United States' Unethical Involvement in Iran
Many Americans were unaware of the United States' involvement in the Coup which overthrew Muhammad Mossadegh in the 1950's. The United States is seen by many as a country that is fair and balanced. The people of the Middle East were aware of what was happening, but citizens of the United States were not. This caused confusion for many Americans as the people had no idea how hated they were by citizens of Iran and the Middle East. The Coup in 1953 had an enormous impact on American's that we were not going to see the results to for another 26 years.
Iranian Hostage Crisis
The anger towards the United States by the Iranian people grew and grew as president after president put in power and then protected Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (the Shah) who was a dictator and a terrorist to his own people. People of Iran were horrified when President Carter too the Shah and his family into protective custody. During a public meal with the Shah, President Jimmy Carter toasted the Shah and spoke of what a wonderful leader he was. The people of Iran hit a breaking point and the revolutionists in Iran then captured and held hostage the 52 American workers from the American Embassy in Iran. Americans were horrified as they watched their people be captured and terrorized. The typical American did not know the history the American government had with Iran so the hostage crisis appeared unprovoked and many identified the Iranian people as terrorists.
American Relations with Iran Today
America's relationship with Iran continues to be strained. The Iranian's holding the American's hostage demanded that the Shah be returned to Iran. President Carter refused to be "blackmailed" so he would not meet any of the demands made by the Iranian revolutionists. The entire event lasted 444 days but the impact of the actions of the American government, the Shah, and the Iranian revolutionists are still felt today with tension and fear. Americans live in fear of Iran retaliating again and targeting the United States with nuclear weapons. Iranians feel that they were never properly treated and the American government never took full responsibility for the mayhem they cause and created in Iran. I predict we have not seen the end of the reaction to this event.