Hasan Piker’s politics risks setting Arab and Muslim Americans back

September marked the 25th anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 Americans and others, radically reshaped the New York City skyline by wiping out the World Trade Centre twin towers and reshaped the political landscape in which Arab and Muslim Americans live in the US.

These communities no longer operate under the intensive surveillance and collective guilt imposed on them by the brutality of Al Qaeda and the climate of bigotry and fear the massacres that day predictably fostered. But Arab and Muslim Americans are still struggling to develop potent and constructive contributions to the American political scene and conversation.

These communities have serious and legitimate disputes with long-standing US domestic and foreign perspectives and policies. Often marginalised and even harassed by the substance and tenor of government policies – from inexcusable blindness to Palestinian human and national rights, to self-destructive and avoidable wars against Iraq and Iran, to systematic discrimination in immigration policy and law enforcement – they have drifted towards marginal left-wing extremes that are more self-soothing than self-serving. Political activism has often degenerated into exercises of collective psychotherapy rather than goal-oriented and strategically coherent engagement.

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Even some of the more notable success stories, so far limited to a few districts in the House of Representatives (in particular Congresswomen Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib) rather than more significant state-wide victories, carry almost as much evidence of persistent self-marginalisation as they do of political breakthrough and triumph. And that pattern seems to be reflected in Arab-American and Muslim-American media sensations, most recently exemplified by the podcaster Hasan Piker. Indeed, he may prove instrumental in reinforcing that rhetorical and political marginalisation through his impact on the midterm elections in November.

Mr Piker has become a podcasting superstar of sorts on the far left and, therefore, the latest favourite target of right-wing agitators often previously drawn to Ms Omar and Ms Tlaib. He’s done this in part by spending an unimaginable seven to eight hours a day streaming his views on the platform Twitch, which must be at least as exhausting as presumably exhilarating for his browbeaten listeners, and partly by his evident love of provocation and casual extremism.

Over the past half a century, the American far right has had a virtual monopoly on the “I’m only joking” throwaway radicalism exemplified by a long string of potent political agitators ranging from radio personality Rush Limbaugh to US President Donald Trump. Indeed, Mr Piker has identified himself as a “Rush Limbaugh for Zoomers”, a self-description that ought to make any sincere progressive shudder. But it appears distressingly apt.

Mr Piker has emerged as a key figure among self-described “Dirtbag Leftists” who abhor any civility or decorum as a rank capitulation to bourgeois false consciousness. They instead embrace the offensive and obnoxious as markers of authenticity and pugnacious spiritedness, the nastier the better.

Given his penchant for provocation and seemingly endless stream of social media ranting on a daily basis, it is, surely, no surprise that Mr Piker has provided his critics – and those of his political allies – with a veritable cornucopia of powerful cannonballs to fire at him. Regarding the September 11 terrorist attacks, he has suggested that the US provoked and possibly deserved the attacks, occasionally adding flourishes of national condemnation.

Despite being a self-described “socialist”, he has voiced little criticism of far-right Muslim extremist groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah. But they have the correct enemies: Israel, the US, most Arab states and the global status quo. He seems especially eager to defend almost any violent attack against Israel.

His “anti-Zionism” includes comparing all forms of support for Jewish statehood to Nazism, without qualification or nuance, despite the huge range of forms Zionism has taken throughout its history. As is depressingly so often the case, for him it’s much less about supporting Palestinians and much more about vociferously opposing anything connected to Israel.

This is particularly unfortunate given that reflexive American support for Israel is finally giving way to serious reconsideration and deep doubts about Israeli policy and conduct towards Palestinians, including among Jewish Americans. Such crude, blanket and extreme condemnations push hard in the opposite direction.

Hasan Piker with Dr Abdul El-Sayed. Photo: X

Piker has emerged as a key figure among self-described ‘Dirtbag Leftists’ who abhor any civility or decorum as a rank capitulation to bourgeois false consciousness

His positions leave a strong impression of being crafted in order to produce the maximum possible opposition rather than win over anyone not already in full agreement. For instance, he has recently decided that Iran should acquire nuclear weapons, which contradicts Tehran’s own publicly stated position.

It is the classic “shock jock” move of entertaining by overstating and overdoing in the best Limbaugh tradition. In short, it is exactly what has gone most badly wrong with the American ultra-right and could very well constitute a similarly gruesome future for liberals.

The potential for damage is already on full display. Mr Piker became an early significant supporter of the Democratic candidate for US senator from Michigan, Abdul El-Sayed – precisely the candidate who might break out of the House District ghetto in which even the most successful Arab-American and Muslim-American politicians appeared trapped and break through into statewide office.

Mr El-Sayed initially welcomed his support but must have been regretting that in recent weeks as attacks have focused on Mr Piker and his ample stockpile of offensive nonsense. Mr Piker has become such a popular target on the right that a selfie he has promoted focusing on revealing undershorts – which Mr Piker, with typical tastelessness, calls his “meat pic” – was featured in a video repeatedly aired at the recent Republican midterm convention in Texas. On learning this, Mr Piker reacted with unrestrained jubilation and glee, illustrating exactly how both sides are serving each other’s nefarious purposes in their race to the bottom of the barrel.

Mr El-Sayed won the Democratic primary by less than 1 per cent and can barely afford to be tainted by someone who reeks of cultivated vulgarity and manufactured leftist revolutionary excess.

What’s at stake, 25 years after 9/11, is the best opportunity at a definitive state-wide Arab-American and Muslim-American political breakthrough. Mr Piker embodies everything that continues to hold these communities back and could sink Mr El-Sayed’s important candidacy on the altar of self-indulgent pandering nonsense.