Iranian students gathered Wednesday afternoon at the rock on Farm Lane to take part in a protest that won’t just raise awareness at MSU, but will support demonstrators thousands of miles away in Iran.
Members of the Persian Student Association, or PSA, passed out brochures to students throughout the day, detailing the controversy and violence that has risen from the Middle Eastern country’s recent election. Since June, Iranian people have been protesting a disputed election that incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won, amid numerous claims of altering election results.
Iranian police have clashed with protesters, resulting in numerous injuries and casualties. PSA President Sohraab Soltani, a professor’s aide in the Department of Electrical And Computer Engineering, said this was the group’s way of showing students that Ahmadinejad isn’t Iran’s true president.
“When (students) hear Ahmadinejad speak, they (shouldn’t) think this is the Iranian people,” Soltani said.
The demonstration at MSU is in conjunction with several other protests around the world Wednesday supporting the Iranian Green Movement, which is trying to have Ahmadinejad removed from office. The color green was chosen to symbolize hope, Soltani said.
Physics graduate student Kevin Novak visited the demonstration during the day and said he supported the Iranian students’ cause.
“I know there’s a lot more dissent in Iran against Ahmadinejad and I heard there was definitely international support for that,” he said.
Participants at the demonstration declined to reveal their identities for fear of repercussions toward them or family members in Iran.
One student, who was living in Iran during the election, protested the results when they were released on June 30 and said he will do so until the election is annulled.
“Elections mean people want someone to be the president — their president,” the student said. “He is not the guy we chose, he is not the guy we voted (for).”
The student said 85 percent of the voters in Iran did not support Ahmadinejad despite the danger of violence or even losing his life, he still will protest.
“We can never get freedom free,” he said. “Maybe we go to the street and that’s the last day of our lives, but we have to do it.”
Support student media!
Please consider donating to The State News and help fund the future of journalism.
Discussion
Share and discuss “MSU students protest Iranian president” on social media.