This article was written in response to a conversation Bernie Sanders had with three experts about the tense and troubled history of relations between Iran and the United States. The discussion rightly highlights the legacy of the 1953 coup, the destructive impact of sanctions and military interventions, the warmongering of the Trump administration, Israel’s role in escalating the regional crisis, and the human cost of war for ordinary people in Iran. These are important and necessary points, especially at a time when many dominant narratives are normalising civilian suffering, the destruction of infrastructure, and disregard for international law.
And yet, the problem begins exactly where, even within this seemingly critical and anti-war narrative, Iranian society is once again pushed to the margins. It is as if Iran is nothing more than a stage for confrontation between states, sanctions, armies, and geopolitical actors, rather than a living society made up of workers, protesting women, students, teachers, pensioners, political prisoners, and civil networks that have been struggling for change under repression for years.
