Fresno residents react to the war with Iran
Across the country, Americans are reacting to the United States’ war with Iran.
This comes after the United States and Israel launched missile strikes on Iran on Feb. 28.
Mike Karbassi, a first-generation Iranian-American who also sits on the Fresno City Council, feels strongly about the issue because of his Iranian heritage.
“For 47 years, our country has had an enemy in Iran, which used to be one of our biggest allies,” Karbassi said. “This regime has killed, just last month, tens of thousands of unarmed women and children and men just fighting for the basic freedoms we want here in America.”
The Islamic regime began in 1979 when the Western-backed Shah was overthrown, and the Ayatollah took control.
In Fresno, more than 2,000 people are of Iranian descent, and many of their families fled Iran during the revolution.
Manjot Dhanda, an electrical engineering major at Fresno State, said her Iranian friends feel excited about potential regime change.
“I have a lot of Iranian friends who have been wanting to visit Iran but they can’t because of the regime, so I’m glad,” Dhanda said. “I’m hoping a lot of them can finally see their homeland and see where they came from.”
While some people are celebrating this war, others are taking to the streets and protesting it — saying the Trump administration has ulterior motives for the involvement.
“We understand that the war on Iran isn’t about liberation,” said Atticus Martin, a psychology major at Fresno State. “It’s not about making the working people’s lives in Iran better. It’s about obtaining resources and capital. And we oppose that.”
Martin said he does not want his tax dollars going to this war and that it does not benefit the working class.
“I’m more similar to the working people of Iran than I am to the capitalists that are making this war happen, and so my solidarity lies with them,” Martin said.
However, Karbassi explained that this should not be seen as Trump’s war, but instead, a chance for the Iranian people to finally have freedom.
As the conflict continues to escalate in the Middle East, supporters and protestors said that they will continue to make their voices heard.