This is a letter I wrote to President Obama today. Feel free to swipe it from me for your own use!
Dear Mr. President,
Your, and our, Iran policy is being challenged by the current realities in the country. In the past week, the Khamenei-Ahmadinejad government has disregarded the aspirations of the citizens and their basic rights. The students and the youths of the country are being killed, injured and imprisoned. Iranian citizens are calling for change, inspired to a large degree by the message of hope that you, Mr. President, gave them in your Cairo speech.
There is now a compelling new factor that needs to be added to process of normalization of relations with Iran: the government’s handling of the largest social and political movement in the history of the Islamic Republic. Our government must demand the government in Tehran to guarantee the safety and security of its citizens during their peaceful demonstrations against the outcome of the election.
Normalization of relations with Iran needs to recognize the realities on the ground, which have changed radically in the past few days by a social movement with historic proportions. The normalization process should proceed in a way that will not alienate millions of young citizens whose call for change was inspired by your message of hope. We cannot and should not limit the process to nuclear and terrorism issues. The Iranian people are crying out for change, reminiscent of our days of campaigning here in this country. We must take a moment to remember the broader principles of our democratic society, and support the millions of Iranian citizens that seek to acquire them.
I am asking the international community, and particularly the United States government, to restrain from accepting Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as the president of Iran. In the absence of independent journalist and newspapers, there are reports, photos and videos on social networking websites that show brutal treatment of the dissidents during peaceful rallies held in Iran. I am asking the international community to pressure Iran’s government to let its people hold their rallies and protests in a peaceful environment.
Please reamain silent no longer and stand up for this injustice. The people of Iran are begging the West for assistance (notice all of the signs at protests are in English). They are crying out for help and we must stand up as fellow human beings and assist their fight for democracy. Please do what is right. Deny Mahmoud Ahmandinejad as the president of Iran.
Respectfully Yours,
Jennifer Wysocki







