Washington Kurdish Institute
July 6, 2023
Since the Islamic Revolution in 1979, the United States has condemned Iran as an adversary, often citing the use of the phrase “Death to America” by the regime’s supporters. However, the majority of Iranians, mainly the Kurdish population, have voiced their rejection against the Islamic Republic on many occasions, notably last September, demanding freedom after dark decades under the current regime.
The wave of protests began following the tragic death of Zhina Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish woman from Saqqez in the Kurdistan Province, who was visiting Tehran. Amini was brutally beaten by the “Guidance Patrol” or the Morality Police for not adhering to the strict hijab rules. She succumbed to a head injury sustained during the assault three days later. This incident served as a catalyst for widespread protests. The response was a powerful display of resistance against oppression, with the population, including university students flooding the streets of Iran the day after Amini’s death.
While the Western democratic nations showed no support for the protesters, there was also a lack of acknowledgement for the Kurdish organizers behind these demonstrations. The Kurdish population in Iran has faced long-standing discrimination, which intensified after the Kurdish-majority region known as Rojhelat boycotted the referendum that led to the establishment of the Islamic Republic in 1979. Despite comprising approximately 12% of Iran’s population, Kurds make up around half of the country’s political prisoners. They also face cultural and religious repression as most Iranian Kurds are Sunni Muslims in a predominantly Shia theocratic regime. This discrimination permeates various aspects of their lives.
The combination of political repression, cultural and religious suppression, deteriorating living conditions, water scarcity affecting the lower classes, and an increasingly hardline government has created a volatile environment for civil unrest. Thus, the recent protests can be seen as a culmination of long-standing grievances, particularly among the marginalized Kurdish population, who have been at the forefront of demanding change in Iran.
After roughly 9 months of protests, the government started to round up and arrest those involved. To do this, the government in charge granted “amnesty” to certain criminals in order to free up space in prisons for more Kurdish political prisoners. With tens of thousands of people involved in these protests, the number of people who were to be imprisoned for taking to the streets against their government would be staggering. After roughly 22 thousand arrests, the government of Iran backtracked on its policy of imprisonment, granting amnesty and commuting the sentences of those already arrested to save face on the international stage.
These protests differed from previous ones in 2017-18 and 2019-20 in a crucial way: their primary objective was regime change in Iran. While the earlier protests had desires for the liberalization of the Islamic Republic, their main goals were usually centered around economic or social issues, such as seeking economic stability, reducing poverty, and combating corruption. However, the protests triggered by the arrest and death of Zhina Mahsa Amini were distinct. Although they initially aimed to challenge the Morality Police, the involvement of numerous Kurdish political movements led to a shift in goal towards dismantling the Islamic Republic and establishing democracy in Iran.
The Kurds were oppressed by the Islamic Republic, beginning shortly after its establishment. In 1979, many Kurdish political movements demanded political autonomy for the Kurdish-majority region within the new state. As it became evident that the Islamic Republic would be significantly authoritarian similar to the previous Shah’s regime, Iranian Kurds initiated revolts.
These uprisings advocated for a Western-inspired federal republic as an alternative to an Islamic theocracy. Despite the Islamic Republic being a theocracy and Saddam Hussein’s Iraq a Ba’athist dictatorship, both nations shared animosity towards the Kurdish people. While Saddam Hussein’s suppression methods were more brutal, Ayatollah Khomeini’s government pursued a long-term strategy to suppress the Kurdish population. By banning Kurdish political parties and crushing their insurrections, the Iranian government effectively forced Kurdish resistance underground, isolating them further from international support.
The Zhina protests were considered by the government as the most significant threat to the existence of the Islamic Republic. In an effort to suppress the demonstrations, the government organized false pro-government protests and employed tactics such as mock executions, controlled drownings, and facial recognition technology to intimidate activists and identify individuals for future arrests. These actions, combined with the lack of international support, resulted in a decline in the scale of the protests, although they continue to persist at a reduced level. According to RadioFreeEurope, an American-funded media organization, over 500 protestors have been killed by the police or officially executed, with many more individuals disappeared by the authoritarian regime.
For a group of American allies, particularly the Kurds of Iran, the phrase “Death to America” represents a long history of suppression. From being denied access to government offices to having their political parties banned and their leaders executed or disappeared, the Kurdish people in Iran face ongoing harassment from their government. However, these protests demonstrate that the calls for liberty, democracy, and equality can resonate more loudly than the calls for “Death to America.”