Marxist historian, journalist, and political commentator weighs in on the recent controversy surrounding a letter, published in The Guardian and signed by a number of respected leftists including Angela Davis & Mumia Abu-Jamal. The letter drew criticism for drawing false equivalence between US empire and Iran as Iran resists the US war of aggression. Now, several signatories have disclaimed the letter, saying they misled about its final contents before they signed, but others, including Davis, have not. To what extent is this letter evidence of an effort to create a permission structure to break solidarity with Iran? Does existence of a campaign to do so reflect the vulnerability of US empire amid growing bipartisan distaste for the Iran war? Prashad talks us through his response piece, Against the False Symmetry of the Scissors: An Open Letter While Iran Resists an Illegal War of Aggression, & weighs in on the US left's insufficient commitment to anti-imperialism. Find Bad Faith on Apple, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts. Or subscribe to our RSS feed. Follow Bad Faith on Twitter (@badfaithpod) and Instagram (@badfaithpod). Subscribe at patreon.com/badfaithpodcast for an additional Monday episode every week. Watch all episodes at Bad Faith YouTube, and don't forget to like and subscribe. Theme by Nick Thorburn (@nickfromislands). 0:00 Critiquing the Guardian letter on Iran 8:56 Mumia Abu-Jamal’s disputed signature 15:18 Anti-imperialism and the DSA’s electoral retreat 21:59 Iran’s nuclear history and Strait of Hormuz leverage 28:24 The American left’s political strategy dilemma 42:16 Militarism, media traps, and courage of conviction 47:29 Responding to prominent signatories and the Guardian 54:10 Reclaiming a clear-eyed anti-imperialist analysis 57:13 Where to find Vijay Prashad and Bad Faith