Show notes
In this powerful episode of Being Jewish with Jonah Platt, Jonah speaks with Jewish Iranian advocates, Rabbi Tarlan Rabizadeh of American Jewish University, Mandana Dayani of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council, and Matthew Nouriel of JIMENA - Jews Indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa, whose families fled persecution by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), offering an urgent and deeply personal look at life under the Iranian regime. The conversation exposes how the IRGC functions not just as a military force, but as an ideological and economic power structure responsible for widespread human rights abuses, political repression, and global terrorism. The guests share personal stories about living under the threat and surveillance of the IRGC. The episode explores the Iranian regime’s hostility toward Israel, the Jewish community, and the West, while drawing clear distinctions between the Iranian people and their government. Jonah and his guests discuss how the IRGC funds proxy groups like Hamas and Hezbollah, destabilizing the Middle East and exporting violence far beyond Iran’s borders. The conversation also highlights the challenges refugees face when seeking asylum in the United States, Canada, and Europe, and the importance of educating Western audiences about Iran’s internal resistance movements. Ultimately, the episode is a call to awareness, urging listeners to recognize the human cost of extremism and stand with those fighting for freedom, and truth.Topics Include:Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its role in IranPolitical repression and surveillance in IranIranian refugees seeking asylum in the United States and CanadaIRGC funding of Hamas and HezbollahIran’s anti-Israel ideology and antisemitismDistinguishing the Iranian people from the Iranian regimeIranian opposition movements and internal resistanceTerrorism exported by Iran across the Middle EastThe impact of October 7 on Iranian dissidents worldwideWestern media narratives about Iran and the IRGCJewish solidarity with persecuted communities under authoritarian regimesMentioned In The Episode:Tarlan Rabizadeh InstagramMatthew Nouriel InstagramMandana Dayani InstagramBrandolini’s LawAvailability HeuristicInattention BlindnessDhimmi Under Muslim RuleIsrael is not an Apartheid StateAre Jews White?Infant Death During the Hamas Attack on Israel'They just kept killing': Eyewitnesses describe deadly crackdown in IranWhat Led to the 1979 Iranian Revolution?Over 36,500 killed in Iran's deadliest massacre, documents revealThe expulsion of Jews from Arab countries and Iran – an untold historyFirst Persian Female Rabbi Finds Her VoiceMiller Intro to JudaismThe Battle for Sheikh JarrahWhy Iranian women are burning their hijabs after the death of Mahsa Amini“Women, Life, Freedom” a new revolutionary era in IranLGBT Rights in IranSpeaking Up - United Nations Special Session on Oct. 7th: Mandana DayaniADL and JLens Urge Accountability Regarding Huda Kattan's Antisemitic RemarksHuda Beauty faces boycott campaign over founder’s Iran protest videoRediscovering the Lost Tribes and God’s Faithfulness: The Jewish Diaspora and AliyahIranian Diaspora CollectiveHow Ancient Persians Essentially Saved Judaism As We Know It TodayWhy Are We So Silent About the Uprising in Iran?Leading Change: How Persian and Jewish Diasporas Can Unite against AntisemitismI came to Israel for Pride. It got canceled.Matthew Nouriel, The Empress MizrahiAmerican Jewish UniversityReport Shows Foreign-Born Citizens Are More Socially Conservative Than Their Native-Born Counterparts and Are Less Likely to Identify with Either Political PartyMatthew Nouriel, Community Engagement Director JIMENASephardim, Mizrachim in NY more conservative, less likely to intermarry than peers, per UJA studyAyatollah Khomeini returns to IranThe Ironies of History: The Ukraine Crisis through the Lens of Jewish HistoryJimmy Carter, blamed by many Iranians for the revolution, dies at 100The Fascinating History and Political Lives of Jews in IranJewish students assaulted, threatened and harassed at UCLA campusEducation Department opens second investigation into Yale antisemitismIran-Iraq WarHIAS United States Holocaust Memorial Council (Board of Trustees)Steven Wise TempleGerman Jews' Passports Declared InvalidExpulsion to cultural integration: 500 years of Sephardic Jews in TürkiyeDid Ezra Reconstruct the Torah or Just Change the Script?Rabbi Tarlan Rabizadeh Named American Jewish University’s VP for Jewish EngagementJay Sanderson BJJPPersian Gondi on FridaysSupport the podcast directly by becoming a member of the Kehillah.Watch Being Jewish on YouTube:www.youtube.com/@beingjewishpodcastSubscribe to the Being Jewish Newsletter:bit.ly/beingjewishnewsletterFor Sponsorships, please email:[email protected]://beingjewishpodcast.com/merchTo contact us & all things BJJP:www.BeingJewishPodcast.comFollow Jonah on:Instagram - @JonahPlattX - @JonahPlattFollow Being Jewish on:Instagram - @BeingJewishPodcastTikTok - @BeingJewishWritten and Hosted by Jonah Platt, Executive Producers: Steve Hein, Jonah Platt, Chief Business Officer: Kenyon Laing, Chief Marketing Officer: Katya Nayman, Production Manager/Executive Assistant: Josie Rothschild, Research Associate: Samantha Greenwald, Production Associates: Rachel Stern, Charlie Zuker, Production Interns: Sasha Nelson, Emma Webb, YouTube Consultants: Jason Al-Samarrie & Zac Stein, Post Production by TIMEWEAVER, Creative Director: F. Brian Scofield, ACE, Lead Editor: Noam Klement, Editor: Gray Clevenger, Joe King. Graphic Designer: Noah Bell, Theme Music by Gabriel Mann, Performed by Jonah Platt