9. The Shah’s White Revolution Led to Social Decline
Meanwhile, the Shah continued in his reforms that continued to earn the support of Western powers. Beginning in 1963, Muhammad Reza Shah Pahlavi started a far-reaching series of US-backed changes known as the White Revolution, which aimed to modernize Iran further. The White Revolution was preceded by a series of land reforms that redistributed ownership of land in rural areas in exchange for shares in industry owned by the Iranian state. A goal of the redistribution of land was to help modernize Iran’s rural areas.
However, many of the new farms failed. Farmers and their families had to leave their farms and head to major cities, such as Tehran, seeking employment in the industrial sector. This rapid urban flight caused some of the strong bonds to the land and extended family — both critical social structures in Iranian culture — to break down. Furthermore, people who had previously been able to support themselves off the land were reduced to urban poverty and misery. Lack of food, as a result of the failed farms, meant that many people did not have enough to eat, and a growing urban population meant that there were more hungry mouths with fewer people growing food. Levels of discontent and opposition to the Shah exploded.