AN AUGURY OF REVOLUTION: THE IRANIAN STUDENT ...

political problems in Iran, and while some senior members of the House and Senate were also
aware of these problems, they “tended to discount them because they had heard them on several
previous occasions in the long regime of the shah.” 514
While in 1963 only 25 students were highly dedicated to the protest movement, there
were between 3,000 and 4,000 that dedicated to the movement 1977. 515 While the shah’s visits to
the United States consistently brought Iranian students to the streets in protest, his November
1977 visit was explosive, and raised serious concerns in Washington. 516 This protest
demonstrates that the legacy of the 1960s was carried on by Iranian students abroad. When
discussing the protests with a New York Times correspondent, one White House guard said,
“Welcome to the 60s.” 517
The anti-shah group was tenacious in its demonstrations and police
responded by spraying the tear gas into the group of students. 518 Remembering the events of 15
November 1977, Jimmy Carter said:
“On the south lawn of the White House, I stood and wept. Tears were streaming down
the faces of more than two hundred members of the press. It was a memorable moment.
In the distance we could hear the faint but unmistakable sounds of a mob, shouting at the
mounted police who had just released canisters of tear gas to disperse them.” 519 “That
day – November 15, 1977 – was an augury. The tear gas had created the semblance of
grief. Almost two years later, and for fourteen months afterward, there would be real
grief in our country because of Iran.” 520
Carter’s recollection of the events is telling, and the incident was remembered by all who were
involved. 521 While the November 1977 events were indicative of growing unrest in Iran the real
514 Sullivan, Mission to Iran, 32.
515 Linda Charlton, “Shah’s Visit Underscored Large Number of Iranian Students in U.S.,” NYT, 21 November 1977,
p. 10.
516 To read about the preparation by the ISAUS for the 1977 trip refer to ISAUS, Condemn Shah’s U.S. Visit.
517 James T. Wooten, “Carter’s Speaking Style: A Memorized Talk That Sounds Spontaneous,” NYT, 19 November
1977, p. 10.
518 “Tears and Sympathy for the Shah,” NYT, 17 November 1977, p. 24.
519 Carter, Keeping Faith, 433.
520 Carter, Keeping Faith, 434.
521 For recollections of the incident refer to Pahlavi, Answer to History, 151-2; Anthony Parsons, The Pride and the
Fall: Iran 1974-1979 (London: Butler and Tanner Ltd, Frome and London, 1984), 56-7; Sullivan, Mission to Iran,
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