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Authoritarian Theocracy in Iran, Afghanistan and Here In The US
Description
The death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at the hands of the United States marks the end of nearly four decades of authoritarian theocracy in Iran. Hawk reads and analyzes a piece from The Atlantic by Karim Sadjadpour examining Khamenei's life, his ruthless consolidation of power through the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and how the Islamic Republic of Iran was built on three ideological pillars: death to America, death to Israel, and the forced covering of women.
Drawing direct parallels to the Taliban in Afghanistan, Hawk walks through the Taliban's systematic oppression of women since retaking power in 2021, from banning girls from school after age 12 to prohibiting women from appearing in public without a burka. The comparison extends to white Christian nationalism, Project 2025, and the Heritage Foundation, examining how fundamentalist religion across Islam, Christianity, and other faiths has long been weaponized by insecure men to control and silence women and girls.
The IRGC's role as Khamenei's political and economic power base mirrors how Trump has used loyal institutions to consolidate control. Eric Hoffer's observation that mass movements require belief in a devil, not God, applies as much to MAGA's targeting of immigrants, trans people, and the left as it did to Khamenei's America.
The Iranian government's killing of 7,000 to 10,000 protesters over economic grievances, while spending on proxy wars instead of healthcare, parallels Republican cuts to Medicaid and SNAP alongside a $200 billion ICE budget. Khamenei lived by death to America and death to Israel. Those are exactly the forces that killed him.
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