Where Does Iran Go From Here? Tracing the Past and Future of Resistance in Iran

Where Does Iran Go From Here? Tracing the Past and Future of Resistance in Iran

The latest wave of protests in Iran began on December 28, 2025, with economically motivated demonstrations in Tehran’s bazaar, driven by high inflation, currency depreciation, and rising living costs. Initially focused on economic grievances and merchant strikes, the protests rapidly expanded into broader political mobilization. The Islamic Republic regime, reportedly unprepared for the speed and geographic spread of the unrest, responded with a coordinated security crackdown involving the use of lethal force, live ammunition, mass arrests, and intimidation by state security forces, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Basij militia. The Islamic Republic regime, following two weeks of protests, cut internet and phone services, preventing Iranians from receiving safety warnings, contacting family members, and obscuring the situation inside the country from the world.  Despite widespread internet blackouts, Iranian diaspora media and international human rights organizations have reported large-scale casualties and detentions, potentially numbering in the tens of thousands, though independent verification remains limited.

To raise awareness of the current situation in Iran on campus, GIWPS and Georgetown University’s Iranian Cultural Society will host an event featuring human rights professionals, journalists, political analysts, legal experts, and notable Iranian activists to examine potential trajectories of the protests, with particular attention to documented human rights violations and large-scale violence against protesters. The speakers will further highlight the contributions of previous protests, such as the Women, Life, Freedom Movement, to Iran’s rapid political mobilization, the role of journalists in reporting human rights violations, and the international community’s response to the protests. 

Featuring

Nazenin Ansari
Georgetown Alum, Journalist, and Managing Editor of Kayhan London

Gissou Nia
Human rights lawyer and senior fellow at the Atlantic Council

Shahin Milani
Lawyer and the Director of the Iran Human Rights Documentation Center

Khosro Isfahani
Research Director, National Union for Democracy in Iran (NUFDI)