A tense confrontation unfolded at the University of Michigan when a Persian-American student approached Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed and demanded he clarify his position on Iran's regime.
The student, Iman Dashti, said his family has suffered persecution by the Iranian government. "My cousin was chased through the streets of Iran by the Revolutionary Guard because her hijab wasn't positioned properly," he said. His uncle, he added, was sentenced to death and received 50 lashes.
Dashti then referenced a leaked recording from earlier this year in which El-Sayed was heard saying he did not want to comment on the death of former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei because "there are a lot of people in Dearborn who are sad today." "That silence left a huge hole in our community," Dashti told him.
The student asked El-Sayed whether he stands "unequivocally against the Revolutionary Guard and against the Islamic Republic of Iran." El-Sayed replied that he supports movements for freedom and democracy, but opposes American involvement in toppling the regime.
"I will always stand with democratic movements," he said. "I also don't think it was right for us to go to war to topple the Iranian government. That wasn't our responsibility. The responsibility is for the Iranian people to decide what their leadership looks like."
Dashti pressed him: "Do you stand with us?" El-Sayed answered: "I will always stand with movements for freedom and democracy," adding, "I want freedom and democracy for the people in Iran, without a doubt. But I want it to be done by the Iranian people."
