Please support the people of Iran and amplify their voice to policymakers, lawmakers, and leaders within the United States Government. Attached are letters to send to your local congressperson, as well as online links to submit electronically. We suggest using both electronic and paper mailing methods to increase the attention on the human rights violations being actively committed by the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Islamic regime (i.e., Supreme Leader), and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (i.e., Basij).

 

Sherrod Brown:

 

https://www.brown.senate.gov/contact/email

801 West Superior Ave.

Suite 1400

Cleveland, OH 44113

T:(216) 522-7272

F:(202) 228-2307

 

------------------------------------
503 Hart Senate,

Office Bldg.

Washington, DC 20510

T:(202) 224-2315

F:(202) 228-6321

Rob Portman

https://www.portman.senate.gov/meet/contact

Cleveland, OH

1240 East 9th Street , Room 3061

Cleveland, OH 44199

Phone: 216-522-709

 

------------------------------
Washington, D.C.

448 Russell Senate Office Building ,

Washington, DC 20510

Phone: 202-224-3353

Oct 10, 2022

 

The Honorable Senator Sherrod Brown

801 West Superior Ave.

Suite 1400

Cleveland, OH 44113

 

Dear Senator Brown:

On behalf of Iranian Americans everywhere, we would like to call your attention to the troubling events in Iran, as well as the actions congress must take to help the people of Iran fight for their freedom.

Right now, Iranian security forces are violently quashing peaceful protests sparked by Mahsa Amini's death on September 16th, days after her arrest by the "morality police" for not complying with discriminatory compulsory veiling laws. With at least 175 people killed and hundreds injured, the world is once again witnessing the limitless brutality of the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the violent oppression of innocent Iranian people. In this challenging time, it is essential to remember that the protests in Iran are more than an episodic outburst of anger but the result of generations of trauma. More importantly, we should not forget that the United States and Iran have a long history of friendship and collaboration. About 115 years ago, Iran faced an oppressive regime, and Howard Baskerville, a young American teacher living in Tabriz-Iran, joined the resistance movement. When bureaucrats cautioned Howard against joining the resistance, stating America had nothing to do with Iran’s freedom movement, Howard bravely responded, “Wherever there is a struggle against the unjust, that is the right battlefield for a genuine American”. It is in this spirit that Americans and Iranians established their friendship.

Once again, young men, women, school students, and all those Iranians who are being forced to silence need the US congress members' vibrant voices of support. As a result, congress should consider immediate legislative measures to help the Iranian people.

A/ Ensure the Iranian people have access to the free and open internet. The deployment of Starlink, for example, would prevent the regime from censoring its ongoing violation of human rights and provide Iranians with a resilient connection to the internet, so the world can hear their voice.

B/Continue to sanction the government of Iran. The release of sanctions and subsequent cash inflow will only bolster the oppressive Islamic regime and will not benefit the Iranian people. The United States and its allies must find alternate pathways toward Iran’s complete, irreversible, verifiable, denuclearization. 

 

Thank you,