On streets of Tehran, Iranians describe daily struggles and cautious hopes

A woman walking by a news kiosk in Tehran, where headlines mentioned the first round of U.S.-Iran nuclear negotiations held in Oman.Credit...Arash Khamooshi for The New York Times

On streets of Tehran, Iranians describe daily struggles and cautious hopes

Washington Post -May24th2025

Post interviews with people across Tehran offered a rare window into the lives and economic frustrations of the country’s urban middle class.

May 24, 2025 at 11:11 a.m. EDTToday at 11:11 a.m. EDT

7 min

A woman in Tehran walks past a poster of the late Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on Monday on the anniversary of his death. (Abedin Taherkenareh/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock)

By Susannah George

TEHRAN — For many in Iran’s capital city, years of sanctions, mismanagement and corruption have meant learning to make do with less and putting dreams on hold.

In the past year alone, the Iranian rial has lost half its value. Companies, cut off from international banking systems by Western sanctions, struggle to raise capital or attract customers. Inflation is so high, many report that grocery store prices seem to change almost daily.

Washington Post interviews with people across Tehran offered a rare window into the lives and economic struggles of the country’s urban middle class — mired in a status quo that feels stagnant but stable, at least for now.

Against this backdrop, Iranian leaders entered into complex and delicate negotiations with the United States last month, seeking sanctions relief in exchange for limits on the country’s nuclear program. A fifth round of talks in Rome on Friday made “some but not conclusive progress,” according to the mediator, Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi. The two sides remain at an impasse over the central issue, with U.S. officials suggesting they will push for zero enrichment of nuclear material and Iran insisting such a position would render a deal impossible.

Some have interpreted the Iranian government’s decision to engage as a reflection of weakness. Officials, analysts and ordinary citizens in Iran paint a more nuanced picture — of a country hungry for change but far from the breaking point.

“It is difficult, but we have found a way to manage,” said Mariam, 37, sitting with her childhood friend Sarah in a manicured park in central Tehran while their children played nearby. Both women said they were generally supportive of the system in Iran, even if “some politicians only care about filling their pockets,” Sarah quipped.

Like others in this story, they spoke on the condition that they be identified by their first names for fear of repercussions from authorities.

Both women are middle class. They own the homes they live in and were able to stop working when they had children, supported by their husbands’ wages. They said they’ve adjusted to inflation and other economic pressures with frugality: The kids get fewer toys and new clothes, and family vacations are rare.