True Courage in Iran
Young Iranians are risking everything for freedom. Why does it feel like no one cares?
Would you die for your country? Ask yourself, honestly. If the future of your nation was on the line, and you had the opportunity to ensure things go in a positive direction, would you sacrifice your life? Would you risk getting shot in the street so that your friends and family could live their lives with greater dignity?
You might think of yourself as a moral person, a believer in human rights, in democracy, in all the “correct” viewpoints of the time. Maybe you’ve even gone so far as to put a flag emoji in your Instagram bio. But has your commitment to your views ever actually cost you anything?
Right now, on the streets of Iran, we’re witnessing one of the most incredible displays of human courage that is possible. 47 years after the brutal, repressive Islamic regime of Ayatollah Khomeini seized control of their country, the Iranian people are sacrificing everything to take it back. In city after city, crowds are taking to the streets, chanting against the authoritarian mullahs, and demanding their freedom. Dozens have already been massacred in the streets by the regime’s Basij forces. Internet and phone service has been cut off, to try and stymie the revolution. But with the help of free Starlink internet access, reports are emerging that the fight continues.
Weirdly, if you weren’t following closely on X, you might not know that this groundbreaking historic moment is happening at all. Your friends probably aren’t posting “FREE IRAN” or “ALL EYES ON TEHRAN” on Instagram. The college campuses are eerily silent, with no encampments or protests to be seen. The UN, never shy to pass resolutions, must be too busy funneling money to Hamas to notice what’s happening. The women’s rights NGOs don’t seem interested in showing solidarity with Iranian women who would love to stop being murdered for showing their hair in public.
But last night in Queens, NY there was a big rally on the streets. Maybe they were showing support? Let’s check in on them real quick:
Oh, great. They were just expressing support of Hamas, Iran’s terrorist proxy.
In just the last month, we’ve seen one of the world’s most dangerous and cruel dictators, narcoterrorist Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela, arrested and removed from power, while Ayatollah Khamenei is on the brink of losing his poisonous grip on the Middle East, which would be two of the greatest developments for peace and democracy in recent history — and yet, the response has been mostly muted. When did the West lose its moral compass so badly?
One can only imagine if the iconic image of Tiananmen Square were shown to today’s college students, they’d likely cheer for the Communist tank to run over the protester. New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani was quick to condemn Maduro’s ouster, not celebrate it the way his numerous Venezuelan refugee constituents were. And he has been completely silent on what’s happening in Iran. It’s not like he’s busy focused on New York City issues or fixing the subways. He’s been extremely active commenting on other world events, as well as the ICE situation in Minnesota. He’s a product of the same “education” that has created a generation of Millennials and Zoomers who don’t know right from wrong or good from evil if it hit them in the face.
It seems that many Americans have been taught to hate their own country so much that they actively root for our enemies. You might be more likely to find young Iranians waving an American or Israeli flag than young Americans, which is a serious cause for concern. This is probably in large part due to the propaganda campaign funded by Qatar’s investment in American universities.
But what you learn in classrooms has nothing on life experience. The people of Iran know what evil is because they’ve experienced it first hand on a daily basis. And that has given them a unique sense of clarity on who are the forces for good in the world and who aren’t. The Iranian protesters exemplify true virtue in their fight for freedom and the price they’re willing to pay for it. The rest of the free world should join them in their revolution against a regime built on religious extremism, misogyny, antisemitism, homophobia, war, violence, oppression, and hate. If their fight isn’t our fight, then what values do Americans even believe in?
I stand with the people of Iran. Do you?