Medea Benjamin

Medea Benjamin is the co-founder of CODEPINK and author of Kingdom of the Unjust: Behind the US-Saudi Connection. Her new book is Inside Iran: The Real History and Politics of the Islamic Republic.

Biden’s Boycott of Cuba Is “A Failure at Regional Diplomacy”

Rather than bringing the Western Hemisphere together, the Biden administration seems intent on pulling it apart by threatening to exclude three nations that are certainly part of the Americas.

Medea Benjamin
By Medea Benjamin
Biden Feature photo

On May 16, the Biden administration announced new measures to “increase support for the Cuban people.” They included easing travel restrictions and helping Cuban-Americans support and connect with their families. They mark a step forward but a baby step, given that most U.S. sanctions on Cuba remain in place. Also in place is a ridiculous Biden

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Biden’s $7 Billion Afghan Heist

The president’s order diverting frozen funds to American families of 9/11 victims will only make the humanitarian and economic crises in Afghanistan worse.

Medea Benjamin
Cheryl Benard
Masuda Sultan
By Medea Benjamin
And Cheryl Benard
And Masuda Sultan
Biden Afghanistan Feature photo

With his Executive Order redefining Afghanistan’s Fiscal Reserve as a slush fund to be disbursed on his whim and with the stroke of his pen, President Biden has taken what may well be the final step in an experiment gone amok. The U.S. first attempted to make Afghanistan into a Western democracy, instead installed a kleptocracy, made Afghans endure

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Yes, There Were 10 Good Things About 2021

2021 was, indeed, a disastrous year, but we do have some reasons to cheer.

Medea Benjamin
By Medea Benjamin
2021 recap feature photo

This year, 2021, began with a huge sense of relief as Trump left office. We hoped to emerge from the ravages of COVID, pass a hefty Build Back Better (BBB) bill, and make significant cuts to the Pentagon budget. But, alas, we faced a January 6 white nationalist insurrection, two new COVID mutations, a sliced-and-diced BBB bill that didn’t pass, and

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Cubans Say They Are More Excited About School Reopening Than Regime Change

Most Cubans seem more concerned with getting their economy fired up than toppling their leaders. Even if they blame their government for mismanagement, corruption and a system that stifles private enterprise, few fail to recognize the enormous impact of U.S. sanctions.

Medea Benjamin
By Medea Benjamin
Cuba Feature photo

HAVANA -- “If you build it, they will come,” said Kevin Costner in the Field of Dreams. In Cuba, they didn’t come. Dissidents on the island, with their U.S. backers, had been working feverishly for months to turn the unprecedented July 11 protests into a crescendo of government opposition on November 15. They built a formidable structure, with

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How Feminists Can Support Afghan Women Living Under the Taliban

When the United States pulled out of Afghanistan, it froze billions of dollars in Afghan assets, grinding many of the country’s most essential operations to a halt and spreading misery. The US government must release those funds.

Medea Benjamin
Ariel Gold
By Medea Benjamin
And Ariel Gold

WASHINGTON (Jacobin) — Since the Taliban took control of Kabul and the central government on August 15, efforts to support Afghan women have become extremely challenging. According to some prominent U.S. feminists with strong ties to Afghan women, the Taliban “has no legitimacy beyond the brutal force it commands,” and governments, the United

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Carlos Lazo: The Cuban American Leading the Charge to Transform US-Cuba Policy

While right-wing Cubans in Miami call him “comunista,” Carlos Lazo has no time for ideology. He is neither for or against the Cuban government; he is for the Cuban people, the Cuban families. And he is disgusted by the cruelty of the U.S. blockade

Medea Benjamin
By Medea Benjamin
Carlos Lazo Feature photo

Carlos Lazo and a small band of Cuban Americans are on a 1,300-mile pilgrimage from Miami to Washington, D.C., to end the U.S. blockade of Cuba. Despite the blistering summer heat and occasional death threats (including a trucker who tried to run them off the road), the marchers persist. Lazo’s group is called Puentes de Amor, Bridges of Love, and

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Rural Teacher Pedro Castillo Poised to Write a New Chapter in Peru’s History

In a cliffhanger of an election with a huge urban-rural and class divide, it appears that the rural teacher, farmer and union leader is about to make history by defeating–by less than one percent–powerful far-right candidate Keiko Fujimori.

Medea Benjamin
Leonardo Flores
By Medea Benjamin
And Leonardo Flores
Pedro Castillo Feature photo

With his wide-brimmed peasant hat and oversized teacher’s pencil held high, Peru’s Pedro Castillo has been traveling the country exhorting voters to get behind a call that has been particularly urgent during this devastating pandemic: “No más pobres en un país rico” - No more poor people in a rich country. In a cliffhanger of an election with a

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