Rebels with a Cause

Maziar Behrooz has taught at the University of California, Berkeley, and is now Assistant Professor of History at San Francisco State University.

Part 1 Defeat and revival - the great defeat of the Left (1953-70): the Communist Tudeh in the 1950s; the Communist Tudeh and factionalism; the Communist Tudeh and the Soviet Union; the Azarbaijan Democratic Party - the other Communists; the Third Force - Khalil Maliki and the Independent Lefists; transition and revival - the Third World call (1960-70); the Communist Tudeh in a decade of transition; Marxist cells - the move to violence. Part 2 Offensive and stalemate (1971-79) - violence and suppression: the Fadaiyan guerillas; the Mojahedin (Marxist-Leninist) - the birth of the Paykar; the Tudeh and Communist splinter groups; Marxist cells abroad. Part 3 Revolution - the dance of death (1979-83): revolution; the Fadaiyan and revolution; the Paykar and revolution; the Tudeh and revolution; Kurdish groups and revolution; the marginal Marxists and revolution. Part 4 Why the failure: Communists and general factors of failure; Communists and particular factors of failure; Communists and structural factors of failure; appendix - chronology of events (1941-83).