They hold in prison those whom power fears
Shahrokh and Reza, Rajai Shahr’s closed doors
Lock up these men but can’t lock up their cause
Starved, beaten, tortured, jailed eleven years
Iran’s regime: the workers’ enemy
It stole the revolution ‘gainst the Shah
Now everywhere in chains its people are
Lash-bound by theocratic tyranny
Hang men from cranes for loving other men
Cruel punish women who have been abused
Most basic rights to unionise refused
Freedom’s question is not “if?” but “when?”
The workers of the world will set them free
And break these bars with solidarity
Sonnet for Shahrokh and Reza
