On the morning of October 11, 1985, a Palestinian American activist named Alex Odeh opened his office door in Orange County, CA for the last time. A trip-wire bomb exploded. He died hours later in a nearby hospital.

His premature death left his widow Norma, a recent immigrant and stay-at-home mother, to raise their three young daughters alone. Odeh’s murder shook the local Arab American community. He was a civic leader, teacher, activist and poet, revered locally. Yet, his story is largely forgotten. His murder has gone unsolved.

Recently, professors William Youmans and Jason Osder, completed a documentary called ‘Who Killed Alex Odeh?’ A mix of rich archival and present-day footage, the film looks at Alex’s life as a Palestinian in exile, follows his family as it seeks justice decades later and covers a freelance reporter who reveals new clues about the suspects, three US-born Israeli settlers, and their connections to the present day Israeli government. It is nothing short of a scandal.

The film premiered at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Journalistic Excellence. Its international premiere was at the prestigious Berlinale in February.

This GoFundMe helped us complete post-production, but we need further funding for final expenses to ready it for wider distribution. Namely we need funding to license archival footage and to produce a master output copy to send to distributors (to be shown in theaters and television). 

Contact William Youmans for more information.