Born in the West: The Hidden Origins of Today’s Anti-Western Movements

On this episode of Don’t Know Much About, Dr. Naya Lekht is joined by Samuel J. Hyde, a fellow at the Jewish People Policy Institute (JPPI) and a columnist for The Jerusalem Post. Born in South Africa, Sam recounts his firsthand encounters with what he calls institutional antizionism. It may sound unbelievable, but in South Africa, Hamas maintains official representation: an actual brick-and-mortar office in Cape Town.

Sam explains how Hamas, along with other Third World “liberation” terrorist groups, became embedded within the ANC, South Africa’s dominant political party. As Naya and Sam peel back the layers of how South Africa adopted pro-terrorist and anti-Western attitudes, they trace a significant part of the story to the Soviet Union, which exported anti-Western ideology throughout Africa and the Global South.

One of the episode’s most striking insights comes when Sam identifies who is truly driving today’s anti-Western, pro-terrorist movements. “These anti-Western movements,” he tells Naya, “were born in the West!” 

But why? Tune in as Sam shares his research and original analysis on the ideological takeover of Western institutions and whether they can still be saved.

Clarifying the complex. Step into my classroom.