In spite of the restrictions the regime is placing on gatherings during the anniversary, the opposition is believed to be planning to protest on February 11. One of the problems the opposition faces is the generational and worldview gap between the leaders of the opposition and the young foot soldiers.  The leadership figures, such as Mir Hussein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, have stated explicitly that they aim to work within the limits of the current constitution. They want to see reform. In contrast, the younger generation has begun to question the legitimacy of the system and the Supreme Leader, seeing him as a “king that wears a turban,” according to Sadjadpour.

 

The United States can play a role in aiding the opposition. It can offer “moral support and solidarity with the opposition, it can talk about universal principles of human rights and democracy, and let the Iranian people know they are on the right side of history,” notes Sadjadpour. Yet the U.S. government is limited, because it must also engage with the regime in regards to its nuclear program and other national security challenges, particularly in Iraq and Afghanistan. One area in which the United States has already changed its rhetoric in response to the opposition is discussions of sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program. Over the course of the last year, the Obama administration has reoriented its framing of sanctions, from “crippling” to “targeted.” This effort is meant to focus the repercussions of sanctions on the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, which is responsible for much of Iran’s unpopular domestic and regional activities.