Our main objective is to lift the sanctions, which have made life unaffordable for many people in Iran. Meanwhile, we know that this goal will not be achieved immediately. The Iranian people are suffering under the sanctions while we try to mobilize the American public to put pressure on the U.S. government to lift the deadly sanctions on Iran. It is with this sense of urgency that we have tried to raise funds for those who are affected the most by the sanctions in Iran. We are well aware of the problems with charity and acknowledge that donations alone will not address the systematic local and global injustices that give rise to poverty and lack of access to medicine. But in a time when environmental racism and lack of proper infrastructure severely intensify the impact of floods, earthquakes, and pandemics, we have no choice but to raise funds for people whose lives have become disposable because of the sanctions. We know that random donations are like putting a bandaid on a deep wound and that is why our hope is to make sustainable social change. As those living in the U.S., we find it necessary to do our share in raising awareness about the deadly effects of the sanctions on ordinary people, and to work towards lifting the sanctions.

We ran a t-shirt and tote bag campaign last year and raised some funds. Our artist friends, Hamid Rahmanian, Kamran Behrouz, an Lamia Abu Khadra kindly volunteered to make these beautiful designs. Planet Soccer in Minneapolis gave us a significant discount on screen printing. Thanks to the generosity of these friends and the support of those of you who bought t-shirts and tote bags, we donated $6,300 to 4 organizations that help the most vulnerable segments of the Iranian population. MADRE gave us an additional $5,000, which we donated to Moms Against Poverty and KCIS during their COVID-19 fundraising efforts.

Currently, we only have tote bags and t-shirts in Hamid’s design. We have slowed down our fundraising campaign because of the difficulty of mailing merchandise during the pandemic. But we will resume fundraising as soon as we have the capacity to do so. All of the proceeds will be donated to organizations that help people who are most affected by the sanctions, or will be used on media advertisements to lift the sanctions.