01/14/2026
This story is from six years ago, yet the violence has never truly stopped. For more than forty‑seven years, Iranians have watched their most basic rights slowly stripped away through imprisonment, torture, and silencing, often out of sight from the rest of the world. Many were forced into exile, leaving behind a beloved homeland. They arrived in new countries highly educated, resilient, and ready to contribute. They may be the host countries' scholars, specialists, doctors, artists, chefs and therapists, people with big, broken hearts who learned to hide their pain behind warmth and generosity.
Today, that decades‑long brutality has escalated into the mass killing of thousands in just two days, targeting people whose only act was speaking out against violence and demanding fundamental human rights.
Iran does not need sympathy. Iranians are extraordinarily courageous and capable. What they need now is awareness and support, especially as the internet is shut down and people are being tortured behind closed doors. From outside the country, the silence can feel unbearable, as if the suffering of millions is happening in a void.
To my non‑Iranian friends: we are not helpless, and none of this is an exaggeration. The regime continues to harm children and unarmed civilians who are protesting peacefully.
This is not about sanctions, nor is it an internal dispute over inflation. A nation’s freedom was stolen nearly half a century ago, and its people are now risking everything to reclaim it. Meanwhile, Iranians in the diaspora are being punished in a different way, left in agonizing silence, unable to reach their loved ones and unsure of their safety.
Your attention, your voice, and your solidarity matter more than ever.
Peace to all ❤️🩹
Sogol
