Ep 49 – Omar El Akkad (Award-Winning Author on Writing, Resistance & Justice for Palestine)

In Episode 49 of The Enlightenment Podcast, Shamim and Hanan are joined by Omar El-Akkad, the award-winning Egyptian-Canadian journalist and novelist whose viral tweet about Gaza later became the title of his explosive nonfiction debut—now a New York Times bestselling book.Omar is an award-winning journalist who spent over a decade covering conflicts from Afghanistan to Guantánamo Bay for The Globe and Mail. He is the acclaimed author of the novel American War, praised by the BBC, and the Scotiabank Giller Prize-winning novel What Strange Paradise. His latest work, the explosive nonfiction debut One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This, is a searing indictment of Western complicity in the genocide of Palestinians and has been shortlisted for the 2025 Palestine Book Award.In this powerful episode, Omar discusses the urgent need to dismantle Zionist propaganda, the role of literature in the fight for liberation, and the personal costs of speaking truth to power. His courage, moral clarity, and willingness to risk his career in pursuit of justice make his voice one of the most important of our time.Omar’s Work: 📘 American War → https://www.amazon.com/American-War-Omar-El-Akkad/dp/0451493583 📘 What Strange Paradise → https://www.amazon.com/What-Strange-Paradise-Omar-Akkad/dp/1984899244/ 📘 One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This → https://www.amazon.com/Everyone-Will-Have-Always-Against/dp/0593804147/ Support the People of PalestineThe Sameer Project → https://www.instagram.com/thesameerproject The Ghassan Abu-Sittah Children’s Fund → https://gascf.org/ Palestine Children’s Relief Funds → https://www.pcrf.net/ Medical Aid for Palestinians → https://www.map.org.uk/ Gaza Funds → https://gazafunds.com/all The Hind Rajab Foundation → https://www.hindrajabfoundation.org/ Omar on Social Media: X (Twitter) → https://x.com/omarelakkad?lang=en Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/oelakkad/?hl=en Enlightenment Podcast Social Media:https://feedlinks.link/enlightenmentpodcast#TheEnlightenmentPodcast #OmarElAkkad #AmericanWar #WhatStrangeParadise #PalestineBookAwards #PalestinianLiberation #OneDayEveryoneWillHaveAlwaysBeenAgainstThis #DismantleZionism #WesternComplicity #JusticeForPalestine #FreePalestine #TruthToPower #LiteratureForJustice #EndTheOccupation