University, author of the new book Promises, Then the Storm and scholar of American culture and evangelical culture. They discuss the meaning and nature of Christian Zionism, Melani's own insight after growing up an evangelical in North Carolina, how she learned about Israel before discovering the question of Palestine, the diversity within the evangelical movement, the different ways American evangelicals are Zionist, the significance of the evident generational fracture over Palestine, and her sense of the indictment of American liberalism over its denial of the Gaza genocide.  Date of recording: Oct 13, 2025. Watch the video edition on our YouTube channel Follow us on our socials: X: @MakdisiStreet YouTube: @MakdisiStreet Insta: @Makdisist TikTok: @Makdisistreet Music by Hadiiiiii Support the show on Patreon for access to all the great bonus content, including the latest bonus episode.
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1:14:24
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"Public opinion is vastly different than the elites" w/ Mandy Turner
The brothers welcome Mandy Turner, a senior researcher with Security in Context, to discuss the world of think tanks, how they operate as hegemony factories, and the divergence between public opinion and elites on the Gaza genocide Check out her article, "Hegemony factories or independent thinkers? Western think tanks on Israel and Palestine after October 7"  Date of recording: Sept 16, 2025. Watch the video edition on our YouTube channel Follow us on our socials: X: @MakdisiStreet YouTube: @MakdisiStreet Insta: @Makdisist TikTok: @Makdisistreet Music by Hadiiiiii Support the show on Patreon for access to all the great bonus content, including the latest bonus episode.
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1:19:03
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1:19:03
"At the Threshold of Genocide"
The brothers discuss the "ceasefire" in Gaza, the Trump plan, and the potential contradictions between Israel and its partners and enablers. Date of recording: Oct 21, 2025. Watch the video edition on our YouTube channel Follow us on our socials: X: @MakdisiStreet YouTube: @MakdisiStreet Insta: @Makdisist TikTok: @Makdisistreet Music by Hadiiiiii Support the show on Patreon for access to all the great bonus content, including the latest bonus episode. www.patreon.com/makdisistreet Â
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54:53
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"My fear is that this is a repackaging of the genocide" w/ Diana Buttu
**Producer's note: This episode was marred by technical problems and connection issues. Apologies for the sound quality** The brothers welcome the Canadian-Palestinian lawyer and former negotiator Diana Buttu (@dianabuttu) to the show to discuss the ceasefire in Gaza and the context of the Trump-branded "peace plan" for Gaza and its historical antecedents and possible outcomes. Date of recording: Oct 9, 2025. Watch the video edition on our YouTube channel Follow us on our socials: X: @MakdisiStreet YouTube: @MakdisiStreet Insta: @Makdisist TikTok: @Makdisistreet Music by Hadiiiiii Support the show on Patreon for access to all the great bonus content, including the latest bonus episode. www.patreon.com/makdisistreet
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1:09:05
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Return to Makdisi Street w/ Samir Makdisi
The brothers welcome their father, Samir Makdisi, Professor Emeritus at the American University of Beirut, to the show.  They discuss the significance of Makdisi Street—the street itself!— in Beirut's cultural history, the social and political location of Ras Beirut in the larger context of Beirut and Lebanon itself, student movements in the 1950s and 1960s, the gradual consolidation of a sectarian political culture in Lebanon and the many forms of resistance to it, and the transformations in Beirut and Lebanon since the onset of the Lebanese war in 1975.  They also discuss the history of their own family in relation to Makdisi Street, Ras Beirut, Beirut and Lebanon, in addition to Palestine and the Arab world more generally. This episode was recorded live and produced by Layla Makdisi. Date of recording: August 8, 2025. Watch the video edition on our YouTube channel Follow us on our socials: X: @MakdisiStreet YouTube: @MakdisiStreet Insta: @Makdisist TikTok: @Makdisistreet Music by Hadiiiiii Sign up at Patreon.com/MakdisiStreet to access all the bonus content, including the latest Q&A
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