Amil Imani

What is Neda’s Fourth of July Message?
July 4, 2009
 

Neda, the young and beautiful freedom-loving Iranian student was slain in cold-blood by the current Islamic regime in Iran. Almost instantly, Neda became, not only the divine call of the Iranian uprising, but, she symbolized the call for liberty around the globe. Here's the video of Richard Roth's report which contained the image of Neda.

If either President Ronald Reagan or President John F. Kennedy were alive today, they would stand in solidarity with the Iranian people. In fact, they would declare “Today we are all Iranians."  It appears the Iranian people are showing the world what a revolution looks like and some Americans have started paying close attention and taking notes.

Neda knew the value of freedom. She died for it. Her blood was not wasted and she did not die in vain. Headlines have heralded the young woman as a martyr and some even dubbed her Iran's Joan of Arc. Not only has she become a "symbol of goodness" battling against her brutal oppressor, her story has laid open a much larger issue, freedom and liberty. There is a site dedicated to Neda proclaiming, “We are all Neda.”

Each year, on the fourth of July, we celebrate America’s birth and independence. This is a day that the heart of every American must glow with pride and appreciation. On this special occasion, the Iranian martyr, Neda, has a special message for all freedom-loving Americans: “Do not take your liberty for granted” “The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time, with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is its natural manure," said Thomas Jefferson. I think Neda would have said, “I have given my blood for the cause of liberty for my country and I hope you don’t have to give yours once again.”

We are going through some troubled times in America. We Americans need to wake up and realize that our the liberties and freedoms that we take for granted are slowly and inexorably being taken from us. Once we lose them, it will be very hard to get them back. Let the blood of the Persian freedom-fighter, Neda, inspire all of us to cherish our liberty. “We are fighting and dying on the streets of Tehran to have what you have had for more than two centuries. You, America, have been an inspiration to millions of us in Iran to become free, free to roam, free to grow, and free to bloom,” Neda would have said.

As we celebrate the 4th of July, it is my hope that all freedom-loving Americans remain mindful of how precious that day is to our country's storied history. On July 4, 1776, America declared its independence from England, the old white grandfather across the sea. The miracle of America happened and its dynamic birth rapidly changed the entire world. Neda would have wished her blood would cause the Iranians to gain their freedom and our two countries once again become the staunchest friends.

America is a nation and an ideal, birthed by a group of visionaries that gave it the Constitution to nurture it and protect it. What makes America, “America the Beautiful,” more than just a blessed land is your legacy, the Constitution. Sadly, the Constitution also makes for “America the vulnerable” by enshrining freedom that enables the malevolent to subvert and destroy America from within. You are the guardian of the Constitution. You and only you determine the health and survival of America.

Democracy, by its accommodating and benign nature, is susceptible to corruption and even destruction by forces from within and from without. With this realization in mind, the founding fathers of our country enshrined the constitution to safeguard and protect the rule of the people.

America is defined by the last phrase of our national anthem: The land of the free and the home of the brave. Freedom, in all its forms, is our greatest legacy, for which our nation has bravely fought many wars on many fronts against the unceasing assaults of totalitarianism of all stripes. Time and again, the flowers of our nation bravely sacrificed their lives to protect freedom and liberty.

I am reminded of the words of our great President Abraham Lincoln when he, in 1863, described our nation as "a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.” Is this still the case, or how much is government stealing from us? In 1776, our Founders stood up, put their lives and fortunes on the line and declared their freedom and independence from the chains and shackles of the King of United Kingdom. I hope all Americans, once again, unite for the love of freedom and are willing to stand up and declare their Freedom and Independence, not from the United Kingdom, but from the chains and shackles of our own government and its lackeys.

First things first. Our highest priority is the preservation of this nation of the free. We have done what it took in the past and we must do what it takes now and in the future to safeguard our precious liberty. America is not perfect. Yet, it is the very best hope for a humanity struggling to find its humanness. America is worth defending.

For the past 30 years, an illegitimate government of the Islamic Republic has been waging a brutal war against the entire population of Iran. For 30 years Iranians have been fighting for individual and religious freedom. Iranians have suffered so much, and they are risking their lives and ready to die so that the next Iranian generation does not have to live in the nightmare of a backward Islamic barbarity.

As Iranians have started the fight for their freedom and liberty, we must strive to keep ours. We must put aside our minor differences that have divided us in the past and unite as one strong political force to restore our fading Freedom and Liberty. “The history of liberty is a history of resistance.”

In conclusion, I would like to thank all Americans who wrote songs and poems in remembrance of a freedom-loving Iranian patriot, Neda. My special thanks goes out to United States Senator McCain who spoke on the floor of the U.S. Senate, remembering the champion of freedom, Neda, and to the honorable Congressman McCotter’s beautiful eulogy about Neda’s assassination by the direct order of the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. I am eternally grateful for millions of people who have kept Neda’s memory alive. Regrettably, President Obama has stated he wants to make a deal with Neda’s murderers. America, now it is up to you to object to any negotiations with those who murdered our freedom-loving and innocent human being, Neda.

Happy Independence Day, America!