For this Iranian revolution. There are now over 274 000 000 (274 million) tweets on the Persian version of the Mahsa Amini hashtag. For context, since mid-2013, the #BlackLivesMatter hashtag has accumulated 63 000 000 (63 million) tweets. #IranRevolution — Marc Owen Jones (@marcowenjones) October 12, 2022
Continue reading →A crucial economic sector for Iran. Oil workers in Iran went on strike in support of protests against the regime. Oil is a critical sector for Iran. This is a big deal. pic.twitter.com/8IJUM1paNK — Fifty Shades of Whey (@davenewworld_2) October 11, 2022 And the women’s protests have spread among schoolgirls as well. The courage this takes can not be overstated. The girls took over their school and are chanting "death to the dictator"❤️ #Iran pic.twitter.com/s9MX8Dbsll — Sofia Ukraini (@SlavaUk30722777) October 4, 2022 This report from The New Yorker is a good read. Iran’s Protests Are the First Counter-Revolution Led … Continue reading →
Authorities in Iran continue to crack down on the widespread protests that arose in the wake of Mahsa Amini’s death while she was in the custody of the morals police. We finally have an in-depth review of how the government has reacted to the protests, in the form of a well researched article on the evidence that the government’s response has been harsh and terrible. (WashPost gift link should get you past the paywall for a while). Tactics of repression: How Iran is trying to stop Mahsa Amini protests A visual forensics analysis shows authorities using indiscriminate force, making violent … Continue reading →
Reports (from MSNBC, no link) are that somewhere between 40 and 50 people have been killed in and around the Iranian protests. The protests are not disappearing, though, if anything they continue to spread. Internet outages continue, so information still comes slowly. The women have been forbidden to dance, but they dance anyway. I love these clips so much. This is what civil disobedience looks like in an Islamic Republic. #IranProtests #IranRevolution For 43 years women in #Iran have been forbidden to dance & sing in public or show their hair & they are saying enough. It’s really that simple. … Continue reading →
From Sept. 20, this is the first video I saw from the protests in Iran. Unprecedented scenes in Iran: woman sits on top of utility box and cuts her hair in main square in Kerman to protest death of Mahsa Amini after her arrest by the morality police. People clap their hands and chant “Death to the dictator.” #مهسا_امینی pic.twitter.com/2oyuKV80Ac — Golnaz Esfandiari (@GEsfandiari) September 20, 2022 A report from Arash Azizi at Newsweek: Iran’s Regime May Have Just Sparked a Revolution On Sept. 17, Mahsa’s funeral in her native Kurdistan province was accompanied by massive protests which soon spread … Continue reading →
As I return home, the world is in a state of turmoil in many places. I like to think that these uprisings against authoritarian regimes will continue and spread, but we know of course that such uprisings often get suppressed and the people who engage in them may end up dead or in prison. Which only highlights the incredible courage of those people who have taken to the streets this week in Russia and Iran. In many ways it’s easy for me to be an activist, though I’ve had moments in my life where I felt quite scared to speak … Continue reading →
Over the past few days Ukrainian forces have moved swiftly, regaining several towns and a lot of land near Kharkiv. It is possible that this will be decisive in turning this war around at last. At the very least, Russian forces are looking very weak. From what you’ll read below, it is clear that Ukraine itself has no intention of stopping while Russians still occupy their land, but how Putin might react to these events is still uncertain. Faster and Furiouser: Ukraine’s Forces Take Back Kharkiv Oblast and More …the narrative in Ukraine has changed in huge way over the … Continue reading →
Beaten for no reason, dragged off the street for violations of modesty laws, subject to torture in those detention centers, refused school and work choices—this report shows exactly how women in Afghanistan are treated by the Taliban. Women who dare to protest, and some women do dare to, are treated even more harshly. In the New York Times (gift link, no paywall) another report shows the same brutal situation. Taliban Rewind the Clock: ‘A Woman Is a Helpless and Powerless Creature’ Girls are barred from secondary schools and women from traveling any significant distance without a male relative. Men … Continue reading →
An authoritarian white nationalist, just the sort of politician Republicans love. Listen to his words below, and hear the cheers. Orban’s type of patriarchal government—anti-gay, anti-feminist, anti-multiculturalism—is the government they wish to impose on the rest of us. Don’t look away. Viktor Orban is an authoritarian who trafficks in antisemitic tropes and conspiracy theories, embraces antisemitic imagery, and engages in racist rhetoric. Republicans welcoming him with a standing ovation at #CPAC is all you need to know about the danger of today's @GOP. https://t.co/kvtoTOBXOo — Jewish Dems (@USJewishDems) August 5, 2022 ETA: Laura Jedeed has more.
Continue reading →An image from occupied #Kherson where Ukrainian resistance is active and waiting for the #UkrainianArmy: "Occupier, go homeor HIMARS will show you the way" pic.twitter.com/AzQkLcqS5k — Victoria Amelina 🇺🇦 (@vamelina) July 27, 2022 From the BBC: West’s modern weapons halt Russia’s advance in Donbas The US and Europe have sent a number of HIMARS (High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems) to the Ukrainian army, and they are using the systems most effectively. Russia has very little in the way of defense against these very lethal, highly mobile truck-mounted rockets. Countries such as Poland and Estonia, also at risk of attack, have … Continue reading →
