Since June of 2009, the Islamic Republic of Iran has seen the most dramatic political
upheaval in its three decades of rule. What began as a series of mass protests over
the official results of a presidential election-- engendering the slogan "Where is
My Vote?" -- has grown into something much larger, indeed the largest political protest
since the 1979 revolution.
The Green Movement has been described as "an Iranian intifada," a "great emancipatory event," a "grassroots civil rights movement a century in the making," and "something quite extraordinary, perhaps even a social revolution." What are the movement's aims-- are they revolutionary, reformist, or something else altogether? Does it have a chance of fundamentally changing Iranian politics or removing president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad from office?
This momentous anthology explores these critical questions and other by assembling the key statements, communiqués, manifestos, interviews, and debates to have emerged from this vibrant social movement-- many of which are translated and published here for the first time. This indispensable volume is the first to bring together the leading voices and key players in Iran's Green Movement, providing an intellectual and political road map to this turning point in Iran's history and a vital resource for the study of Iran, social movements, and the future of the Middle East.
The following are a few of the numerous reviews:
"In bringing together these essential texts from and about Iran's Green movement,
Nader Hashemi and Danny Postel have opened the door for critical engagement with one
of the most significant movements in the Middle East today."
--Orhan Pamuk, 2006 Nobel Laureate in Literature
"For all those who are interested in the new shapes of democracy in our world, and
who felt deep solidarity with the Iranian protests last year, and horror at their
suppression, this collection offers precious insights into the historical sources
and future potentials of this great movement."
--Charles Taylor, McGill University
"This anthology illuminates the ethical demands at the core of Iran's Green Movement,
on one of the most vibrant and promising social forces on the global horizon. The
People Reloaded plunges into a defining conflict of modern political history: how
nonviolent democratic resistance might succeed in the face of a repressive regime.
Defeat often seems inevitable and change never seems to come fast enough. And then,
all of a sudden, the dam bursts, time accelerates and nothing can stop it. This welcome
volume provides an anatomy of how this process is unfolding in Iran today, whatever
its eventual outcome."
--Simon Critchley, New School for Social Research
"Words, yes, words and justice and bodies-- that's all the Iranian human earthquake
called the Green Movement has had on its side from the start of its peaceful insurrection.
The bodies have been beaten and jailed and persecuted and the justice is a long time
coming, but the words, the indispensable words that have always been at the heart
of that country's history, the words are finally available in one crucial and moving
and thought-provoking book. Here is proof-- as if Ghandi needed proof, as if King
needed proof-- that the people of Iran will prevail."
--Ariel Dorfman, playwright and author, Duke University


