Denver, CO – On Saturday, January 20, the Denver Peace Council and Students for a Democratic Society gathered at the Colorado state capitol for a roadside protest against U.S. sanctions on Iran. The protest was called for as part of a national day of action by the United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC)’s youth committee, Youth Against Empire.

The action was called due to continued U.S. aggression against Iran. Despite campaign promises to rejoin the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the Biden administration has opted to largely continue Trump’s policies. The Trump administration had withdrawn from the deal in 2018, stating that the agreement did not go far enough to limit Iran’s weapon production. Trump, furthermore, had placed new “maximum pressure” sanctions on Iran in 2018, which the Biden administration has only recently moved to lift.

Sanctions are a way to target the civilian population of a country, blocking food and medical supplies to countries in need. What makes this more significant is the presence of COVID-19. Since COVID first entered Iran, there have been a reported 1.54 million cases, leaving at least 60,000 dead. The sanctions against Iran have caused the country to go into an economic lockdown, worsening the effects of the pandemic. Lack of medical supplies and lab equipment continues to plague Iran, leading to the death of countless civilians. This makes it all the more important to demand that the Biden administration lift all sanctions on Iran, not just the ones implemented by the Trump administration.

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