Monday night, NRO’s Michael Ledeen, the most vocal advocate of the pro-democracy movement in Iran, received a hero’s welcome as he spoke to an audience of Iranian Americans based in Los Angeles about what they need to do bring democracy to their homeland and liberate Iran from the terror masters that rule over that ancient land.
Ledeen spoke in very clear terms: The Islamic regime is on its way out and the Iranians in exile must help push them out of power. Iranians must learn good old American values such as self-reliance and self-determination and not rely on foreign powers to do their job for them. America as a bastion of freedom and democracy is and will be on the side of the freedom-loving Iranian people, but Iranians need to act and not wait for the president to give them a sign. And most importantly, Iranians must “unite” to bring down the regime and argue about who will rule Iran later.
Ledeen’s straight talk enthralled the audience who had come to hear him speak. The presence of a pro-democracy advocate such as Ledeen in a city dubbed “Tehrangeles” due to the large number of Iranians that live there is a rarity. Most dissident Iranian activists and all of the Iranian satellite-based television and radio program directors are based in Los Angeles and have never met their supporters in the administration, in Congress, think tanks, and in the media who are based in Washington. It is now time for this to change.
The Islamic regime has not learned a thing about what happened to Baghdad. The regime continues to be the leading sponsor of terrorism. The regime continues to oppose peace in the Middle East. The regime is on its way to developing nuclear weapons. As the regime continues to meddle in the affairs of other countries such as Iraq, Afghanistan, and Lebanon, the Bush administration will have no choice but to deal with this regime and give genuine support to the pro-democracy advocates.
It is now time for Iranian pro-democracy activists and directors of the exiled-based Iranian media to meet their American supporters. The Iranian pro-democracy movement must realize that it has the support of the American people and the Bush administration as it attempts to rid the world of this evil regime.
Last Sunday, the Iranian Jewish Public Affairs Committee hosted a meeting between Ledeen and some of the most prominent members of the Iranian media in exile. It was a much-needed meeting. Although all of the attendees were appreciative of Ledeen’s support for the pro-democracy movement and Ledeen was supportive of their struggle — they had never met before.
In the months ahead, the Iranian American community will play host to many American supporters of the pro-democracy movement in Iran. They will all receive a hero’s welcome from the Iranian-American community eager to rid the world and the Iranian people of the Iranian regime. And all of them will wonder why it has taken so long to get together.
— Pooya Dayanim is the president of the Iranian Jewish Public Affairs Committee. The opinions expressed in this article are his own.