Jina Amini and the Plight of Iranian Minorities
The brave Iranian women deserve all the support, but the movement is not a revolution yet, and Iranian minorities are at the highest risk.
It is heartwarming to see women marching through the streets of Iran, demanding an end to draconian laws, corruption and state oppression. It is also painful to see the state using brutal force to crush these protests, killing dozens and arresting thousands. That said, the protest movement, labeled as a revolution by some, is lacking the ingredients necessary for an inclusive change. Nothing can highlight this fact more than the face of current protests: Mahsa Amini. She was an ethnic Kurd, and her real name was Jina.
This basic fact has been omitted from the protest discourse. What’s more interesting was the reaction to the above tweet, with ethnic Persians twisting facts to justify the omission.
But the retort was swift, highlighting the systemic oppression Iranian minorities face on a daily basis. When you cannot even use ethnic names for your kids, it would be a longshot to think your cultural or religious rights will be respected.
Human rights organizations have been documenting brutal oppression against Iranian minorities for decades. Iran has launched multiple military operations against the Kurds, and is punishing them for fomenting the current “unrest.” Ethnic Baluchs in the southeast fare even worse. They have been denied the right to cultural or religious practices for the most part, and constitute the plurality of executions. Arabic-speaking Ahwazis regularly complain of state violence, and other minorities have horror tales of their own.
This is not to say ethnic Persians are immune from state repression. They bear the brunt of brutalities, such as in 2019 when hundreds were mowed down by the mullahs. But their pain and suffering is not as systemic as Iranian minorities. Furthermore, many of them perpetuate the same ethnic superiority (see explanation above). The calls for revolution continue to exclude the minorities, as they do not factor into this ethno-nationalist narrative.
This can lead to two possible outcomes. First, and the most likely scenario, suggests the state will unleash a brutal crackdown on the protesters, as it has successfully done many times in the past. Second, even if the protests endure and spread — and actually dismantle the regime — the post-revolution phase will still be precarious for the minorities. The ensuing arrangement might shed the Shia-Persian dichotomy, but will retain the latter. Contrary to current propaganda, institutional curbs on ethnic cultural practices existed long before the revolution, reflecting broader societal disdain towards non-Persian identities. These exclusionary practices and racism will continue, unless the majority atones and corrects its mistakes.
While a revolution is too farfetched of an idea right now, continued state repression will eventually lead to the fall of the mullahs. Iranian minorities are most likely to bear the brunt of that, both in the leadup and the aftermath. It is about time the world comes to their rescue.
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