By Alexander Morse Shepard
For the last several weeks, news of Iranian protestors and the government’s violent crackdown has dominated the news cycle. Every day—every hour, every minute—there are updates about the ongoing situation. These protests have resulted in a wide array of reactions. Many voices are expressing sympathy for the protestors; others are warning about the possibility of a war with Iran; while still others are highlighting violence caused by “rioters” and accusing the uprising of being instigated by the CIA and Mossad.
There are several points I feel compelled to address, as a scholar of Iranian studies and Twelver Shi’ism—and more importantly, as a believer in fairness, justice, and human rights, and as an opponent of war.
Many of the loudest voices on social media have been outraged Iranian expats and conservative commentators asking, “Where are the progressive voices on this?” and “How come the people chanting ‘Free Palestine’ aren’t chanting ‘Free Iran’?” Some have offered a conspiratorial justification that stretches back decades: that there exists some kind of diabolical alliance between the “left” and political Islam. According to this view, because the so-called left sees the Iranian regime as oppressed or as an enemy of U.S. imperialism, it therefore treats the regime as a natural ally. Countless voices on Twitter have advanced this argument. Simply type “Free Iran” into Twitter and see for yourself.[1]
Let me be clear: the Khamenei regime is a dictatorship deeply implicated in human rights violations. Corruption exists at the highest levels of government. Iran systematically suppresses non-Shia Iranians, severely curtailing the rights of Jews, Christians, Zoroastrians, Sunnis, Baha’is, and non-religious citizens. The Iranian regime is also among the worst offenders in its treatment of the LGBT community. Dissent of any kind—even from Twelver Shia clerics—is not tolerated, with many imprisoned for speaking out against the regime.[2]
With these facts in mind, it should come as no surprise that millions of Iranians are protesting. I offer my support and sympathy to those advocating for a better tomorrow, having known many Iranians personally who have been victimized by the regime.
Does this mean I will attend “Free Iran” marches? Does this mean I will set up an encampment demanding the end of the Islamic Republic of Iran? I participated in Free Palestine protests, and I took part in the encampment at my university until it was shut down by the administration. So are I—and millions of Westerners—hypocrites for not participating in similar demonstrations demanding an end to the Islamic Republic of Iran?
No—and let me explain why. I took part in protests against the bombardment and carnage in Gaza, and I will not be attending so-called “Free Iran” protests.
I cannot speak for everyone who participated in the encampment, but for myself—and for many others—the fundamental issue was the role of the U.S. government and, by extension, the culpability of U.S. citizens through our tax dollars. Israel has, for decades, been the primary recipient of U.S. foreign aid. Cumulatively, more aid has been given to Israel than to any other country, despite occasional years in which other countries, such as Ukraine, have received more in a single calendar year. This aid is then used directly to purchase American-made weapons.[3]
This arrangement, which lines the pockets of the military-industrial complex, is often celebrated by American conservatives as mutually beneficial. PragerU even produced a video explaining—and praising—this toxic relationship.[4] On top of this, the United States has routinely used its leverage in the UN Security Council to shield Israel from any consequences. Of all U.S. vetoes since the establishment of the United Nations in 1945, over half have been cast to protect Israel. Since Israel launched its invasion of Gaza, President Biden has vetoed a resolution calling for a humanitarian ceasefire.[5]
When I protested, I was specifically demanding accountability from my own government. As a citizen of a democracy—where the people are supposedly the ones making decisions—I saw this as my obligation.
Now contrast this with the relationship between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran. Since its inception, the regime has been under strict U.S. sanctions. No American taxpayer dollars are used to line the pockets of the Khamenei regime. Sanctions prevent Iran from purchasing weapons from American arms contractors, and the United States has not only voted in favor of sanctions targeting Iran but has initiated many of them.[6]
The reality is that the Islamic Republic of Iran is subjected to the very treatment that I—and I suspect many who chanted “Free Palestine”—would like to see applied to Israel. For my part, I would like to see a universal moratorium on all military aid and arms trading by the United States, regardless of the theater of war. I would also like to see a universal end to economic sanctions and oppose the creation of new ones against any country. Rather, whether the country is Israel or Iran, the United States should be involved in the free flow of non-lethal goods and open borders so individuals have the freedom to travel and exchange ideas for the betterment of humanity.
There is another issue worth addressing. If one looks at many rallies organized by elements of the Iranian diaspora and their supporters calling for a “Free Iran,” what exactly are they advocating? In recorded interviews, diaspora protestors often appear to be urging the United States to bomb Iran, promising that Donald Trump would be remembered as a hero if he did so.[7]
These kinds of promises should strike Americans weary of war as very familiar. At the dawn of the 2003 invasion of Iraq, certain Iraqi exiles lobbied extensively and promised both George W. Bush and the American public that an American intervention would receive a hero’s welcome. While it is true that in some parts of Saddam Hussein’s Iraq—particularly in Kurdish northern regions and Shia southern regions—American forces initially faced limited resistance, the fall of the Ba’ath regime in a matter of weeks was not the true challenge.[8]
Within months, a power vacuum emerged as militias and insurgent groups declared war not only against Coalition forces, but against one another, resulting in mass slaughter on all sides. This included revenge killings of Sunnis by Shia militias, targeted bombings of Shia civilians by Sunni extremists, mass killings of Arabs in Kurdish areas, bloody intercommunal civil wars, and violent struggles between Saddam loyalists and Al-Qaeda for control of the Sunni Triangle. In Basra and Najaf, the Badr Organization fought a brutal civil war with the Mahdi Army.[9] This was followed by the rise of Daesh and the genocide of Iraq’s Christians, Yazidis, and Mandaeans.[10]
We heard similar rhetoric surrounding Libya—an intervention initially praised because it did not involve boots on the ground or a decade-long occupation with American casualties. Yet the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi was a disaster by any objective measure. Libya’s infrastructure and central authority collapsed, transforming what had once been one of the most prosperous nations in Africa into a failed state.[11]
Many Americans are unaware that the bombing of Libya did not end with Gaddafi’s overthrow. Airstrikes continued for years as Al-Qaeda- and Daesh-linked groups established bases of operation. Between 2014 and 2020, Libya’s rival executive and legislative authorities went to war with one another, resulting in countless casualties and further American bombing.[12] Within Libya today, the situation has deteriorated into a humanitarian emergency, including an ongoing genocide against Afro-Libyans and tribes formerly loyal to the Gaddafi regime[13]—despite the fact that Americans were shown countless images of Libyan crowds, both in the diaspora and in rebel-held territory, waving American and NATO flags in gratitude.[14]
Now return to the rhetoric we hear from certain Iranians in the diaspora—and even from some protestors inside Iran. Do some Iranians want foreign intervention? Undoubtedly, yes. But is this the majority view? Clearly not. Massive pro-regime rallies, with participants waving the flag of the Islamic Republic and vowing to resist foreign intervention, demonstrate that opinion within Iran is far from uniform.[15]
If the United States were to intervene militarily, some factions would support it—but millions of Iranians would violently resist it, just as Vietnamese, Iraqis, and Afghans resisted prolonged American occupation. As for the protestors themselves, many analysts have noted that this uprising is more widespread than previous ones in part because the bazari merchant class—driven by economic collapse—has turned against the regime. Yet when one examines images of bazaris protesting, they are not waving the Pahlavi flag; they are waving the flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran.[16]
The merchant class has long been among the most religious segments of Iranian society and maintains close ties—often through intermarriage—with the clerical class. It is therefore highly doubtful that this bloc would support American intervention. This also calls into question claims by some diaspora commentators that Iranians are protesting against Islam itself.[17]
Historically, when Iran has come under economic or military attack, the population has rallied behind the regime. In 2005, Iranians elected Mahmoud Ahmadinejad after Mohammad Khatami’s reformist appeals were undermined by the Bush administration.[18] In 2017, voters elected a conservative president after Donald Trump humiliated Hassan Rouhani and the reformists by withdrawing from the JCPOA.[19] In 2021, following the drone strike that killed Qassem Soleimani, Iranians—including many who had previously participated in the largest protests in the country’s history—rallied behind Khamenei in outrage over the killing of a decorated war hero.[20]
American military strikes against Iran would alienate moderate protestors who are primarily concerned with their livelihoods and who do not support the mosque burnings that have increasingly accompanied unrest.
When I protested U.S. aid to Israel, I did not endorse—and neither did anyone I knew—military action against Israel. Such action would be both highly immoral and deeply counterproductive. I was protesting to end a war, not to start a new one. Participating in a march that calls for Donald Trump to initiate another war would be antithetical to everything I believe in.
[1] Dahlia Kurtz (@DahliaKurtz), “Because the truth exposes their lies. 🎥TT Aida,” X, January ##, 2026, https://x.com/DahliaKurtz/status/2010169685468188786
[2] Amnesty International, Human Rights in Iran, Amnesty International, accessed January 14, 2026, https://www.amnesty.org/en/location/middle-east-and-north-africa/middle-east/iran/report-iran/.
[3] U.S. Aid to Israel in Four Charts,” Council on Foreign Relations, October 7, 2025, https://www.cfr.org/article/us-aid-israel-four-charts.
[4] PragerU. Why Does America Spend So Much on Israel? YouTube video, 5:00. Posted December 3, 2018. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxE_UUrbMNA
[5] Hope O’Dell, “How the U.S. Has Used Its Power in the UN to Support Israel for Decades,” Global Affairs (blog), December 18, 2023, https://globalaffairs.org/commentary-and-analysis/blogs/how-us-has-used-its-power-un-support-israel-decades.
[6] U.S. Department of State, Iran Sanctions, U.S. Department of State, accessed January 14, 2026, https://www.state.gov/iran-sanctions
[7] KTLA 5, L.A. Protesters Call for Regime Change in Iran, YouTube video, 0:XX, posted January ___, 2026, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNAK3aW52Qo
[8] Fouad Ajami, The Foreigner’s Gift: The Americans, the Arabs, and the Iraqis in Iraq (New York: Free Press, 2006), 49–81
[9] Patrick Cockburn, Muqtada al-Sadr and the Battle for the Future of Iraq (New York: Scribner, 2008), 127–213.
[10] University of Minnesota, Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, Mass Violence and Genocide by the Islamic State/Daesh in Iraq and Syria, accessed January 14, 2026, https://cla.umn.edu/chgs/holocaust-genocide-education/resource-guides/mass-violence-and-genocide-islamic-statedaesh.
[11] Daniel Haile, “We Came, We Saw, We Failed: Libya’s Descent into the Flintstone Age,” Modern Diplomacy, January 5, 2025, https://moderndiplomacy.eu/2025/01/05/we-came-we-saw-we-failed-libyas-descent-into-the-flintstone-age/.
[12] Thomas Joscelyn and Bill Roggio, “US Resumes Strikes against Islamic State in Libya,” FDD’s Long War Journal, September 30, 2017, https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2017/09/us-resumes-strikes-against-islamic-state-in-libya.php
[13] Genocide Watch, Libya, Genocide Watch, accessed January 14, 2026, https://www.genocidewatch.com/country-pages/libya
[14] James M. Lindsay, “Libya: ‘Justifications’ for Intervention,” FDD’s Long War Journal — Council on Foreign Relations Blog, June 24, 2011, https://www.cfr.org/blog/libya-justifications-intervention.
[15] “Iran’s Khamenei Says Strong Turnout at Pro-Government Rallies ‘Warning’ to US,” France 24, January 12, 2026, https://www.france24.com/en/asia-pacific/20260112-live-iran-s-khamenei-says-strong-turnout-at-pro-government-rallies-warning-to-us.
[16] Mohamad Machine-Chian, “The Bazaar Finally Breaks with the Islamic Republic,” Iran International, December 30, 2025, https://www.iranintl.com/en/202512291642.
[17] Ahmed Shamseldin, “The Historical Alliance Between the Bazaar and the Clergy: Transformations and Outcomes,” Rasanah — International Institute for Iranian Studies, April 30, 2024, https://rasanah-iiis.org/english/centre-for-researches-and-studies/the-historical-alliance-between-the-bazaar-and-the-clergy-transformations-and-outcomes/
[18] Ervand Abrahamian, A History of Modern Iran (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008), 182–195.
[19] Ellie Geranmayeh, Reviving the Revolutionaries: How Trump’s Maximum Pressure Is Shifting Iran’s Domestic Politics, Policy Brief, European Council on Foreign Relations, June 23, 2020, https://www.ecfr.eu/publication/reviving_the_revolutionaries_how_trumps_maximum_pressure_is_shifting_irans/.
[20] New York Post, Protests Sweep Iran after U.S. Assassination of Top General, YouTube video, January 3, 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7dw7Ob10iY
