In Rasht, like in many other urban areas, a revolutionary situation developed during 1978-1979 as various social groups took part in demonstrations and other forms of protest. However, this didn’t mean that the revolutionary situation in Rasht was simply a microcosm of what took place in Tehran; there were manifest differences during different stages of the revolution in terms of the social groups, the political networks and the cultural resources that sustained the protests.
One particularity of the conditions in Rasht was, for instance, the historical influence of secular ideas and the political influence of leftist organizations. This contributed to the growth of organizations such as the Organization of Iranian People’s Fada‘i Guerrillas (OIPFG), which mobilized among some groups of workers and the urban poor. However, the migration of many low-income families in Gilan to the margins of Rasht in the early 1970's also created a strong social base for Islamist forces and the traditional bazaaris.
Moreover, social and political networks were established between Rasht and the rural surroundings through frequent commuting between them. Many in the rural areas visited the major mosques of Rasht or sent their children to schools of Rasht, which were among the primary centers of protests. An example of such cultural-political networking was visible in the demonstrations that started from Kaseh-Forushan Mosque located at the heart of the grand bazaar of Rasht, which for a long time had served as the main gathering center for religious bazaaris and the urban poor of Rasht. Another particularity of the Rasht protests was the frequent outbreak of violence and the brutal torturing of the SAVAK members. The frequency and intensity of this violence needs to be studied and explained.
This paper retrieves the history of the revolutionary events in Rasht and analyses their particularities, as well as their cultural and political underpinnings through primary resources, including the SAVAK archives in Gilan, the archives of the National Library of Rasht and National Library and Archives of Iran – Gilan Office, diaries and autobiographies. In addition, a number of participants in the Rasht demonstrations and in sieging the SAVAK headquarters are interviewed.
Misagh (Mohammadreza) Javadpour
