As details of the death toll for January’s protests continue to emerge, three students explain why they are resisting a return to normality
More than 45 days after a brutal January crackdown that left thousands of Iranian protesters dead, students across several universities are protesting again. As Iran’s new academic term began on Saturday, students in Tehran gathered on campus, chanting anti-government slogans, despite a heavy security presence and plainclothes officers stationed outside university gates.
The Guardian spoke to protesting students about why they were rallying despite the fact that thousands had been killed and tens of thousands arrested in the January demonstrations.
“Our classrooms are empty because the graveyards are full,” said Hossein*, 21, a student at the University of Tehran. “It’s for them – our friends, classmates and compatriots, who were gunned down in front of our eyes, that we decided to boycott the classes.”
Really, you think I’m fucking bluffing? Then how do you explain this?
Or these articles from Amnesty International, Associated Press, BBC, and Independent?
Go ahead. What BS are you gonna come up with to try to justify this authoritarian brutality?
When/where did I do that? Point to the thing I said that fits that description.
You can’t, because I didn’t. That’s just a pathetic strawman, because you can’t handle the truth that you’re wrong.
You showed 40,000 deaths ha? You showed what you think justifies starting a war that will kill hundred of thousands, displace hundreds of thousands, and effect the lives of millions?
Again, I don’t justify it, if you look at my comment history I’ve said before they I have no doubt they killed a lot of civilians, and I don’t align with the authoritarian government, but I don’t justify imperialism and even more destructive and deadly wars as a response. You’re not helping Iranians.
While you’re watching protest videos, go ahead and watch the videos of counter protesters burning Israeli and US flags. Don’t just cherry pick footage that justifies your war lust.
They didn’t kill 40k+ people, and you will not provide footage that demonstrates they did anything near that because it’s a made up lie.
Should Iran develop nukes and attack the US because ICE is shooting civilians in the street? Same justification, but you can’t wrap your head around the fact that you’re not the heroes of the world and America doesn’t have an obligation to interfere with every country however it deems fit.
We’re gonna pretend like your comment is in a vacuum and the context where you made it is irrelevant? Okay then…
Where did I say anything about 40K deaths? The highest estimate I saw in any of those links was 20K, and the highest confirmed body count was less than 10K. Are you just making shit up to make it sound easier to discredit?
Then what the fuck are you even arguing? Because you seem to keep calling me an imperialist propagandist for stating facts like the iranian regime viciously suppressing protesters.
I never said anything even close to any of that. You’re fucking psychotic, dude.
Those aren’t counter-protesters. It’s all the same protest. I know you find this impossible to comprehend, but it’s entirely possible to oppose the mullah and US/Israeli colonialism.