Hamid Dabashi on Iran: this isn’t class or sectarian conflict — it’s something new
Commentary: Iran conflict isn’t class warfare
I am convinced that we are witness to something quite extraordinary, perhaps even a social revolution that is overriding its economic roots. Although there are many similarities, this is a much different event than the 1977-1979 Islamic Revolution. I am not sure that this movement either sees itself as a revolution or will actually transmute into one.
Given the brutality it faces, it has no choice but opt for a nonviolent civil disobedience route. The age of ideological warfare is over in Iran. If anything, this momentum is the closest event in Iran to the civil rights movement of the 1960s in the United States, and precisely like that movement, its economic dimensions are couched in social demands.
This movement is ahead of our inherited politics, floating ideologies or mismatched theories. We need to sit back, hope for the best and let this inspirational movement of a whole new generation of hope teach us courage and humility.
Read more at www.cnn.com
Nathan Rein says:
Hamid Dabashi is a Columbia University professor. He views the current situation in Iran as something fundamentally non-ideological. He compares it to the U.S. civil rights movement and predicts that a nonviolent resistance will continue for some time. I like the final line: “We need to sit back, hope for the best and let this inspirational movement of a whole new generation of hope teach us courage and humility.”

To leave a comment:
1 Comment
2 Responses
merriemarie on Twitter June 22, 2009 10:55 pm
@nbr Re: http://bit.ly/DH2Am This movement has quickly evolved into a “Human Right” movement
mousavi1388
http://twitter.com/mousavi1388
merriemarie June 22, 2009 10:55 pm