Ta-Nehisi Coates: I Was Told Palestine Was Complicated. Visiting Revealed a Simple, Brutal Truth

As the war on Gaza spans a second year, we continue our conversation with the acclaimed writer Ta-Nehisi Coates. His new book, _The Message_, is based in part on his visit last year to Israel and the occupied West Bank, where he says he saw a system of segregation and oppression reminiscent of Jim Crow in the United States. "It was revelatory," says Coates. "I don't think the average American has a real sense of what we’re doing over there — and I emphasize 'what we're doing' because it's not possible without American support."

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