The US Trojan Horse in Iran (2015)

This map, entitled We must not allow it!, was published by the Iranian website Gilankhabar in 2015.

In July 2015, the Islamic Republic of Iran had signed a historic agreement with the United States, Russia, China, the United Kingdom, France and Germany to lift international sanctions in exchange for Iran limiting its nuclear programme. This piece was released two months later, on 9 September 2015, in an attempt by Iran to maintain the domestic narrative against the US, its historical enemy. While the two positions may seem a contradiction, they are perfectly compatible within the regime's logic: one unlocked its trade capacity; the other maintained control of the discourse behind closed doors.

The propaganda poster has three main pieces. On the one hand, there is the map of Iran in the central part of the image, with an aesthetic very reminiscent of Western road maps. To its left is a crocheted horse loaded with labels referring to American culture: McDonald's, KFC, Justin Bieber, Hollywood, Ford. And yes, its hooves are covered with US flags.

Finally, at the bottom left is a text in Persian, which gives the original title to the poster: We must not allow it! The content below is one by Ali Khamenei, Supreme Leader of Iran, describing the danger of the enemy's cultural, political and ideological encroachment, especially on Iranian youth.

As a whole, this piece delves into an idea repeated by the propaganda of the Islamic Republic of Iran, تهاجم فرهنگی تهاجم فرهنگی (cultural aggression). This idea forms an indispensable part of the regime's ideology, under which they have maintained restrictions and censorship of Western culture since coming to power.

As a curious detail, the map has all its labels in English, suggesting that the poster may have used a map of Iran taken directly from an atlas or an American road map.

Sources


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