The Revival of the Student Movement in Post-Revolutionary Iran

Abstract

In April 1980 government forces invaded college campuses and closed down the universities for a three-year period under the pretext of a “cultural revolution.” A post-revolutionary student movement was able to appear as new to the political scene only as of early 1997. This essay provides a sociological analysis of the post-revolutionary student movement in Iran by focusing on: (1) the general structural role of university campuses and, in particular, the role of the Office for Consolidation of Unity (O.C.U.) in mobilizing the movement; 2) the 1997 election of President Khatami which provided a new political opportunity; and 3) the new reformist/legalistic political culture of the movement which allows it to adapt to the complex challenges of everyday politics in Iran.