Council on Middle East Studies and Program in Iranian Studies Joint Statement on the Protests in Iran

The Council on Middle East Studies and the Program in Iranian Studies at Yale University stand in solidarity with the peaceful protesters across Iran who courageously face state violence, intimidation, and oppression. The protests, many of which are led by young women, call for basic human rights. Pleas for dignity and bodily autonomy have been met with beatings, tear gas, and bullets. Iranians are boldly standing up to state violence, while the number of women and men, children and students killed only increases. We support the right of Iranians to voice their political aspirations and to exercise freedom of expression. We call for an end to gender discrimination and the state-led brutality of the Iranian government against its own citizens who strive for social and economic justice.