Longtime Hard Knock Radio host Davey D sits down with Dhoruba Bin Wahad, a former political prisoner, veteran Black Panther, freedom fighter, and Ghana based political analyst, for a far reaching discussion on Iran, Palestine, and the growing instability across Africa. In this first part of their conversation, Bin Wahad argues that the crises unfolding in the Middle East and on the African continent cannot be understood outside the history of colonialism, imperialism, and white supremacist power.
The discussion opens with Iran. Davey D frames the confusion many people in the United States are facing, where the war is often presented as a necessary fight for democracy or national security. Bin Wahad pushes back on that framing and says the real story begins with history. He traces the roots of the current moment through the creation of Israel, British colonial strategy, and the long pattern of Western intervention in the region. He argues that the 1953 CIA backed overthrow of Iranian leader Mohammad Mossadegh was a turning point, replacing an elected government with the Shah in order to maintain Western control over oil and regional power.
From there, Bin Wahad connects these global struggles to Black political history in the United States. Drawing from his experience in the Black Panther Party, he recalls the solidarity that existed between Black liberation movements and Palestinian and African anti colonial struggles. He argues that Black people should not see what is happening in Iran, Palestine, or elsewhere as distant matters, but as connected to the same systems of domination that shape repression at home. He points to attacks on civil rights, the rollback of DEI, the rewriting of history, and the rise of reactionary politics as evidence that foreign and domestic policy are deeply intertwined.
The conversation then shifts toward Africa, where Bin Wahad says another major battle over resources and power is underway. He describes Sudan as one of the most urgent humanitarian crises in the world and argues that outside forces are helping drive the violence because of the country’s gold, oil, and strategic value. He also revisits Libya, saying Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown not simply because of dictatorship claims, but because he was advancing a vision of African unity, independent development, and economic systems outside the dominance of the U.S. dollar.
Throughout the interview, Davey D helps unpack Bin Wahad’s wide ranging analysis by asking pointed questions that make the geopolitics more accessible. Part one lays the foundation for a broader critique of empire, showing how war, economic control, and political repression abroad are inseparable from the conditions Black communities face at home.
Hard Knock Radio is a drive-time Hip-Hop talk show on KPFA (94.1fm @ 4-5 pm Monday-Friday), a community radio station without corporate underwriting, hosted by Davey D and Anita Johnson.