Iranian Protests and the Future of Iran

By Danny Gonzales-Hyde, Staff Writer

The 11th of February 1979 the United States puppet ruler in Iran, Mohammad Rezawho Shah Pahlavi, who had served as monarch of Iran since 1941, was finally ousted from office by the Iranian people. In the wake of the ensuing power vacuum, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini comes out on top and along with taking over as the head of state he also declares Iran an Islamic republic. Ayatollah had previously been exiled for 15 years by the Shah's government, due to the Shah perceiving him as a threat to his rule. It was during Ayatollah’s years in exile where he critiqued the country’s Westernization and secularization projects that the Shahs' regime was putting underway. This right wing government that seized power after the Shah is still in power to this day. As a result, for the past 43 years, the Iranian people have resorted to protest a number of times only to be crushed by the government's use of force. The most recent wave of Iranian protests have been the outcome of Mahsa Aminis death in September 2022. She was a 22-year-old Iranian woman, who was in police custody at the time of her death for “improperly wearing her hijab”. 

Recently, I have had the pleasure of interviewing Mary, an Iranian woman studying in Izmir, Turkey. Mary offered her insight into the recent Iranian protests, which are being spearheaded by the youth. Mary cites Iran's complications with human rights, economic downturns, and right wing politics as being some of the issues that the Iranian people are taking to the streets demanding reform. This isn't the first time that the Iranian people have protested against the government, with the last large scale protests being in 2009 with a number of smaller ones since then. Despite this, Mary makes the claim that what sets this newest round of protests apart from past ones is the amount of international attention that they have received, which has given the Iranian people a platform to make their voices heard. The protesters have been resisting through nonviolent means, while the government is fully armed and has shown its willingness to use force. Mary described this forceful behavior by the government as making her feel powerless. Despite this feeling of powerlessness, internet spaces such as Twitter have given people a place to share what is happening and help build momentum and support for the movement inside and outside of Iran. 

The reaction of the international community so far has been to impose more sanctions upon the Iranian state, which has made it increasingly difficult for the everyday citizens of Iran. Different forms of sanctions have been in place against the Iranian government since the establishment of Iran as an Islamic republic. The only difference since then has been the severity of these sanctions. According to Mary, the most recent round of sanctions has negatively affected the Iranian people, who can't find some of the basic products that they had previously relied on, such as certain medicines. The sanctions have also cut the Iranian people off from the rest of the world. She gave the example of wanting to pursue an education outside of Iran, where it would be impossible to pay for it with Iranian Rials, since banks no longer accept that currency. 

Despite the dire situation, Mary retains hope as she claims the Iranian people are taking the necessary steps towards building a better future. In order to further support the people of Iran from our own communities, you can share information about the protests with your peers or contact your local Human Rights organization on behalf of the Iranian people.

The Shadow of Sport: Human Rights Abuses and the Olympics

By: Maeve Hushman, Staff Writer

The Winter Olympics are being hosted in Beijing, China. As a huge hockey fan, I could not be more excited for the Winter Olympics. Not only is my favorite sport being played around the clock by both men and women, but it is also the one time I take the time to watch sports like snowboarding, skiing, bobsled, and my all time favorite only-during-the-Winter-Olympics watch, figure skating. Ever since I was little, the Olympics have been a special occasion. However, there is a dark shadow cast over these Olympic games, that is the shadow of the horrific human rights abuses happening to the Uyghurs at the hands of the Chinese government. 

The Uyghurs are an ethnic and religious minority who live in northwest China in the province of Xinjiang. Uyghurs are mostly Muslims, who speak their own language and have their own distinct culture. 12 million of them live in an area known as the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) without incident until the recent incursion of the Chinese government. They increased surveillance, put limits on religious services and other such totalitarian measures. These have been direct efforts to limit and suppress Uyghur culture and religion. The Chinese government has been taking Uyghurs to “re-education” camps and reportedly sterilizing Uyghur women. China claims this is a crack down to prevent “religious extremism” but what they are actually doing is committing what many consider to be a genocide. 

The Olympics casts a large spotlight onto any host country and China is no different. Many countries, like the USA and Canada, have opted for diplomatic boycotts, refusing to send any government officials to the games. However, they are still sending athletes and because of that, it also means huge media companies and corporate sponsors. All of them are pouring money into these events which rest on the bodies of the Uyghur people. In the opening ceremony, China showed a skit of what was supposed to depict all of their ethnic groups getting along, which is a textbook example of propaganda. They also had a Uyghur athlete light the torch. This athlete has since been hidden from the media. This Olympics is about selling China to the world in a positive light and part of that means pushing aside the egregious human rights abuses. 

So how do we reckon with our love of sport and of the Olympics with the reality behind them? It is difficult. Even if you decide to boycott the Olympics by not watching or reading coverage, you are still bombarded by ads talking about the Olympic dream and seeing companies still endorsing athletes and the games. You could boycott the corporate sponsors, but how do you boycott certain companies when they aren’t products you even buy to begin with? It is extremely difficult to take action against, which is why the reckoning process shouldn’t be one size fits all. If you think that boycotting the games by not watching them is the best option, then don’t watch. If you think that boycotting the sponsors is the best move, boycott the sponsors. I agreed to cover the Olympics for both the Highlander and my internship, but I try my best as I watch the sports I have to (aka hockey) and  remember what the backdrop of this event is. The Olympics shouldn’t be happening in Beijing and that the Uyghurs shouldn’t be having to suffer under massive injustice.  

So will I still watch and write about the Olympics? Yes , but I will also carefully examine the narratives being pushed and be aware of how my covering the Olympics could fuel the fire already present in the international quagmire right now. It is important to reckon with how politics and issues of justice impact sports and vice versa. China violating all sorts of international human rights makes it difficult to watch the biggest athletic event of the year. So, watch the Olympics if you want to but do not let the truth about what is happening to the Uyghur community be forgotten or covered up. Call out injustice when you see it.