Turbulence

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit turbulencepod.substack.comWe discuss Mamdani’s capitulation to the NYPD, Indigenous resistance to border militarization, Ansarallah’s war with Saudi Arabia, Trump’s Ukraine problem, and Erik Prince’s mercenary operations in Congo and Haiti.To support Palestinians in Gaza, consider donating through The Sameer Project.We’re committed to independence and will never run ads or take …

Mamyrah Dougé-Prosper joins us to discuss the history of foreign intervention in Haiti, the political and economic origins of the country’s so-called gangs, and the centuries-long struggle between the Haitian state and popular sovereignty.Mamyrah Dougé-Prosper is an Assistant Professor of Global and International Studies at the University of California, Irvine. She is also the director of the Center for Racial Justice at UCI. Dougé-Prosper’s work generally focuses on Black social movements. More specifically, her research centers around protest movements in 21st century Haiti. Dougé-Prosper has published in political magazines such as Black Agenda Report, LeftEast, Phenomenal World, Jacobin and NACLA as well as academic journals such as Women’s Studies Quarterly, International Studies Review, Kalfou, Small Axe, PoLAR and the Journal of Haitian Studies. She is completing her first manuscript titled Nation Against State: Development Contested in Occupied Haiti. Dougé-Prosper is currently a board member of Grassroots International. Between 2018 and 2024, she served as the coordinator of the Pan-African Solidarity Network with Community Movement Builders.To support Palestinians in Gaza, consider donating through The Sameer Project.Episode Guide:* MINUSTAH — United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (2004–2017). Brazil-led UN peacekeeping mission established following the removal of Jean-Bertrand Aristide.* MINUJUSTH — United Nations Mission for Justice Support in Haiti (2017–2019). Successor to MINUSTAH, focused on policing and judicial institutions.* BINUH — United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (2019–present). UN political mission supporting governance, security, and human rights.* MSS — Multinational Security Support Mission (2024–2026). Kenya-led multinational security force authorized by the UN Security Council.* GSF — Gang Suppression Force (2026–present). Multinational force authorized to combat armed groups in Haiti.* FRAPH — Front for the Advancement and Progress of Haiti. Paramilitary organization implicated in repression following the 1991 coup against Aristide.* PHTK — Parti Haïtien Tèt Kale. Political party associated with former presidents Michel Martelly and Jovenel Moïse.* G9 — G9 an Fanmi e Alye (G9 Family and Allies). Armed-group coalition associated with Jimmy Chérizier (“Barbecue”).* ALBA — Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America. Regional cooperation initiative established by Venezuela and Cuba.* IMF — International Monetary Fund. International financial institution involved in Haiti’s economic restructuring.* OAS — Organization of American States. Regional intergovernmental organization.* HOPE — Haitian Hemispheric Opportunity through Partnership Encouragement Act. U.S. trade-preference legislation for Haitian apparel.* HELP — Haiti Economic Lift Program Act. U.S. legislation expanding trade preferences for Haitian textiles and apparel.We’re committed to independence and will never run ads or take money from institutions. That means Turbulence is entirely listener-funded.For $5 a month, paid subscribers gain access to weekly news analysis bonus episodes, where we respond to events as they unfold, follow up on previous discussions, and draw connections across the conflicts shaping our world.Most importantly, paid subscriptions make it possible for us to keep doing this work independently, week after week.Subscribe today at turbulencepod.substack.comFollow along on Twitter/X and Instagram @turbulence_podTheme: Eye for an Eye, Haram (2017)Art: Vivek VenkatramanResearcher: KCMix: Jasper Saba This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit turbulencepod.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit turbulencepod.substack.comWe discuss the upcoming Brazilian elections, US plans to invade Cuba, the end of the third (?) Iraq war, military escort missions in Hormuz, the detention of migrant children in Texas, and Netanyahu’s pre-election gambits.To support Palestinians in Gaza, consider donating through The Sameer Project.We’re committed to independence and will never run ads …

Nathan Tankus joins us to discuss the monetary foundations of American empire, how sanctions weaponize the global financial system, the possibility of China-led de-dollarization, and what’s really going on with the oil futures market.This is part one of a two part episode. Part two, A Financial History of Zionism, will be released later this week on our paid feed. Works mentioned: A Spectrum Approach to Monetary Sovereignty and our Dollar World; Did the United States Really Invade Iraq Because it Started Pricing Oil in Euros?; Chasing China: Learning to Play by Beijing’s Global Lending Rules; The Oil Market is a Conventional Wisdom Processor; Super Imperialism: The Economic Strategy of American Empire; The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money.Nathan Tankus is a writer, researcher, and president of the publication Notes on the Crises. He is the author of the forthcoming book The Trump-Musk Payments Crisis: A 250-Year History, under contract with Viking Press. He is also the editor of We, Traitors: Bundist Writings on Zionism, Palestine, and Socialism, forthcoming from Haymarket.Nathan has created a 70% off annual subscription discount for Turbulence listeners! Access here: https://www.crisesnotes.com/turbulence.You can find Nathan on Bluesky or on Instagram.To support Palestinians in Gaza, consider donating through The Sameer Project.We’re committed to independence and will never run ads or take money from institutions. That means Turbulence is entirely listener-funded.For $5 a month, paid subscribers gain access to weekly news analysis bonus episodes, where we respond to events as they unfold, follow up on previous discussions, and draw connections across the conflicts shaping our world.Most importantly, paid subscriptions make it possible for us to keep doing this work independently, week after week.Subscribe today at turbulencepod.substack.comFollow along on Twitter/X and Instagram @turbulence_podTheme: Eye for an Eye, Haram (2017)Art: Vivek Venkatraman This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit turbulencepod.substack.com/subscribe

Hassan Ould Moctar joins us to discuss Europe’s externalized border regime, the colonial history of race and territory in Mauritania, and how migration control, counterinsurgency, and development policy have fused across the Sahel.Works mentioned: After Border Externalization: Migration, Race, and Labour in Mauritania.Hassan Ould Moctar is a Fellow at the Merian Centre for Advanced Studies in the Maghreb, University of Tunis and former lecturer in the Department of Anthropology and Sociology at SOAS, University of London. His research focuses on the relationship between migration, borders, and development processes, with a regional focus on West and North Africa. He is the author of After Border Externalization: Migration, Race, and Labour in Mauritania, which is available open access from Bloomsbury Publishers.To support migrants in Senegal and those facing deportation and border violence, consider donating to Boza Fii.We’re committed to independence and will never run ads or take money from institutions. That means Turbulence is entirely listener-funded.For $5 a month, paid subscribers gain access to weekly news analysis bonus episodes, where we respond to events as they unfold, follow up on previous discussions, and draw connections across the conflicts shaping our world.Most importantly, paid subscriptions make it possible for us to keep doing this work independently, week after week.Subscribe today at turbulencepod.substack.comFollow along on Twitter/X and Instagram @turbulence_podTheme: Eye for an Eye, Haram (2017)Art: Vivek VenkatramanResearcher: KC This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit turbulencepod.substack.com/subscribe

Aziz Rana joins us to discuss the Trump doctrine of foreign policy, the evolution of US hegemony since WW2, how the concept of freedom has animated American political thought and identity, and the challenge of political subjectivity.Works mentioned: The Two Faces of American Freedom, The Constitutional Bind, Workshop on Internationalism and Relations with Liberation Struggles Around the World.Aziz Rana is a professor of law and government at Boston College Law School, where his research and teaching center on American constitutional law and political development. In particular, his work focuses on how shifting notions of race, citizenship, and empire have shaped legal and political identity since the founding. He is the author of two books: The Two Faces of American Freedom and his most recent book, The Constitutional Bind: How Americans Came to Idolize a Document that Fails Them.We’re committed to independence and will never run ads or take money from institutions. That means Turbulence is entirely listener-funded.For $5 a month, paid subscribers gain access to weekly news analysis bonus episodes, where we respond to events as they unfold, follow up on previous discussions, and draw connections across the conflicts shaping our world.Most importantly, paid subscriptions make it possible for us to keep doing this work independently, week after week.Subscribe today at turbulencepod.substack.comFollow along on Twitter/X and Instagram @turbulence_podTheme: Eye for an Eye, Haram (2017)Art: Vivek Venkatraman This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit turbulencepod.substack.com/subscribe

Hakim Adi joins us to discuss the Black radicals who shaped the Comintern, the Black Belt Thesis and the national question, Pan-Africanism through decolonization, and whether the Alliance of Sahel States is a path to African sovereignty.Works mentioned: Pan-Africanism and Communism, Black Bolshevik, Africa Must UniteProf. Hakim Adi is currently a Visiting Senior Fellow at the Department of International History at the London School of Economics and Professorial Research Associate at the Centre of Pan-African Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies. Hakim was the first historian of African heritage to become a professor of history in Britain. His most recent books are Pan-Africanism and Communism: The Communist International, Africa and the Diaspora, 1919-1939 (Africa World Press, 2013), Pan-Africanism: A History (1804 Books, 2023), and, as editor Black British History: New Perspectives (Zed, 2019), Black Voices on Britain (Macmillan, 2022) and Many Struggles: New Histories of African and Caribbean People in Britain (Pluto, 2023). His most recent publication, Africa and Caribbean People in Britain: A History (Allen Lane, 2023) was shortlisted for the prestigious Wolfson History Prize in Britain in September 2023.We’re committed to independence and will never run ads or take money from institutions. That means Turbulence is entirely listener-funded.For $5 a month, paid subscribers gain access to weekly news analysis bonus episodes, where we respond to events as they unfold, follow up on previous discussions, and draw connections across the conflicts shaping our world.Most importantly, paid subscriptions make it possible for us to keep doing this work independently, week after week.Subscribe today at turbulencepod.substack.comFollow along on Twitter/X and Instagram @turbulence_podTheme: Eye for an Eye, Haram (2017)Art: Vivek Venkatraman This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit turbulencepod.substack.com/subscribe

Matthew Petti joins us to discuss the crack-up within the Republican Party’s base over Gaza, Netanyahu’s plan to wind down US military aid, and what the US’s performance in the Iran War portends for the future of great power conflict.Check out Matthew’s latest piece, published on Drop Site, here. You can read some of the other pieces mentioned in the interview here and here.Matthew Petti is an assistant editor at Reason who covers U.S. national security policy and its interactions with American society and domestic politics. He has previously reported for the BBC (in Persian and English), The Intercept, The Daily Beast, New Lines, Responsible Statecraft, Middle East Eye, and The National Interest, among other publications. You can find him on Substack and on X/Twitter.Please consider donating to families in need in Gaza: here, here, or here.We’re committed to independence and will never run ads or take money from institutions. That means Turbulence is entirely listener-funded.For $5 a month, paid subscribers gain access to weekly news analysis bonus episodes, where we respond to events as they unfold, follow up on previous discussions, and draw connections across the conflicts shaping our world.Most importantly, paid subscriptions make it possible for us to keep doing this work independently, week after week.Subscribe today at turbulencepod.substack.comFollow along on Twitter/X and Instagram @turbulence_podTheme: Eye for an Eye, Haram (2017)Art: Vivek Venkatraman This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit turbulencepod.substack.com/subscribe