A Muslim & A Jew Go There

It’s polling day! Sayeeda and David consider what this election means for Muslims and Jews in the UK & discuss who they are voting for.This podcast is produced by Instinct Productions Executive Producers: Jemima Khan Goldsmith and Sarah LintonSeries Producer: Rachel BalmerProduction Manager: Sangeetha VeluruResearch, fact check and social media production: Philip BermanContact us via email: podcast@instinctproductions.com or via X: @amuslimandajew

Humza Yousaf, who resigned as Scotland's First Minister in May, was the first Muslim to lead a Western democracy. Sayeeda and David talk to him about his faith, his identity and growing up in a Jewish neighbourhood. He talks movingly about his in-laws in Gaza, and how knowing that condemning Hamas's actions on October 7th could have had fatal repercussions for his family. Also - his views on other more right-wing politicians with South Asian heritage, Sunak and Braverman, and on the need for more empathy in politics.This podcast is produced by Instinct Productions Executive Producers: Jemima Khan Goldsmith and Sarah LintonSeries Producer: Rachel BalmerProduction Manager: Sangeetha VeluruResearch, Fact check and Social Media Production: Philip BermanSend in your questions via email: podcast@instinctproductions.com or via X: @amuslimandajew

This Wednesday marked the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict, and David and Sayeeda discuss the way that reports of sexual violence on and since 7 October by Hamas and by the Israeli army have been denied and weaponised by governments, the media and tribalism. Closer to home, Sayeeda and David turn to the general election campaign trail, as two MPs of colour have been hounded and harassed on the streets about their voting record on Gaza. Who would ever want to be a politician?This podcast is produced by Instinct Productions Executive Producers: Jemima Khan Goldsmith and Sarah LintonSeries Producer: Rachel BalmerProduction Manager: Sangeetha VeluruFact check and Social Media Production: Philip BermanSend in your questions via email: podcast@instinctproductions.com or via X: @amuslimandajew

Sir Mark Rowley goes there… from pro-Palestine marches to far right protests and bad faith actors, the Metropolitan Police and its Chief have faced enormous challenges over the last 8 months. Sayeeda and David ask him about accusations of ‘two tier policing', of being too ‘woke’ as well as too 'fascist' and what the next government might look at in terms of policy changes.This podcast is produced by Instinct Productions Executive Producers: Jemima Khan Goldsmith and Sarah LintonSeries Producer: Rachel Balmer and Jemima Khan GoldsmithProduction Manager: Sangeetha VeluruSend in your questions via email: podcast@instinctproductions.com or via X: @amuslimandajew

As the election campaign ramps up, Labour have got themselves into hot water over the deselection of candidate Faiza Shaheen. Is Labour guilty of double standards on antisemitism and Islamophobia in the party, and is there a cynical attempt to weaponise racism for factional political purposes?Sayeeda and David discuss Biden’s ceasefire plan and whether it’s what Israel and Hamas really want. Hay Festival, Edinburgh International Book Festival and Cheltenham Literature Festival have all cut ties with their sponsor over links to the fossil fuel industry and alleged links to Israel. Has this been an effective strategy in the cultural fight against Israel or is the boycott bonkers?This podcast is produced by Instinct Productions Executive Producers: Jemima Khan Goldsmith and Sarah LintonSeries Producer: Rachel Balmer and Jemima Khan GoldsmithProduction Manager: Sangeetha VeluruSend in your questions via email: podcast@instinctproductions.com or via X: @amuslimandajew

A General Election has been called, and David & Sayeeda discuss the Muslim vote and whether Gaza will be top of the agenda for voters, and whether the election campaign will be dominated by divisive rhetoric. David & Sayeeda then reflect on the terrible images that have been coming out of Rafah this week, as well as the screening of a documentary about the horrors of October 7th which led to accusations of 'artwashing' and violent protests in East Finchley, North London. But what were the protests about and how have the far right somehow managed to co-opt them again? Also Spain, Norway and Ireland have recognised the state of Palestine. It is high time the UK followed suit?This podcast is produced by Instinct Productions Executive Producers: Jemima Khan Goldsmith and Sarah LintonSeries Producer: Rachel Balmer and Jemima Khan GoldsmithProduction Manager: Sangeetha VeluruSend in your questions via email: podcast@instinctproductions.com or via X: @amuslimandajew

David’s away, so Sayeeda is joined by journalist and new Jew for the week Hugo Rifkind. They discuss Hugo's Scottish Jewishness, Jews as an ethnic minority and those against multiculturalism, as well as the International Criminal Court’s recent application for arrest warrants for the Israeli PM, defence minister and three Hamas leaders. Are war crimes inevitable in any conflict? Does Israel care how it’s viewed on the world stage? And Sayeeda tests Hugo’s Scottish-Yiddish.This podcast is produced by Instinct Productions Executive Producers: Jemima Khan Goldsmith and Sarah LintonSeries Producer: Rachel Balmer and Jemima Khan GoldsmithProduction Manager: Sangeetha VeluruSend in your questions via email: podcast@instinctproductions.com or via X: @amuslimandajew

After receiving so many great questions, David and Sayeeda are bringing you another Q&A.Listener Questions (with approximate timecodes)Were British Muslim institutions silent after October 7th? (0:22)Who gets to be the arbiter of whether a person, work or character is perpetuating racist tropes? (13:10)Are Muslims and Jews judged equally for their ‘dodgy connections’? (23:42)This podcast is produced by Instinct ProductionsExecutive Producers: Jemima Khan Goldsmith and Sarah LintonSeries Producer: Rachel Balmer and Jemima Khan GoldsmithProduction Manager: Sangeetha VeluruSend in your questions via email: podcast@instinctproductions.com or via X: @amuslimandajew

This week David and Sayeeda again take on your questions. Listen in as they go there!Q&A with timecodes (approximate)Is it correct to refer to the West Bank and Gaza as 'The Occupied Territories'? (0:26)Is it harder to leave the faith as a Muslim than it is for a Christian or Jew? (14:07)Can there ever be a Muslim equivalent to the Book of Mormon? (23:30)Is Dawkins' criticism of London's Ramadan lights Islamophobic? (34:16)This podcast is produced by Instinct Productions Executive Producers: Jemima Khan Goldsmith and Sarah LintonSeries Producer: Rachel Balmer and Jemima Khan GoldsmithProduction Manager: Sangeetha VeluruSend in your questions via email: podcast@instinctproductions.com or via X: @amuslimandajew