Iranian workers powered the 1979 revolution yet lost power to Khomeini

Evidence

The Iranian Revolution of 1979 was the pivotal moment that shifted US attitudes against what the West soon labeled “Islamic fundamentalism.” The popular revolt successfully toppled the US-backed Shah, who had ruled with an iron fist. The revolution was the product of deep discontent among workers, students, peasants, and traders (or bazaaris) against the Shah. Iran’s workers, in particular its oil workers, were the key muscle that brought the Shah down, but were unable to play an independent role. This allowed Khomeini to maneuver between various factions over the course of two years and finally to take power for the Islamic Republican Party, as historian Nikki Keddie and others have argued. — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 407

Categorization

• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of…, 407
• XREF: connects to: Iranian workers, especially oil workers, powered the 1979 revolution but did not win power — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of…, 407; US-weakened leftists let Khomeini seize leadership of Iran’s revolution — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 245

Broader Connections

• US-weakened leftists let Khomeini seize leadership of Iran’s revolution #corroborates (0.75) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 245