The Road To Liberation

The Road To Liberation

From The Human Challenge by Vanessa Ferlaino

December 18, 2025 · 34 min · Season 3

About this episode

Jehad discusses his experiences with injustice in Hebron and how it shapes his social justice work in Canada.

Injustice comes in many forms in Hebron, the largest city in The West Bank, and the epicentre of The Arab-Israeli Conflict. Jehad has not forgotten the survival mechanisms, the suffocating permits, or the violence that fuel his social justice work in Canada, where he has led some of Ontario’s largest organizations and supported various minoritized communities since his arrival in 1988. But Hebron is home for Jehad, who also has memories of family, culture, bustling city streets, fresh bread, and Enab Dibs. His Palestinian culture is something he has been able to explore deeper in Canada where he is not asked to present permits everywhere he goes, and where his culture is not banned, unlike back home. Jehad visits home with his own children every year, where he is reminded of the grave injustices that still exist. The violence in The West Bank has increased over the last few years, leading to a death toll of over 250 Palestinians in this year alone. Having lived through the occupation himself, he says: “The only consistency in The Arab-Israeli Conflict is the Israeli occupation.” Government complicity, normalized violence, and the weaponization of anti-semitism have led to the…

People in this episode

Host: Vanessa Ferlaino

Guest: Jehad

Topics covered

  • social justice
  • Palestinian culture
  • occupation
  • advocacy
  • injustice
  • Arab-Israeli Conflict

Keywords

  • Hebron
  • West Bank
  • social justice
  • Palestinian culture
  • Arab-Israeli Conflict
  • occupation
  • advocacy

Mentioned in this episode

Places: Hebron, The West Bank, Canada, Ontario, Palestinian

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