Nazi Abad: The Neighborhood of a Movement
Nazi Abad neighborhoods deserve a special place in protest movements. They were prominent both during the revolution and in the political structure afterward, and now their presence in Iran’s nationwide protests is particularly noticeable. The historical significance of this neighborhood in organizing protests is such that after the revolution’s victory, Nazi Abad was called the political capital of Tehran.
The prominence of Nazi Abad residents in the recent protests can be understood both from the consistent chanting of their unique slogans and from the large crowds taking to the streets, to the extent that it seems even the special guard forces were overwhelmed. The images from Saturday night’s march in Nazi Abad show not only the massive crowd compared to other parts of Tehran and other cities but also the partial accompaniment of some special guard forces marching alongside the crowd.
In one of the released videos, the guards are seen walking alongside the people, talking and laughing, with no signs of confrontation, batons, or beatings. Some interpreted this as a sign of the police forces joining the people, while others believe that the sheer number of people on the streets of Nazi Abad disrupted the balance of power compared to the special guard forces, leaving them no choice but to accompany the crowd for their own safety.
Why is Nazi Abad Important?
The importance of this neighborhood in protest gatherings seems so significant that reports are written about it, and there is insistence on saying that the slogans or protest behaviors have nothing to do with the local residents. However, from the very start of the protest gatherings, Nazi Abad residents also took to the scene. On the afternoon of Wednesday, September 21, it was spreading among the people that a gathering was going to take place in Nazi Abad. Various channels and Instagram pages launched multiple and diverse advertisements for a protest aimed at clarifying the death of Mahsa Amini.
However, a Telegram channel called Nazi Abadgram, in a report on that night’s events titled ‘Ambush on Nazi Abad,’ claims that figures from outside the neighborhood entered the gathering to create unrest. It then describes the events moment by moment, concluding that people from other neighborhoods and parts of the city entered the area to provoke the locals. It ends by questioning why Nazi Abad was chosen, suggesting that the report’s author also knows the special importance of Nazi Abad.
A Political Neighborhood
Nazi Abad is one of the southern neighborhoods of Tehran, holding a special place in the cultural and political geography of this city. A documentary has been made about it, journalist Mohammad Gouchani has written a book on it, and some political and revolutionary figures have emerged from this neighborhood. After the revolution’s victory, it was called the political capital of Tehran because it has been one of the most influential neighborhoods in all of Tehran’s historical events.
Nazi Abad was founded in 1941 by order of then-Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh, but its construction began in 1956. The designer and builder of Nazi Abad was Engineer Ali Akbar Mo’infar, a member of the Iranian Freedom Movement, the first Minister of Oil in the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the founder of the Islamic Association of Engineers. He was also the deputy mayor of Tehran in the Nazi Abad area, with more authority than a regional mayor.
In the preface to the book ‘Nazi Abadis,’ Gouchani writes that Nazi Abad was a neighborhood that, before the revolution, was a point of political activity of the guerrilla kind and armed struggles. In the first days after the revolution’s victory, it was also a place of emergence and display for newly established institutions, whose ideological roots came from the local youth, from the establishment of revolutionary committees to the formation of the Revolutionary Guards.
The young revolutionaries, some of whom mostly attended the Elahi High School in Nazi Abad, read the books of Shariati and Motahari, listened to the interpretations of Mousavi Khoeiniha in the Jowzestan Mosque, received guerrilla training, and became University of Tehran students, and then revolutionaries.
The Organizational Ability of Nazi Abadis
Saeed Hajjarian, one of the revolutionaries from this neighborhood, writes about the role of Nazi Abad and its people in the protests leading to the revolution: Nazi Abad has a strong organizational history and was a center for neighborhoods like Javadieh, Aban, Aliabad, Javanmard Ghassab, Khazaneh, Yakhchiabad, Yafteh Abad, Khaniabad Now, and Nazi Abadis, with their connections and organizational power, took significant steps towards the revolution’s victory. After the victory, they also organized the distribution of goods and oil and formed committees, and during the war, they sacrificed many martyrs for the revolution.
He writes about the root of the potential organizational talent in this neighborhood: Among the southern parts of the city, it has always been a reformist area, and reformists have always had the upper hand there. He has spoken about the necessity of cadre building and flow creation in the south of the city, saying Nazi Abad is a working-class neighborhood, and local leaders play an important role in guiding and organizing the working-class sectors. If the Nazi Abad Party can follow these local leaders, it will have taken a significant burden off.
With the help of a group of other Nazi Abad revolutionaries, from reformists to principlists, Hajjarian has registered an institution named ‘Nazi Abad Growth Partners’ with the slogan ‘Nazi Abad, My Neighborhood,’ aiming to improve the neighborhood they owe to, according to him. The reformist party, the Union of the Nation, also has an office in this neighborhood.
Hajjarian has said that the newly established office has political party duties that are naturally communicated from the center, but it should not be overlooked that since the revolution, Nazi Abad has experienced significant growth-related challenges, particularly in employment, addiction, and social issues, which are currently being addressed by local NGOs and organizations. The Union Party office can help address these issues to the extent possible by connecting with them.
He mentioned that they are trying to show all their friends, whether principlists or reformists, that where there is a determination to serve our people and country, we can come together, set aside political differences, and with the resources we’ve gathered over the years, be in service to our people and country. Have they succeeded? No one knows for sure yet.
The nationwide protests in Iran began after the death of Mahsa Amini at the hands of the morality police. Iran Gate has exclusively covered various aspects of this incident. Here are some other related articles:
- The Controversial Man Becomes a Victim
- Morality Police or the Chariot of Death
- How Not to Get Arrested in Protests