Rally speech: Continuing the Support for the People of Iran
Continuing the Support for the People of Iran:
DAY OF INTERNATIONAL SOLIDARITY WITH IRANIAN WORKERS
Friday June 26, 2009 @ 6 p.m.
Mel Lastman Square (North York Subway Station)
The people of Iran have risen up. Thirty years after their revolution, the people are standing up, asking for what they fought for thirty years ago: Independence, Freedom and Social Justice.
Despite the crackdown on the protestors, despite the jailing of labour leaders, political activists, journalists, university teachers and students, millions of ordinary Iranians are standing up every day and every night, demanding an end to corruption.
The crowds inspire us: the emphatic unity of the people, their all-encompassing solidarity, creative self-organization, improvising of the ways to articulate protest, the cries of “Allah-o-Akbar” that resonate from the roofs of Tehran in the evening darkness, the unique mixture of spontaneity and discipline, like the ominous march of thousands in complete silence inspire us. We are witnessing the genuine demand of a people for dignity, respect and emancipation.
And they have been successful. The crackdown of the protests continues, but the people’s resilience has fractured the leadership of the regime. Even conservatives within the regime are speaking out against the election fraud: the conservative speaker of parliament and Tehran’s conservative mayor have both stated that the popular demands cannot be quashed by force – that the regime’s survival depends on winning confidence, legitimacy and trust of the people.
Here’s our message to the Iranian government: people around the world stand in solidarity with the democratic aspirations of the people of Iran, with their calls for independence, freedom and social justice. People around the world call for the immediate release of all political prisoners and labour leaders in Iran. People around the world support a fair and transparent electoral process that respects the genuine will of the Iranian people.
And our message to the people of Iran is: you will overcome this dark and bitter moment. Much sooner than later, the great avenues of your cities will be opened through which will pass the free men and women who will build a better world.
Olivia Chow
