The Voice of the Iranian Revolution
March 04, 2023
The following appeal for international solidarity has come from inside Iran and
we the undersigned declare our support for this call, and hope you will join us
by adding your name to it.
Build a campaign to defend and raisethe voice of the Iranian revolution
The revolutionary government of tomorrow is dependent on today’s political
organisation
Four months into the ‘Woman, life, freedom’ uprising, the need to boost and
broadcast the real voice of the Iranian revolution is ever more urgent. On the
internal front, in the face of a deepening and expanding apparatus of repression
against the revolutionaries, we should double up our efforts to raise the voice
of freedom. Externally, with the intense activity of the usual mechanisms of
biased, self-interested representation and advocacy from above, we should
intensify our struggle against the distorted and one-sided reflection and
translation of this voice.
Contrary to the illusion that the revolution’s march forward is irreversible,
all revolutions constantly face the danger of being hijacked, usurped, falsified
and ultimately transformed into something directly opposed to their original
demands. While the ruling power tries to discredit and suppress the revolution
by the usual false dualities, such as protests/riots or by brandishing it as “a
conspiracy by enemies”, the counterrevolution abroad has also not for a moment
stopped distorting its aims and trying to present itself as its leader. In order
to ensure an outcome which is beneficial to the people of Iran, there is no
doubt that confronting this counterrevolution is as crucial and important as
confronting the ruling regime itself. Our own recent history is the best
indication of the importance of this sensitivity. The oppressive ruling regime
and an oppressive future regime are just two sides of a seesaw that instead of
breaking the logic of dominance merely reinforces the old game of reproducing
despotism in another form.
On this basis, any form of unity, even incidental and unwritten, between
progressive forces fighting for freedom and those self-appointed advocates
supporting the return of the repressive regimes of the past, although an
obviously unlikely joke, is nonetheless becoming a serious threat and demands
complete condemnation. Without doubt, to be effective, the revolutionary forces
need unity - but not unity with everyone and anyone, irrespective of their
politics! Similarly, seeking help from the dominant world powers to intervene in
the Iranian revolution is a red line, the crossing of which cannot be permitted,
justified or normalised in any shape or form - a united front with fascists,
racists and chauvinists is itself a counterrevolutionary and totally
unacceptable act.
The great goals of democracy and equality cannot be achieved without considering
the means and route to achieve them. In that sense ‘unity in words’, instead of
aiding the revolution, will strip it of all its potential to develop and its
multitude of supporters. Our alternative is a unity which will respect that
multitude - one which will give women, youth, the oppressed nationalities,
downtrodden classes, sexual minorities and the ignored and dispossessed the
possibility of raising their voices to the highest frequency in order to reach
each other and the masses. Having risen up for ‘Woman, life, freedom’, we must
now build the new order by embarking on the same path that the outcasts of the
current order are marching along - not alongside the banner of the ruling
fascists or their neo-fascist opposition, who are rabble-rousing with their
slogans in support of male chauvinism, the sanctity of their land, and the
welfare and advance of their own class.
To realise such a unity based on the multitudes, to strengthen the revolutionary
forces against the ruling regime, and to prevent the rise of the new
counterrevolution, revolutionary forces should build organisations reflecting
the ‘Woman, life, freedom’ movement. If the revolutionary power of tomorrow is a
product of the revolutionary organisations of today, we must plant the seeds of
the novel forms of organisation, both inside Iran and abroad, with the utmost
awareness and responsibility. Inside Iran, the ongoing process of building
revolutionary cells by women, youth, students, oppressed nationalities, workers,
etc is a reflection of that task. But outside Iran we must also follow the same
course. In opposition to all counterrevolutionary projects of dominance and all
appointments of leaders, advocates and representatives from above that presume
the inability of the masses to decide for themselves, we call on all
progressive, democratic and freedom-loving forces everywhere to build committees
to reflect ‘the voice of the Iranian revolution’. Committees which, instead of
claiming to lead or represent the movement, are truly reflecting, strengthening
and reproducing the voice of the revolution. Committees which, instead of
lobbying world powers and their regional surrogates behind closed doors, are
echoing in a clear and open way the demands shouted in every city and village
for freedom from all the chains of slavery, despotism and dominance from above.
This is a call to form a revolutionary organisation which, in all its measures
and activities, is an embodiment of the developing revolution and the
egalitarian and democratic society of the future. The fighting forces that have
organised themselves are indeed central to the revolution that is taking shape.
Revolutionaries therefore loathe hiding their views and aims. They declare
openly that only with the overthrow of all forms of dominance and oppression
will they achieve their aims.
Let all the despotic classes and groups shake to their foundations. In this
struggle, revolutionaries will destroy nothing but all the many structures of
dominance and oppression and in return they will create a , society, a world and
a future founded on freedom and equality.
Revolutionary and progressive forces everywhere unite in your multitude to
spread the voice of the Iranian revolution!
Tariq Ali (Writer, UK)
Dariush Arjmandi (Political Activist, Sweden)
Francesco Armenio (Insegnante, Italy)
Kave Ashhami (Political Activist, Sweden)
Dr Kevin Bean (Socialist Activist, Lecturer, Liverpool University)
Maud Bracke (Professor of Modern European History, Glasgow University)
Martin Breaugh (Associate Professor, University of York)
Terry Brotherstone (Emeritus Research Fellow in History, University of Aberdeen)
Sofia Cabasino (Student, Sapienza university of Rome)
David Camfield (Editorial Board of Midnight Sun)
John Clarke (Anti-poverty Coalition, Ontario, Lecturer, York University)
Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation
Sara Dehkordi (Political Activist, Germany)
Rahim Fathi Baran (Political Activist, Germany)
Sue Ferguson (Associate Professor Emerita, Digital Media and Journalism, Wilfrid
Laurier University)
Professor Bridget Fowler (University of Glasgow)
Borzu Fouladvand (Socialist Activist, USA)
Iman Ganji (Political Activist, Holland)
Niloofar Golkar (Member of the Editorial Committee of Upping the Anti, Canada)
Laam Hae (Professor of Political Science, York University)
Michael Hardt (Political Philosopher, USA)
Ali Hejazi (Political Activist, UK)
Amin Hosouri (Political Activist, Germany)
Augusto Illuminati (Emeritus Professor of Philosophy, Università degli Studi di
Urbino, ‘Carlo Bo’)
Homayon Iwani (Ex-political Prisoner, Editorial Board of “In Defence of
Marxism”)
Daniel Sarah Karasik (Editorial Board of Midnight Sun)
Mehdi Kia (Writer, Political Activist, UK)
Amir Kianpour (Political Activist, France)
Ben Lewis (Lecturer, Leeds)
Filippo Del Lucchese (Associate Professor, University of Bologna)
Moshe Machover (Socialist Activist, Founder of Matzpen)
Peter Manson (Editor of Weekly Worker)
Yassamine Mather (Acting Editor of Critique)
John McAnulty (Socialist Activist, Ireland)
Brian McDougall (Adjunct Professor, Carleton University)
Mike Mcnair (Professor of Law at Oxford)
David Mcnally (Editor of Spectre)
Dr Anne McShane (Human Rights Lawyer Ireland)
Siamak Mehr (Political Activist, Canada)
Ardeshir Mehrdad (Socialist Activist, UK)
Robert Myers (Political Activist, UK)
Ali Nassiri (Painter, USA)
Antonio Negri (Political Philosopher, France)
Dragomir Olujić Oluja (Political Scientist, Serbia)
Margheritta Pascucci (Independent Scholar)
Simon Pirani (Honorary Professor, University of Durham)
Charlie Post (Historian, Editorial Board of Spectre, USA)
Stéfanie Prezioso (Conseillère Nationale, Ensemble à Gauche-Genève, Switzerland)
Faramarz Rafiee (Socialist Activist, USA)
Michael Roberts (Economist, UK)
Fera Rosari (Feminist Activist in the Nun Una Di Meno Movement, Italy)
Vida Rosner (Political Activist, USA)
Somayeh Rostampour (Political Activist, France)
Gabriela Rubin (Socialist Activist, UK)
Jamal Safavi (Political Activist, France)
Sara Salah (Socialist Activist, USA)
Babak Salari (Political Activist, Canada)
Torab Saleth (Socialist Activist, UK)
Morteza Samanpour (Political Activist, France)
Sasan Sedghinia (Independent Researcher, Italy)
Mahasti Shabestari (Painter, Norway)
Mohammad Reza Shalgooni (Socialist Activist)
Nikos Smyrnaios (Associate Professor, University of Toulouse)
Shideh Sotudeh (Musician, USA)
The Editorial Board of Commons (Spil'ne) Journal )Ukraine(
The Editors of Posle Media (Russia)
The International Bureau of the Communist Party of Iran
The Marxist Unity Group Central Committee (USA)
Professor Hillel Ticktin (Founding Editor of Critique)
Stavros Tombazos (Professor of Political Science. University of Cyprus)
Professor Marcel van der Linden (Emeritus Professor of Social Movement History,
University of Amsterdam)
Carlo Vercellone (Professor of Economics, University of Paris 8)
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