Medea Benjamin

Medea Benjamin

Medea Benjamin, co-founder of Global Exchange and CODEPINK: Women for Peace, is the author of the new book, Inside Iran: The Real History and Politics of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Her previous books include: Kingdom of the Unjust: Behind the U.S.-Saudi Connection; Drone Warfare: Killing by Remote Control; Don’t Be Afraid Gringo: A Honduran Woman Speaks from the Heart, and (with Jodie Evans) Stop the Next War Now (Inner Ocean Action Guide). Follow her on Twitter: @medeabenjamin

Articles by this author

An image grab taken from a video made available by al-Huthi Media Office on September 18, 2019 shows what they say are satellite images of before (R) and after last week's attack on Saudi Aramco's oil fields. Yemen's Iranian-backed Huthi rebels claimed responsibility for last week's oil installation attacks, which took out half the Kingdom's production, although Washington and Riyadh have roundly rejected the claim and blamed Iran instead. (Photo: Al-Huthi Group Media Office / AFP) (Photo credit should read Views
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
Will Americans Let Trump Start World War III for Saudi Arabia and Israel?
On Saturday, September 14th, two oil refineries and other oil infrastructure in Saudi Arabia were hit and set ablaze by 18 drones and 7 cruise missiles, dramatically slashing Saudi Arabia’s oil production by half, from about ten million to five million barrels per day. On September 18, the Trump...
Read more
Anti-war demonstration in New York City on the 16th anniversary of the invasion of Afghanistan, October 7 2017. (Photo: Erik McGregor/SIPA USA/PA Images) Views
Thursday, September 05, 2019
Should We Feed Hungry Children, or the War Machine?
In August 21, the Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, Lise Grande, put out a heartbreaking cal l for nations to make good on their pledges to send humanitarian aid to feed destitute families in war-torn Yemen. Unless the funds promised are received soon, she warned, food rations for 12 million...
Read more
Progressive candidates should instead be sending the entire world an unequivocal message that the United States is finally ready to turn the page to a new era of peaceful, cooperative and lawful diplomacy. (Photo: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images) Views
Monday, August 26, 2019
Are Sanders and Warren Throwing a Lifeline to the Military-Industrial Complex?
Among the frontrunners in the Democratic Party presidential primary, Senators Warren and Sanders not only have the most progressive domestic agenda, but also the most anti-war, pro-diplomacy foreign policy agenda. The sharpest distinction between them is that Sanders has voted against over 80% of...
Read more
While the easing of the guardianship system is indeed welcome news, Saudi Arabia remains one of the world’s most repressive societies for women. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images) Views
Friday, August 02, 2019
Guardianship System Eased, But Saudi Arabia Still Oppresses Women
The Saudi government announced it will be eliminating part of the male guardianship system, finally granting women the right to obtain passports and travel (if 21 years of age or over), and obtain family identification cards without the need for male authorization. The change comes in the context...
Read more
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani speaks to the media at a joint press conference in Tehran. (Photo: Ebrahim Noroozi/AP) Views
Thursday, July 18, 2019
Trump’s Threats Towards Iran Aren’t Working. Here’s Why.
The Trump Administration has imposed sanctions against more than 1,000 Iranian entities, including Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, targeting almost every significant sector of that nation’s economy. But recently it reversed course , backing off its threat to sanction a top Iranian diplomat, Foreign...
Read more
U.S. Navy Blue Angels fly over as President Donald J. Trump participates in an Independence Day Fourth of July Celebration 'Salute to America' event in front of the Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall on Thursday, July 4th, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo: Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images) Views
Monday, July 08, 2019
Dogs of War Howl for Blood in Iran While Americans Cheer US Bombers on July 4th
President Trump’s order to the Pentagon to have an aerial parade of military aircraft over Washington, DC on July 4 provided a history lesson of America’s war mongering in the past two decades, and a terrifying view of what might appear in the skies of Iran if John Bolton gets his way. The combat...
Read more
Members of the US military are seen next to a Bradley Fighting Vehicle as preparations are made for the "Salute to America" Fourth of July event with US President Donald Trump at the Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, DC, July 3, 2019, which will feature flyovers by the Blue Angels, an airplane used as Air Force One, as well as military demonstrations and a speech by Trump. (Photo: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images) Views
Thursday, July 04, 2019
Trump Celebrates Himself on July 4th
This year’s Fourth of July celebration on the National Mall in Washington, DC has become a stop on the Trump for President re-election campaign trail. His “Salute to America” has become a “Salute to Donald Trump.” He has called the events the “show of a lifetime!” and an unprecedented celebration...
Read more
On the eve of renewed sanctions by Washington, an Iranian protester holds a burning picture of President Donald Trump outside the former US embassy in the Iranian capital Tehran on November 4, 2018. (Photo: Majid Saeedi/Getty Images) Views
Monday, June 17, 2019
U.S. Sanctions: Economic Sabotage That Is Deadly, Illegal, and Ineffective
While the mystery of who is responsible for sabotaging the two tankers in the Gulf of Oman remains unsolved, it is clear that the Trump administration has been sabotaging Iranian oil shipments since May 2, when it announced its intention to “ bring Iran’s oil exports to zero, denying the regime its...
Read more
Beach chairs are lined up for a show at the beach of the Cayo Blanco key, a 50 minute ride in Catamaran from Varadero, on May 12, 2019, in Cayo Blanco, Cuba. Cuban tourism is facing challenges as the US government recently tightened its embargo on Cuba activating the Title III of the Helms Burton law increasing the pressure on the Cuban government by allowing U.S. courts to prosecute international companies which have worked with properties nationalized in Cuba since 1959. (Photo by Sven Creutzmann/Mambo ph Views
Wednesday, June 05, 2019
Travel to Cuba Falls Victim to John Bolton’s Wrath
John Bolton hates the governments of Venezuela, Cuba, and Nicaragua— calling them the “troika of tyranny” and the “three stooges of socialism”—and is determined to use his time as National Security Advisor to eliminate the vestiges of socialism in our hemisphere. He has openly stated that the 1823...
Read more
Views
Tuesday, May 14, 2019
Venezuela Embassy Protection Collective Defies Unlawful “No Trespass” Order
An extraordinary set of events has been unfolding at the Venezuela Embassy in Washington DC, ever since the Embassy Protection Collective began living at the embassy with the permission of the elected government of Venezuela on April 10 to protect it from an illegal takeover by Venezuela’s...
Read more

Pages