Why Citizens Despise the Kleptocracy That Robbed Their Wealth and Stole Their Freedoms

The intellectual and cultural censorship imposed by the regime on art, music, cinema, and literature restricts creativity and stifles the vibrant cultural life for which Iran is historically renowned. The state's control over media and education is an attempt to shape the minds of the next generation into subservient citizens. The public’s appeasement against this control is seen in the proliferation of underground music scenes, banned film screenings in private homes, and the creation of highly symbolic, often coded, art that subtly critiques the regime, distributed via social media.