Sarah Flounders has spent decades at the heart of America’s anti-war movement, co-directing the International Action Center and serving as a contributing editor to Workers World newspaper. In this conversation with Kianistan Podcast, recorded the Friday before the 2024 US presidential election, Flounders offers a sweeping account of what she sees as the real, lasting impact of anti-war organising, even when it fails to stop a war outright.

The conversation opens with a deeply personal case that has occupied much of Flounders’s activism for years: the imprisonment of Dr Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani neuroscientist and MIT graduate held in a federal prison in Texas since her conviction following a case Flounders describes as riddled with legal irregularities, including a trial held in New York for events that occurred in Afghanistan.

Flounders situates the anti-war movement’s legacy within a much longer arc, from the campaign against devastating US sanctions on Iraq in the 1990s, through the post-9/11 crackdown on Muslim communities in America, to today’s suppression of pro-Palestine student organising on US campuses. Throughout, she argues that despite intense repression, movements have consistently found ways to adapt, regroup and continue.

The conversation closes with a wide-ranging discussion of America’s two-party political system, the devastating human cost of economic sanctions worldwide, and the emerging alternative economic relationships being built through BRICS, offering Flounders’s assessment of what genuine international solidarity looks like in an era of accelerating imperial decline.

Key Topics Discussed

The Case of Dr Aafia Siddiqui

Flounders details her years of advocacy for Dr Aafia Siddiqui, a case she describes as one of the most troubling examples of post-9/11 injustice.

• Flounders describes Siddiqui as a brilliant scholar who topped her class in Pakistan before excelling academically at MIT in the United States.
• She details the horrendous conditions of Siddiqui’s imprisonment at the Carswell federal facility in Texas, including years without visitation rights and a period in solitary confinement following an attack in general population.
• Flounders notes the case’s legal irregularities, including that Siddiqui, a Pakistani citizen, was tried in New York City for an incident alleged to have occurred in Afghanistan, despite no one being injured except Siddiqui herself.
• She describes the scale of the security response to Siddiqui’s New York trial as disproportionate, involving hundreds of police officers for a single defendant.
• Flounders expresses disappointment at the lack of sustained advocacy from successive Pakistani governments, including from populist leader Imran Khan, despite Siddiqui’s case receiving significant public attention in Pakistan.

Lessons from the Anti-Iraq War Movement

Flounders reflects on what the anti-war movement actually achieved, even though it failed to prevent the 2003 invasion.

• Flounders argues the anti-war movement’s most significant achievement was demonstrating a sharp, visible break between the US government and millions of ordinary Americans who recognised the wars did not serve their interests.
• She highlights the often-overlooked campaign against US sanctions on Iraq in the 1990s, noting that by the US government’s own measure, half a million children died in the sanctions’ first four years alone.
• Flounders describes every war as accompanied by domestic criminalisation of the associated community, citing the sweeping targeting of Muslim Americans in travel, employment and legal status after 9/11.
• She notes this domestic repression forces anti-war organisers to simultaneously confront both foreign policy and domestic civil rights violations.
• Flounders argues that despite this repression, the movement’s persistence demonstrated the limits of unchecked US power, a lesson she says directly informs today’s Palestine solidarity movement.

Campus Repression and the Palestine Solidarity Movement

Flounders draws direct parallels between post-9/11 repression and today’s crackdown on pro-Palestine campus organising.

• Flounders describes widespread shutdowns of Students for Justice in Palestine organisations on US campuses, alongside social media bans, scholarship cuts and summary firings of professors sympathetic to Palestine.
• She argues these repressive measures, despite their severity, have not succeeded in shutting down the movement, demonstrating what she calls the limits of perceived US institutional power.
• Flounders situates today’s Gaza solidarity movement within a direct lineage from the anti-Iraq War movement, noting many of the same organisational tactics and repressive countermeasures.
• She highlights the emergence of a new generation of young activists skilled in using social media platforms, including Instagram and TikTok, to sustain organising even when accounts are repeatedly shut down.
• Flounders draws a striking historical parallel to Gaza’s resistance, describing it as having inspired a broader shift in the political climate across the wider West Asia region.

The 2024 US Election and the Limits of the Two-Party System

Recorded just before election day, Flounders offers a sharp critique of America’s electoral choices.

• Flounders describes the 2024 election as a choice between two imperialist parties, arguing neither major candidate offered genuine opposition to continuing US-backed wars.
• She criticises Kamala Harris specifically for refusing to distance herself in any way from support for what Flounders calls the Israeli genocide in Gaza.
• Flounders notes Harris’s campaign did not even offer the traditional Democratic promises around healthcare or student debt relief that previous campaigns typically included.
• She expresses disappointment at the trajectory of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s independent campaign, noting early excitement among some activists dissolved once his strongly pro-Israel positions on Gaza became clear.
• Flounders argues genuine political change requires building power through unions, demonstrations and grassroots organising rather than relying on either major party.

The Devastating Human Cost of Economic Sanctions

Flounders makes the case that sanctions, often overlooked compared to direct military conflict, cause equally severe humanitarian harm.

• Flounders notes her organisation runs a dedicated campaign, Sanctions Kill, documenting the humanitarian impact of US sanctions on dozens of countries worldwide.
• She states that roughly a third of the world’s population currently lives under some form of US or allied sanctions.
• Flounders argues sanctions disproportionately harm children, the elderly and the chronically ill, by cutting off medicine, fertilizer, grain and clean water access.
• She describes sanctions on Russia as having ‘boomeranged’, noting Biden’s prediction of rapid Russian economic collapse failed as much of the world continued trading with Russia out of self-interest.
• Flounders highlights China’s willingness to purchase Russian oil and gas as providing crucial economic flexibility that blunted the intended impact of Western sanctions.

BRICS, Sovereignty and the Limits of Western Divide-and-Rule Strategy

Flounders closes by assessing how BRICS and shifting global alliances are creating new space for countries under sanction.

• Flounders identifies a historical pattern of British and American imperial strategy relying on deliberate ethnic and religious division, tracing this directly back to British colonial administration of India.
• She contrasts this with what she describes as a genuinely different approach within BRICS, emphasising normalised trade relationships and mutual benefit rather than externally imposed political conditions.
• Flounders highlights the growing normalisation of relations between historic regional rivals, including Saudi Arabia and Iran, and credits China’s diplomatic role in facilitating this shift.
• She argues the Belt and Road Initiative’s appeal lies partly in offering more favourable financing terms than the IMF or World Bank for infrastructure development.
• Flounders closes by expressing admiration for the courage of young activists willing to sacrifice academic and professional prospects in solidarity with Palestine, describing their persistence as deeply inspiring for the broader movement.

Major Takeaways

• Flounders continues years of advocacy for Dr Aafia Siddiqui, whose imprisonment she describes as marked by severe legal irregularities and inhumane conditions.
• The anti-Iraq War movement’s most lasting achievement, in Flounders’s assessment, was demonstrating a durable break between the US government and ordinary Americans opposed to endless war.
• Today’s Palestine solidarity movement on US campuses draws directly on organisational lessons and repressive countermeasures first developed during the post-9/11 era.
• Flounders frames the 2024 US election as offering no genuine anti-war alternative, criticising both major party candidates for continuity on support for the war in Gaza.
• Roughly a third of the world’s population now lives under some form of US or allied economic sanctions, which Flounders argues cause humanitarian harm comparable to direct military conflict.
• She sees BRICS expansion and normalised regional relationships, such as the Saudi Arabia-Iran rapprochement, as offering a genuine alternative to Western divide-and-rule strategy.

About Sarah Flounders

Sarah Flounders is a veteran anti-war activist, author and co-director of the International Action Center, as well as a contributing editor to Workers World newspaper. Her decades of activism span campaigns against the Gulf War-era sanctions on Iraq, the post-9/11 war on terror, and ongoing solidarity work with Palestine.

Flounders has travelled to Palestine, Lebanon and Syria to document firsthand the human cost of US-backed military and economic policy, and continues to lead advocacy for imprisoned activists including Dr Aafia Siddiqui. Her focus areas include:

• Anti-war organising and international solidarity movements
• The humanitarian impact of US and allied economic sanctions
• Advocacy for Dr Aafia Siddiqui and other post-9/11 era prisoners
• Palestine solidarity organising and campus free speech
• US electoral politics and grassroots alternatives to the two-party system

About Kianistan Podcast

Kianistan Podcast, hosted by Tafhim Kiani, is committed to giving voice to activists and organisers whose decades of frontline work rarely receive the mainstream media attention they deserve. The show consistently seeks out guests who can connect today’s headlines to the longer historical arc of resistance and solidarity movements that came before them.

This conversation with Sarah Flounders, recorded on the eve of the 2024 US election, reflects that mission, tracing a direct line from the anti-Iraq War movement of the early 2000s to today’s Palestine solidarity organising and the ongoing fight for justice for prisoners like Dr Aafia Siddiqui. Kianistan Podcast remains dedicated to platforming voices with the lived experience and historical memory to place today’s struggles in proper context.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Sarah Flounders?

Sarah Flounders is a veteran anti-war activist, co-director of the International Action Center, and contributing editor to Workers World newspaper, known for decades of organising against US-backed wars and sanctions and advocacy for imprisoned activists including Dr Aafia Siddiqui.

Who is Dr Aafia Siddiqui and why does Flounders advocate for her release?

Dr Aafia Siddiqui is a Pakistani neuroscientist and MIT graduate imprisoned in the United States following a case Flounders describes as marked by severe legal irregularities, including being tried in New York for an incident alleged to have occurred in Afghanistan, despite no one being injured except Siddiqui herself.

What does Flounders say about the impact of economic sanctions?

Flounders argues that roughly a third of the world’s population currently lives under some form of US or allied sanctions, which she says disproportionately harm children, the elderly and the chronically ill by cutting off access to medicine, food and clean water.

What does Flounders say about the 2024 US presidential election?

Flounders describes the election as a choice between two imperialist parties, criticising both major candidates for offering no genuine break from continued US support for the war in Gaza, and argues genuine change requires grassroots organising rather than reliance on either party.

Conclusion

Sarah Flounders’s conversation with Kianistan Podcast offers a sobering but ultimately resilient account of decades spent organising against US-backed wars and sanctions, from the devastating 1990s sanctions on Iraq to today’s campus crackdowns on Palestine solidarity organising. Her ongoing advocacy for Dr Aafia Siddiqui serves as a stark reminder of the human cost borne by individuals caught in the machinery of the post-9/11 war on terror.

As Flounders connects the dots between historical anti-war organising and today’s movements, her insistence that repression, however severe, has never succeeded in permanently silencing resistance offers a note of genuine hope. Her closing reflections on BRICS, sanctions and the courage of a new generation of young activists underscore her conviction that meaningful change continues to emerge from the grassroots, regardless of which party occupies the White House.

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