Potential of Executions, Expanded War and Intensified Resistance …
Why Support for Iran’s Political Prisoners is More Urgent than Ever
On July 4, the Islamic Republic of Iran arbitrarily issued a death sentence for activist Sharifeh Mohammadi. It is part of a reported surge in executions (over 850 in 2023) and the regime’s continued terrorizing of women.
Yet how many people know that in the shadow of a US-Israeli genocide in Gaza, the IRI is killing off a large number of its political dissidents? How many in the world or in the U.S. know that we the people have a real stake in this situation?
The International Emergency Campaign to free Iran’s political prisoners calls on you to be part of a teach-in to stand with Iran’s heroic resisters, many of whom have put it all on the line to fight for a better world.
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Many of them had taken part in or supported the historic Woman, Life, Freedom uprising of 2022-2023 (nine protesters have been executed since). Amid growing war tensions with Israel, there is a new crackdown on hijab-free women and a new surge of executions in 2023 & 2024, but also renewed resistance. Women have been at the forefront of resistance including from inside prison. They call on us to stand with their struggle against a regime rooted in extreme patriarchy and aggressive misogyny. We call on all those who care about justice to join us in discussing the importance of this struggle and why it matters to fight to free them.
We propose holding the teach-in on Sunday, August 4th (tentative date) on the following questions that urgently need clarity in the interest of advancing this struggle.
The overall theme is framed by a comment by Mona Roshan, a former political prisoner in Iran and revolutionary communist who said, at a program at Harlem Revolution Books to free rapper Toomaj Salehi and all Iran’s political prisoners, that “Nothing positive can come out of siding with the Islamic Republic of Iran or with US imperialism”. We think the implications pose these questions to examine:
- 1. Is opposition to Iran’s repressive, misogynistic theocracy equivalent to being pro-US imperialism? Is opposing Islamic fundamentalism the same as Islamophobia? Isn't the fight for women's basic rights, for liberation, righteous and crucial to ALL humanity, not some invention of Western societies?
- 2. Why are there people in/from Iran, including some political prisoners in the Woman, Life, Freedom uprising, who don’t support the struggle of Palestinians? Why are there Palestinians who don’t support the WLF uprising? The view that "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" is a serious question of contention, and needs to be engaged, as expressed by this excerpt signed by nine prisoners in Iran:
“Here in prison, among political prisoners, there are some who risked their lives last year to demand freedom and an end to discrimination. But now, in the face of the genocide of Palestinians in a completely unjust war by the Israeli government, they say [things like]: “I wish [Israel] would kill more of them,” and “Hopefully [Israel]will finish them off with an atomic bomb, so the world can breathe a sigh of relief.” Some are even saying: “I hope they hit head of the snake in Tehran, as well.” How pitiful for those fighting their own imprisonment to end up fighting for their own destruction.”
The importance of freeing Iran’s front-line dissidents in all this is stated in the IEC’s Emergency Appeal signed by over 5000 prominent voices of conscience worldwide:
The governments of the U.S. and Iran act from their national interests. And, in this instance, we the people of the U.S. and Iran, along with the people of the world, have OUR shared interests, as part of getting to a better world: to unite to defend the political prisoners of Iran. In the U.S., we have a special responsibility to unite very broadly against this vile repression by the IRI, and to actively oppose any war moves by the U.S. government that would bring even more unbearable suffering to the people of Iran.
We demand of the Islamic Republic of Iran: FREE ALL POLITICAL PRISONERS NOW! We say to the U.S. government: NO THREATS OR WAR MOVES AGAINST IRAN, LIFT U.S. SANCTIONS!
We would like to know if you would join with the IEC and co-host this teach-in, including by using your organizational resources to do so. Please contact us to work together to have a principled, open, and urgent engagement over these issues.