Editorial – Shahrokh Ahkami – PH, #72, Winter 2013
It is time for me to wish our readers a very happy New Year. In addition to happiness I wish you, and the people of the world, a year filled with joy, peace, harmony and unity. And I pray this is the year Iranians and the world are united.
Today we live in a world where information is at our fingertips. With a single push of a button we receive information in seconds. Because of advancement in technology, time barriers and borders between countries have been eliminated. The speed in which information is exchanged can be both positive and negative, since people have the ability to respond in equal time.
Each day I receive hundreds of emails, which I read, respond to or discard. The other day I received an email from a friend and a brilliant man. He copied me in a letter sent to Senator Kirk, of Illinois (the home state of Abraham Lincoln, assassinated because he fought for the equality, liberation and freedom of all mankind.) Senator Kirk, in a recent speech asked the question, “How do you define a moderate Iranian.” He responded, “One without bullets and without money,” and “it is okay to take food from the mouths of Iranian citizens.” I was sickened by this statement. I knew what he actually meant was that all Iranians were “terrorists” walking around with guns killing people, who should be completely stripped of their financial value and dignity and that it is a good thing to keep them hungry and allow them to starve to death. This would leave them in a position to beg. I wanted the opportunity to ask Senator Kirk how he decided on this ignorant senseless and inhumane definition, after all he is a politician and supposedly educated and well read. Perhaps his campaign funds were backed by lobbyists seeking to thwart any efforts of normalizing relations between Iran and the United States.
I wanted to ask the Senator, if he personally saw an Iranian captured in a terroristic act.I wanted to ask him if he ever witnessed an Iranian fire a gun or throw a grenade into a crowd of people. I wanted to ask him if he forgot that the horrific terroristic acts on 9/11 were committed by the hands of citizens from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Lebanon, Yemen and Pakistan, NOT IRAN. I wanted to ask him if he thought the people of Iran were terrorists simply by the location of the country.
This HORRIFIC statement, insulted 75 million Iranians in Iran and the millions who now call other countries home. Senator have you ever met or conversed with a “so called moderate” Iranian? Do you know that some Iranians, were forced to leave Iran because of a ruthless and politically prejudicial GOVERNMENT? They left behind prestigious employment, life and family in order to provide a peaceful life for their family? Did you know that once they were relocated they worked whatever jobs they could to provide for their families, rather than become a parasite? Did you know they struggled in every way to make sure their children received an education? Did you know they worked hard at integrating into their new societies? And, did you know that while they will never forget their birthplace, they have worked and still work hard to become outstanding citizens and patriots in their new homes?
Senator do you know the astonishing number of very successful Iranians in the United States and around the world? Do you know how many are doctors, scientists, CEO’s, astronauts, musicians, artists, and professors etc. etc., including 106 year old Professor Ghaffari, who recently passed away. Professor Ghafarri was the first Iranian to participate in the Apollo mission. Do you know that Iranians are considered one of the most successful immigrant groups in the United States? Knowing this Senator Kirk, is this how you would continue to define an Iranian, moderate or not?
Senator, knowing this, are you now embarrassed by your hurtful words against all innocent Iranians? Senator I ask you, have you ever come across on Iranian in the streets of the United States begging. Probably not, because Iranians have pride! Furthermore, an Iranian stripped of everything would still share with another even less fortunate.
Yes Senator, many Iranians were able to make new fortunes outside of Iran. They however, are not arrogant millionaires. They remain grateful for what they have and are willing to contribute to those in need. Yes, Senator, you would be ashamed of what you said, after meeting just a handful of Iranians, hyphenated or not.
This senseless definition for the mass “moderate” Iranians is disturbing.How can an active member of a government describe an entire nation in that light? (An arrogant and baseless comment not much different from what Ahmadi Nejad said at the UN. This type of generalization is the easiest and unfortunately most effective way to convert the masses to think in the same way. Look at the success the media and politicians in keeping the issue of the American hostages alive. This ugly and unfortunate event took place in Iran, over 30 years ago, yet the general population continues to believe that this ugly act was done by the people of Iran by a handful of “so called” students backed up by the government. The story continues with movies depicting Iranians as “terrorists” and “savages” such as 300 and Argo. It is my opinion that without political reasons Ben Affleck would not have received an award for Argo, nor would he have received it from the First Lady of the United States? Again, in my opinion this was just another political maneuver to keep this hatred alive. Maybe I am a bit synical, but I have not seen any reason to convince me otherwise.
Often I wonder how different the world and Iran would be today if the hostage taking in 1979 had not occurred. Would there still have been an Iran Iraq war? Or, would the millions who lost their lives and limbs be active citizens, fathers, mothers and grandparents? Think of what Iran would be like today if the wealth used on the seven year war was instead earmarked to develop schools and hospitals? Perhaps the war was pay back for the hostage taking.
Your statement, Senator Kirk will bear no positive result. This comment and those like it will continue to prevent old wounds from healing, or allow for a superficial mend, that can be broken through by an underlying infection. But I continue to remain hopeful for the normalization of the relationship between Iran and the world. I remain hopeful that Americans, will sort out fact from fiction. My hopes can become a quicker reality if the media and politicians stop using the excuse of a 30 year old incident, as a source of fuel to control American and Iranian citizens.
As I mentioned above the Iranian government’s decision to send Ahmadi Nejad to the UN did not help Iranian relations. What credibility could be given to a government who allowed its President to state that the Holocaust did not exist and that his head was circled by a “holy halo”, during his United Nations speech? If such a derogatory statement was not used, maybe the sanctions in place today, would not have been imposed! After all, the individuals these sanctions impact are not the government elite. They harm the working class people of Iran and deprive them of medicine, food and livelihood.
Perhaps then Senator Kirk’s statement that “a moderate Iranian is one without bullets and without of money,” is how they see Iran and Iranians. Maybe they do not want any improvement in Iran but rather a complete collapse. This would allow Iran to be divided like Yugoslavia. Maybe this is the reason that Turkey is recently enjoying the generosity of the west. A stronger Turkey, in their minds, means a weaker Iran. The President of Turkey is currently trying to extend his hand to Mr. Barzani, the head of Kurdistan of Iraq to try and set up a new government in Kurdistan. This is the same individual whose father, Molla Mostafa Barzani, was extended a hand by the Shah for support against Saddam Hussein.
What no one acknowledges, however, is that the Iranians in general such as the Kurdish, Azari people are patriotic Iranians who love Iran. Unfortunately, due to the indifference of the government in Iran and its brutality they have been disappointed. The Kurdish and Azari people have been left out of the political arena even though they had been a big part of the constitutional revolution that made the Iranian Constitutional System with a Parliamentary system in the past. All hoped that with the election of the new Iranian President that his cabinet would have embraced these and other ethnic and religious minority groups. This has not occurred.
The insult by Senator Kirk defining a moderate Iranian, “as an Iranian without bullets or money,” will impact 75 million Iranians, in Iran, who yearn for the freedoms of religion, press, speech, life and human rights. And it impacts millions of Iranians around the world. I pray the world citizens will reject this general categorization of a people, a categorization based on the actions of its government, not people. Senator Kirk, are you aware of the fact that the youth of Iran, young men and women, fill its universities and schools. They hunger for a better life, one that is at peace and unified with the remainder of the world.
Senator do you know that Iran, in the past 300 years, has never been the aggressor? The country has been attacked multiple times. They have only defended their nation and their borders.These borders are being threatened to be divided Iran. To date attempts are becoming realities. Slowly Iran’s integrity is being chipped away. To some these changes go unnoticed, but to Iranians, hyphenated or not, any changes in the boundaries or in Iranian attributes cannot be accepted. For example the game of polo, always referred to as an invention of the Persian world, now has an origin of the Republic of Azerbaijan!! The Louvre Museum referred to Iranian treasures as Arabic and Islamic treasures and the Persian Gulf is called the Arabian Gulf or the Gulf. If this continues Iranian youth, and the younger generations of the world will no longer know the history and contributions of the Persian Empire. As I stated earlier technology has allowed a flood gate of information, but some of this information can be false and derogatory and can cause instantaneous changes to our history. Iranians need to stop the flood before it entirely wipes out Iran’s historical position in the world. And I say to the remainder of the world citizens, who are proud of their heritage and history, do not think that this cannot be done to your great country’s history!
Prevention of losing Iranian identity can be accomplished through the worldwide unification of Iranians. All must put an end to disparaging remarks like Senator Kirk’s. Your silence must be broken and you must react to such vial statements and inadvertent changes to Iranian historical sites ad history. Iranians are a courageous, dignified and intelligent group with an ability to peacefully negotiate change. Remember people do listen to well thought out reason and logic, but people cannot hear SILENCE. I beg us all to no longer be silent and to speak out against all injustices, historical or not. Do not think of these changes as unimportant. There is intention behind each word and action. But we must carefully pick our arguments.
Yes, Senator Kirk’s statement made me depressed, angry for his ignorance. But those emotions have now turned to hope. By the number of emails I have received after his comment, from Iranians and non-Iranians, statements like his are not resulting in compliance. In fact statements like Senator Kirk’s are creating peaceful movements to neutralize the hatred which has been perpetuated. Youth groups are organizing. Other organizations are mobilizing. I see them beginning to use their influence and power of the positions they now hold. Their voices are being heard. Slowly Iranian American representation in the House and Senate is rising. Remember, it is not numbers alone that provide strength and influence. It is commitment and intelligence. Iranians historically never back an injustice. They side (like Cyrus has taught the world so well) with VIRTUE and EQUALITY for all.
Had Senator Kirk’s statement been made to a Senate which included a majority of Iranian representatives and Senators had such statement been directed to another ethnicity, the Iranian Americans would have stood up together against his statement. They would have defended the citizens, from any country, against such a disparaging general statement.
A few years back Persian Heritage had the opportunity to interview a Congressman who embraced Iran and its culture. At the time Senator D’Amato was in office. He too had disparaging words against Iran and Iranians. This Congressman told me that if a handful of influential Iranians went to Senator D’Amato’s office and met with him, after ten minutes he would have dropped his head and never have spoken another disparaging word against Iranians.
If a handful of us could do that imagine what we can accomplish as a unified group!
Happy New Year