35,000 people protested in Iran yesterday, marking the tenth anniversary of the brutal crackdowns at the universities in 1999, despite warnings from the government that they would be facing arrest and death.
These people are not backing down. This is not over.
http://iran.whyweprotest.net/news-current-events/10643-green-brief-23-july-09-a.html21. In Tehran, the Telephone Directory Service was out, SMS was cut off again, cell phones weren’t working in several parts of the city and even land-lines were also cut off in some parts. Most Iranian televisions ignored protests almost completely. Some later showed limited footage. Press TV again claimed that the UK was unquestionably behind the unrest in Iran. Where is the American mainstream media in all of this? Why are they still covering the death of a has-been musician and pedophile? Aren't they supposed to be covering the
news?
CNN is a worldwide news source, and they could be a major voice for change and an end to repression. They have repeatedly over the past month failed their mandate. Maintaining silence in the face of brutality, repression, and censorship validates those tactics. All over the world, CNN is considered the voice of America. In the face of their indifference and their decision to suddenly become just another entertainment "news" source, they have failed us all and silenced our voice.
If we as a nation keep silent, if we ignore what is happening in Iran, we are in effect supporting their brutal regime and aiding them in their attempts to cut their people off from the rest of the world.
Every day I and many, many others are working hard to help the Iranian people be heard. Won't you please join us in speaking out against brutality and censorship? Email the news sources of your choice, let them know you want them to cover the REAL news. Speak up, in any way you can, in any venue you can, to anyone who will listen. Let the world know that repression and brutality no longer have a place in this world. Every voice matters...let yours be heard.
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As much as I can, I follow Reza Aslan on the Daily Beast who had an interview with Ahmad Batebi published yesterday. Ahmad was the beautiful young man who held up a bloody shirt in the student uprising ten years ago, and was imprisoned for years afterward.
Nico Pitney is still live-blogging Iran. This morning he has a YouTube video of Basij going after a cameraman, among other entries.
Andrew Sullivan also did a wonderful job following the aftermath of the election, but I think it completely wore him out. I never thought I'd say he was punchy, but he was.