Quick Read
Summary
Takeaways
- ❖The protest in Minneapolis explicitly condemned the Trump administration's military actions in Iran, framing them as an 'Iran War.'
- ❖Speakers alleged that US air strikes, in conjunction with Israel, targeted a girl's school in Iran, causing civilian casualties.
- ❖A central theme was that the war is primarily about oil and US imperial control over other nations' sovereignty and resources.
- ❖Activists drew direct connections between military spending abroad and the defunding of social programs (Medicaid, SNAP, public schools) domestically.
- ❖The movement calls for class solidarity and sustained grassroots action, including general strikes, to 'shut down' the system and fight imperial power.
- ❖An Iranian-American speaker detailed the personal impact of the bombings on his family in Tehran and Karaj, funded by his own tax dollars, and warned against US ground troops based on Iraq war lessons.
Insights
1US Actions in Iran Framed as Imperialism and a War for Oil
Multiple speakers asserted that the US military actions in Iran, allegedly in conjunction with Israel, are not about liberation or democracy but about securing oil resources and maintaining imperial control. They cited alleged bombings of civilian targets, including a girl's school, and drew parallels to US interventions in Venezuela and historical coups in Iran.
Karina from Asians for Palestine stated, 'this is another war about oil, which is why Venezuela has also been a target. Colonialism and imperialism are pillars of the United States.' Dr. Christine Harb noted, 'you cannot bomb a country into liberation... This is about power... The US has been strangling Iran's economy with illegal sanctions... to finally take full control of Iran's oil.'
2Domestic Impact: War Abroad as War on the Working Class at Home
Protesters argued that the vast military spending on foreign wars directly harms the American working class by diverting funds from essential domestic social programs. They highlighted the 'gutting' of Medicaid, SNAP, and public school funding as a consequence of increased military budgets.
Naomi from the Party for Socialism and Liberation stated, 'The trillions of dollars that are going to be spent on this war... should be spent here at home because we are seeing the gutting of Medicaid... SNAP... funding to public schools. This war that is being carried out abroad is also a war on the working class at home.'
3Personal Impact and Historical Parallels to Iraq War
An Iranian-American speaker described the emotional and physical proximity of the bombings to his family in Iran, expressing dismay that his tax dollars fund the destruction of his ancestral homeland. He warned against US ground troops, drawing direct parallels to the disastrous outcomes of the Iraq War, where intervention led to a worse situation and a rallying effect around the existing government.
Navin Borojerdi shared, 'my mom has been in contact with our family in Iran. She says that everyone is okay for now, but the bombs are constantly dropping on both their cities... one of... my cousin Sudi... they hit a building... on her block... the impact of it was felt in every residential area.' He added, 'You can't change a government by dropping bombs... Everybody is rallying around the flag.'
4Critique of US Hypocrisy on Women's Rights and Democracy
Speakers challenged the US administration's claims of fighting for women's liberation in Iran, citing alleged bombings of girl's schools and the destruction of healthcare systems in Gaza. They also pointed to domestic issues like restrictions on women's bodily autonomy and the removal of gendered terms from federal documents as evidence of hypocrisy.
Dr. Christine Harb, a queer Palestinian Christian, questioned, 'How can we say that we are trying to free women from Islamic regimes in Gaza and Iran... and then... we proceed to bomb a school and kill over 150 school girls?' She also referenced domestic issues: 'How can we say that we fight for women while our country strips us of our right to own our bodies?'
Lessons
- Join local anti-war organizations like the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL) to participate in ongoing activism and build collective power.
- Support independent media outlets like Status Coup that provide on-the-ground reporting and challenge corporate narratives, especially during times of conflict.
- Participate in demonstrations and general strikes to 'shut down' the system and pressure administrations to reallocate military spending towards domestic social programs.
- Engage in discussions about US foreign policy, drawing on historical lessons from past interventions to understand current geopolitical dynamics and potential consequences.
Quotes
"It is our responsibility as activists and feminists to not only be intersectional, but to be anti-imperialist. To be against US control of other countries, of their sovereignty and of their resources."
"You cannot bomb a country into liberation. And we all know that they don't care who's in charge as long as Iran's leaders capitulate to imperialist interests."
"The United States government can't stand to see a single resource-rich country operate independently."
"It is a wild experience as an Iranian-American for the president of my country to bomb the cities of where my family is living and basically striking the soil that my grandparent all four of my grandparents who I was very close to um are buried under with my tax dollars."
"You can't change a government by dropping bombs. Dropping bombs is not going to get people to rise up like Trump is saying and overthrow the government that people think it is. What is only going to happen and what we're seeing in Iran right now is what we saw happened in Iran in 1980s during the war with Iraq. Everybody is rallying around the flag."
Q&A
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