Airborne Toxic Event's 'Neda' Honors Murdered Iranian Protester

Posted on Jun 8th 2010 11:00AM by Dan Reilly
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Los Angeles rockers the Airborne Toxic Event have released a new song and video for 'Neda,' which pays tribute to Neda Agha-Soltan, the Iranian student whose murder during last year's election protests became an international news story. The song is part of the 'I Am Neda' campaign, an Amnesty International-sponsored project that aims to help spread awareness of human right violations in Iran.

The video is an illustrated retelling of the events of June 20, 2009, the day Neda was killed in Tehran. The aspiring musician was on her way home when she stopped to join a protest against Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's suspicious victory in the presidential election. During the protest, a member of the Basij plainclothes militia shot Neda and she died within a few minutes. A bystander captured the entire incident on a cell phone camera and it spread across the internet and news networks within days. In the aftermath, the Iranian government prevented mourners from honoring her and her grave was repeatedly desecrated.

Now, I Am Neda's organizers want people around the world to honor her memory and show support for Iranians by spreading the word about the campaign, which takes its name from the phrase many Iranians yell after dark in protest. The single from the Airborne Toxic Event, who are currently working on their second album, is available now from iTunes, with proceeds going to benefit Amnesty International. Check out the video for 'Neda' below.