Julian Casablancas of The Strokes named the “privilege of Zionists living in the United States” as one of his “most controversial takes” during an appearance on SubwayTakes with Kareem Rahma.
Acknowledging the hot-button topic, Casablancas joked with Rahma that it was “nice having a career with you,” before delivering his take: “American Zionists get the benefits of white privileged people, but talk like they are Black people during slavery.”
Agreeing with Casablancas, Rahma added, “I’ve never seen something so shocking where they’re like, ‘I’m so oppressed.’ I’m like, ‘You are going to a wedding in Tel Aviv right now when there are 80,000-plus dead people, including women and children, half a mile away. Absolutely fucked. And totally, you know what? I don’t think it’s bad to say that.”
Casablancas continued by addressing potential whataboutism. “Just for the people that are going to be like, ‘Hamas, October 7th.’ Um, yes, bad,” he said. “But Native American rebellions didn’t mean it was okay to do what we did. Slave rebellions that were violent didn’t mean that slavery is not bad. So, that’s the scope of that answer. Just for the haters.”
However, Casablancas also conceded it is difficult for many to break out of their longtime views about Israel. “Indoctrination is such a strong thing. We just want to be part of the tribe,” he stated. “So I get it, but it is a sad fact the brainwashing of just people in general. You can’t be mad just because something was rammed down their throat, necessarily.”
When asked by Rahma whether he has “hope,” Casablancas said people are “awakening” and that he was “optimistic” that change could happen “eventually.”
“I don’t know if it’s now, but it could be today, could be tomorrow,” the singer stated, before Rahma chimed in with his opinion that the “cat’s out of the bag” due to Trump’s presidency.
Agreeing, Casablancas added, “We’re just still mourning. People are still upset. They’re like in The Matrix. They’re like, ‘What the fuck?’ But eventually, they might become the One.”
Watch the full SubwayTakes Uncut episode below. The segment begins around the 8:47 mark. Casablancas’ other controversial takes included being anti-long audio text messages; modern cars are just the worst; and conservatives and progressive needs to come together and “do a non-corporate consensus populist party to fight the real billionaire gang agenda.”
Casablancas’ comments come after The Strokes displayed a video while playing “Oblivious” during Coachella Weekend 2, which criticized the actions of the United States in Gaza and Iran, while also displaying images of multiple world leaders allegedly targeted by the CIA.
The Strokes are set to release their next album, Reality Awaits, on June 26th. It will be supported by an expansive summer and fall tour kicking off in June.
