The Assassination of Alex Odeh
Kerning Cultures
Kerning Cultures Network
4.9 • 529 Ratings
🗓️ 8 December 2022
⏱️ 42 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Alex Odeh was well known in the Arab community in Santa Ana, California. He was often on TV or writing into newspapers, talking about discrimination against Arabs in the US or about his beloved homeland, Palestine. But on the morning of October 11th 1985, he stepped through his office door and a pipe bomb exploded. He died hours later. From the beginning, the FBI had strong leads and a list of suspects. But decades later, Alex Odeh’s murder is still unsolved.
This episode was produced by Alex Atack and edited by Dana Ballout. Fact checking by Deena Sabry and sound design by Mohamad Khreizat. Our team also includes Zeina Dowidar, Nadeen Shaker and Finbar Anderson.
You can read David Sheen’s story for The Intercept here.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Before this from Beirond and it's predictable, they've seen it happen. |
| 0:06.8 | And one story that always kind of captures my imagination. |
| 0:10.0 | It's fair. |
| 0:10.5 | The street's lost culture. |
| 0:14.4 | And you're listening to Kearning cultures. |
| 0:20.2 | Before we start a warning, this episode contains graphic descriptions of violence from the beginning, |
| 0:26.3 | and it also contains clips of pretty racist language. |
| 0:29.8 | So if you're not keen on hearing that or you're listening around kids, consider skipping this one. |
| 0:35.8 | I'm Dana Balut, and this is Kernan Cultures. |
| 0:39.0 | Okay, to start then, Helena, I guess if you could just introduce yourself, tell us your name and what you do, or like however it is that you want to be introduced for the purpose of the story. |
| 0:48.7 | Helena Dane, the oldest daughter for Alex Ronde. |
| 0:59.1 | I don't know. I don't like me. Sorry, guys. A couple of months ago, |
| 1:04.1 | producer Alex Atec and I called Helena at her home in Orange County, California, to talk about her dad, Alex Rode. You know, he always was working a lot. So I always do remember, you know, |
| 1:10.7 | the mornings he would like, I would get ready for school. |
| 1:13.8 | And he would come and say, okay, have a good day. |
| 1:16.6 | And I'll see you tonight. |
| 1:18.6 | And it was always like, okay, big kisses to dad. |
| 1:22.4 | And then couldn't wait for him to get home. |
| 1:25.2 | She remembers how on weekends he'd go out fishing and sometimes he'd arrive home with |
| 1:30.2 | something to cook for dinner, which would get mixed reviews in all the household. |
| 1:35.3 | My mom would get us all ready. |
| 1:37.8 | We would be all dressed and cute and he would say, okay, we're going to go out to dinner. |
... |
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