In Los Angeles, Iranian Americans from all walks of life gathered at City Hall on the anniversary of the Islamic Revolution of 1979, calling for the regime's downfall and calling on the United States and other Western governments to stand with the people of Iran as they march for freedom and regime change.
According to reports, activists, celebrities, writers, journalists, and politicians held demonstrations in Los Angeles and Washington D.C., with smaller demonstrations throughout the U.S. and Europe, denouncing the Islamic Republic and expressing solidarity with anti-government protesters.
In LA, Iranian Americans gathered near City Hall, chanting "Women, Life Freedom," "Death to Khamenei," "Freedom for Iran," "Reza Shah, Bless Your Soul," and many other chants.
Among the crowd were young Iranian couples along with their children, mothers, fathers, and grandparents who lived in Iran or had relatives in Iran, carrying signs that called for regime change and waiving small and large Lion and Sun Flags.
Speakers ranging from Exiled Prince Reza Pahlavi, son of the late Shah of Iran Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, to Cameron Khansarinia, Policy Director at the National Union for Democracy in Iran (NUFDI), to Congressman Adam Schiff, called for the U.S. government and other nations to stand with the people of Iran, vowing that the regime would fall in the future and that freedom and change would soon come to Iran.
Foreign Desk News
In Iran, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi referred to the protests in America as a campaign by Iran's enemies to overthrow the Islamic regime.
Raisi described the celebration of the Islamic revolution as "epic," praising post-revolution achievements. In Azadi Square near the country's capital, pro-Islamic Republic supporters chanted "Death to the U.S." and held posters of the deceased Ayatollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Revolution.
Before the Islamic revolution of 1979, Iran was ruled by the then-monarch Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, who, under his leadership, began a campaign to westernize Iran, allowing women to wear whatever clothing they chose, reforming Iran's economy, strengthening Iran's military, and working with the U.S. to deter Soviet Aggression in the Middle East.
Before his overthrow, Iran shared friendly relations with Arab governments like Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Oman, Morocco, Jordan, and other Arab states and the Jewish state of Israel, which engaged in agricultural and military cooperation with Iran.
After overthrowing the monarchy in 1979, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and his radical Islamic supporters established the Islamic Republic, changing the country's trajectory with the goal of exporting the revolution using violence and terrorism.
For 44 years, Iran under the Ayatollahs has repressed its own citizens through brutal force, sponsoring terrorist groups like Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas, and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis in Yemen, and Shiite militant groups in Iraq.
Today, under the rule of the Ayatollahs, Iran continues to support its Islamic proxies to attack Israel, vowing to wipe out the Jewish state from existence.
Despite protests occurring in 1999, 2009, and today, the regime continues to crack down on its citizens while facing international condemnation and sanctions from the U.S. and its allies.
Following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini at the hands of the Islamic Republic's morality police in September, Iranians throughout the country and in America and Europe continue to stand in solidarity with each other, calling on governments not to negotiate with the Islamic Republic over its nuclear program but stand up to the mullahs by enacting crippling sanctions against members of the Islamic regime, individuals associated with the government, and against Iran's economy.
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