It was day 26 of the hunger strike at the White House and I decided last night to keep it up and go again. I talked to some young people this time about why they are involved. While I have frequently been asked by the organizers if I “support their cause,” (probably because I have been the only “media” there and they are anxious for attention), I have to quickly answer with this, “I am an advocate of anyone exercising their right to peacefully assemble and address issues with the government. It’s what this democracy is all about.”

I always get a calm smile and an invitation to film whatever I like.

Here is part three of the Hunger Strike series. Each has been considered for, or has been, aired by CNN:

Previous Reports:

Unwelcome at the White House, August 9, 2009 Currently 2, 315 views, 35 comments

Hunger Strike at the White House: Day 19, August 17, 2009 Currently 1, 404 views, 83 comments

Last night I went down to the White House on a little walk. It was probably 80 or 90 degrees. Man was it hot. But when I got there, the heat quickly escaped my mind. As I approached the White House, I noticed the same flags, and a mass of people, that I came across in early August. It was a group of Iranian Americans, present now at the White House 24/7, for a duration of six months. You can imagine with this kind of presence, they have something to say.

You might not have heard of Camp Ashraf – so if that’s the case, let me fill you in. In the 1980s, a group of Iranians, the People’s Mojahedeen Organization of Iran (PMOI), rose up against the Iranian regime. They demanded democracy and engaged in armed opposition of the government of Iran.

At the height of the opposition, some 3,400 members of the PMOI, also known as MEK, were placed in Camp Ashraf, just north of Baghdad. In 2003, when the U.S. invaded Iraq, the MEK were all disarmed, in exchange for the U.S.’s protection of the camp. Now, as the U.S. pulls out, the MEK are vulnerable – unarmed, and targets of decades of animosity from the Iranian regime.

Two weeks ago, the Camp was brutally attacked.

“It means that after everything America has done, Iran really has the upper hand in Iraq,” Zahra Amanpour, an Iranian-American, told me.

What is the U.S. going to do? Do we have a responsibility to the MEK?

Protest. Today. White House.

Hundreds of Iranians and supporters showed up with flags, signs, and shades of green to urge the White House to intervene in what has become a widespread uprising between Iranians for democracy and the government, lead by the Supreme Leader Grand Ayatollah Ali Khamenei  and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

BBC reported from that 10 people have died so far in the Tehran protests. One woman I interviewed denounced that and said the real numbers are in the low hundreds. While all of this goes on, dozens of journalists have been jailed while others, like BBC’s John Leyne, have been removed from the country. Total chaos.

I came across this protest unexpectedly but luckily had my Flip Video on me. Check it out and be sure to get the take from the ground with my live tweets next time.

ThinkProgress reports:

Al Jazeera’s Nazanin Sadri reports that Iran is considering a new law that would allow the death penalty for “offensive” bloggers:

Under a strict interpretation of Islamic law, Individuals can be sentenced to death for two main categories of crime. The first is murder. The second is known as ‘fasad,’ which means spreading mischief or undermining the authority or stability of the state. What that constitutes is open to interpretation. In the past it has been applied to rape, adultery, drug-related offenses, and homosexual behavior. Iran now wants to introduce the death penalty for bloggers who write about and promote illegal activities.

On any given day at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave, a face-off will happen. Whether it’s from within the house walls or on the blacktop where tourists and activists gather, belief systems are tested, tourists sometimes troubled and locals carry out many missions.

Last weekend, I caught up with a few people picketing at the White House. The picket was organized by the Campaigns Against Sanctions and Military Intervention in Iran (CASMII) and calls into question President Bush’s intentions towards Iran.

In a New Yorker article by investigative reporter, Seymour M. Hersh, “Preparing the Battlefield,” sources confirmed the White House asked for, and received, $400 million for a major escalation of covert operations against Iran.

While the White House sells the idea that Iran is an immediate nuclear threat, a 2007 U.N. nuclear inspection reported that there is no evidence Iran was working actively to build nuclear weapons. Instead, concerns were expressed that the escalating rhetoric from the U.S. could bring “disaster.”

Here is a short video I created from that White House picket. It was great interviewing the activists – and then in pure contrast asking for the reactions of tourists. I even found an Iraq Vet along for the show.