IranWire's blogger perpetuates false notions of homosexuality & gay asylum seekers among Iranians

A so-called satirical piece in Persian published Saturday, September 20, 2014, on the IranWire website -- a news and commentary website in both English and Persian languages run by the prominent Iranian journalist Maziar Bahari, which some of its English articles are also featured on The Daily Beast website – as part of an ongoing satirical series on the issue of seeking asylum by Iranians in Turkey is the reason for this outburst.

Homepage of the English version of IranWire.com. Picture of Maziar Bahari is between pictures of Iran's FM Javad Zarif and Iran's President Hassan Rouhani. 

The latest installment of this series tries to poke fun at those asylum-seeking Iranians, who fake homosexual tendencies as the primary reason for asking to be granted asylum by the United Nations. The author, Sharagim Zand – who happens to be currently residing in Turkey seeking asylum at this moment, probably, on the basis of his work as a journalist in Iran – opens this piece promising he is as ignorant about the Iranian lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans* (LGBT) refugees as the society he is trying too hard to criticize:

[Claiming] homosexuality is the most convenient, most straightforward and the quickest method of achieving the asylum status in Turkey [granted by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)]. It is the proverbial piece of cake. Convenient and direct as it does not require attending any church [service] or getting baptized and receiving a letter of recommendation [from pastors – basically, things that those claiming to be Christian converts need to provide as evidence of their convictions].Similarly, it also needs no standing warrant [issued by the Islamic Republic of Iran], a past stint in jail, traces of lashes [on your body], and torture and political activity. These types of cases are quick and homosexual people, in case of passing the interview, will be heading to European and North American countries ahead of other asylum applicants. The reason for this matter per the UN is that homosexuality is not a choice but an immutable birth trait, also, homosexual people have already experienced oppression in Iran and the Turkish society is not fully accepting of them, therefore, they [homosexuals] are given special passage to the West sans any waiting period and [any regard] for the queue [of other applicants waiting to be processed.]

With the above alarming, misleading and entirely unfunny opening, even in Persian, out of the way, the author goes on to refer to gay asylum cases as "The Golden Case" in the lingo of the asylum seekers -- meaning, these types of cases are sure to be successful. Subsequently, Mr.Zand tries to shed some light that the UN does not ask people who claim to be homosexual to perform any same-sex sexual act. Afterwards, Mr.Zand goes on to write a more disturbing passage, which can be considered humorous if you are into gross generalization of the patriarchal mind: 

The number of [asylum request] cases [involving fake claims of] homosexuality [is so much that makes] it the 2nd most popular form of fake asylum cases after the cases of [fraudulent] apostasy [claims]...

[Translators's note: Both apostasy and homosexuality in Iran have a documented history of death punishments.] 

The only reason fake homosexual [asylum] cases are not ranked number one yet is because homosexuality is not acceptable in the [Iranian] society and, in particular, in male groups -- a surely undeserving status, but due to reasons, which are not fully clear to the author, this type of fake cases is becoming more and more popular among the ladies, and it can be predicted [with a fair amount of certainty] that in the near future a new wave of lesbian refugees will head to the UN offices, and, consequently, elevate this [type of fraudulent] case to its deserved standing [of number one] among the various fake cases [and asylum claims].

Fortunately, since a few years ago, homosexuality has been considered a classy and stylish deed among the ladies, indicative of their special social, and even artistic, persona ...

 Regardless of the telltale signs that the author, Mr.Sharagim Zand –– is into lesbian porn flicks, a common trait of porn-watching heterosexual male species of our times, it is Mr.Zand's casual repetition of an unfortunately popular, but deeply flawed thought among the Iranians – on-line or off-line, old or young – that homosexual behavior is of people who seek undeserved attention or that it is a proclamation of one's intellectual, contrarian standing, which makes this passage to stand out.  

(How is this repetition is funny is beyond my comprehension. Please let me know why it is funny if you can laugh at it.)

Mr.Zand's mindless regurgitation of a foul cliché of the Iranian mind, which has been ceaselessly causing pain and hardship for the Iranian LGBT for decades, undermines the preemptive, introductory note of his post. He writes:

Comment: Oppression of the homosexual people in Iran is an undeniable fact. The [asylum seeking] cases of many homosexual refugees in real. This satirical piece is only about those who abuse the hardship of the homosexual, Iranian refugees to achieve asylum status [via the UN] in Turkey. 

A second comment, explaining the already clear: With apologies to the majority of the good readers of the website, let me repeat for the minority who are not aware:  These pieces are satire [Mr. Zand has written so far 13 satirical pieces for IranWire on the subject of asylum seeking in Turkey], and are not ho-to manuals [of asylum seeking]. IranWire has no responsibility in the case of [those] following this series [to attain asylum status], let us repeat again, this series is written in the form of satire and are not manuals [to achieve asylum]. We hope that we have stressed enough on the word satire! 

Obviously, Mr. Sharagim Zand is fully aware that writing about Iranian LGBT issues is touching a controversial subject for the Iranian audience. Obviously, he has a good sense of the his audience. But, does he think that writing in ignorance is going to be funny? Is satire that which is perpetuating the widely-held flawed notions of sexuality? Is satire supposed to maintain glorifying the male gaze? Is satire supposed to be about a subject the author is seemingly as ignorant about it as the society he tries to criticize?

Furthermore, why is IranWire, a promising young publication, giving voice to this rubbish? Is this what passes as satire these days among news and commentary outlets based out of Iran? (Another case is what I wrote about Iranian satirist Mahmud Farjami in 2013.)

Mr.Zand further goes on to provide advice to the male Iranian applicants of the fake homosexuality claim on the difference between trans and gay. Needless to say I have no idea what Mr.Zand means when he writes Trans, does he mean transgender, transvestite, transsexual or transqueer or any other derivative?! or, does he mean trans*?  For the sake of this post, I am assuming he means transgender. He writes:

My advice to the brothers who are to submit a gay claim is to be as normal as possible on the day of the interview [with the UN case office for refugees] and be themselves. Most of the times, a homosexual person is no different than a normal person. Combing your hair like a doll, tattoing the eyebrows, applying eyeliner, and wearing a earrings and wearing tight leather pants, spike-stud, fishnet clothing and high-heels, are common behavior among trans people. Swearing on God, trans  is different from homosexual. Why are you doing this??

Even more frightening than the prospect of Mr.Sharagim Zand’s future efforts to write about trans* people is his casual use of homophobic rhetoric and sheer ignorance regarding transgender people.  

• Example 1: Mr.Sharagim Zand does not know, or ignores that transgender people can in fact be homosexual. There are differences between gender and sexual orientation which need to be explained to Mr.Sharagim Zand before he goes on to provide funny advice to others. 
• Example 2: “Most of the times, a homosexual person is no different than a normal [emphasis added] person.”  

Per IranWire's blogger, homosexual people are not normal, but most often they act like normal people, who are probably Mr.Zand, his readers and editors at IranWire. We -- the gays -- should be probably thanking Mr.Zand for his wisdom in understanding that most of us, most of the times, act normal. Thank you, Mr.Zand.  

I know you will find it disappointing, but I am not going to translate any more passage of this rubbish that IranWire has published claiming it is satire. Instead I want to draw your attention to the aftermath of publishing this garbage which is unfolding in the social network website Facebook, the most popular social network tool among Iranians.

I start by Mr.Zand’s comment on his Facebook page after it is published and shared on the IranWire Facebook page. 

Screenshot of the Sharagim Zand's Facebook page and the status in question. 

He writes:

The comments left in IranWire Facebook page under my article are full of insulting and humiliating comments toward the homosexuals. This is really shameful. Some internet users and reader of IranWire hold a deeply inhumane and primitive view of homosexuality that I am sorry I referred to fake cases in satire in my writing!

I, on behalf of myself, apologize from all the people who are homosexual and are being insulted in the comment section of Facebook by some idiot fellow citizens of mine.

What is sad is Mr.Zand's lack of comprehension that his writing is homophobic, transphobic and idiotic. I can try to appreciate that Mr.Zand is not trying to hurt homosexual people or queer people in general, but what makes it difficult is his willful negligence of his own problematic language and message.

Did anyone force Mr.Zand to perpetuate false notions held widely in Iran regarding homosexual people, homosexuality and trans* people?

Did Mr.Zand, as a blogger, who is published on IranWire try to reach out to any Iranian gay, lesbian, bisexual or trans* before publishing this garbage?

Or, maybe, because Mr.Zand has a couple of very good gay friends, he’s an all-knowing entity on the gays? And, we have to submit to his eminence?

I am speaking as an Iranian queer human here: Mr. Sharagim Zand, your recent writing is deeply offensive, disturbing and perpetuates dangerous false notions. You and IranWire need to acknowledge this matter and fix it. 

 Here hoping IranWire reaches out to me, or published my post on their website. I give IranWire full permission to do what it likes with my response. So, maybe some of their readers get to see another slice of the Iranian society which is not into perpetuating false notions of homosexuality and gender.

  

NOTE: Yesterday, I reached out to IranWire's Maziar Bahari and Azadeh Moaveni on twitter, radio silence is what I got so far. 

Let's talk about "Shame," female journalists and Why-Do-They-Hate-Us(Iran Edition)!

So, this happened in Iran. But, why "Shameful"?

Shameful: women journalists sitting on the floor while the men are seated in the new #Iran FM inauguration pic.twitter.com/Sszi2nA67r
— RezaAsadi (@RezaAsadi) August 18, 2013

My question: Why is "shameful," with a capital S, the best descriptor of the above situation which is quite common in busy, disorganized, state-sponsored ceremonies of Iran?
Aren't professional journalists supposed to improvise and such to do their news gathering. Professional journalists are indeed stubborn creatures who venture to flooded regions, quake scenes, war zones and even more dangerous places to cover news and basically do their job. So, someone tells me why and how when a group of female journalists improvise to sit on the floor instead of standing in the back of the hall or next to the walls this becomes shameful and an embarrassment for the shameless government of Iran? (Maybe there was no vacant space in either back or next to the walls!)

Above tweet is from an Iranian journalist who has worked with BBC, and has been included in my list of tweeps who tweet about Iran and are not asshole. This other tweet is from another featured Iranian member of my list of non-assholes, and somebody I consider a friend on twitter:

Did none of these men offer these female reporters their seat at introduction of Iran's new FM? pic.twitter.com/UKtRxAwuE7
— Arash Karami (@thekarami) August 17, 2013

Another one from a journalist (he's Afghan as far as I know), who writes passionately about human rights, in particular, women's rights:

No respect. RT @thekarami Did none of these men offer these female reporters their seat at intro of Iran's new FM? pic.twitter.com/TPutMFLDRL
— Josh Shahryar شهريار (@JShahryar) August 17, 2013

The amazing part is when Arash Karami tweets in reply to Josh Shahryar:

@JShahryar @Peymasad plenty of secular men are chauvinists in Iran, it's a cultural issue
— Arash Karami (@thekarami) August 17, 2013

If anything, what Arash Karami tweets in his reply to Josh Shahryar is totally accurate in my opinion, but how is that comment of any relevance to a bunch of journalist who are seated on the floor for lack of space. Let's see other pictures of this ceremony:

Does it seem to you there was enough space in that hall?!

The story of "America's youth" is strikingly similar to "Iran's youth." Shall we negotiate?!

So, on the surface this post has nothing to do with Iran. But, as an astute observer -- let me humor myself for Pete's sake -- I am always looking for things that remind me of Iran or its shadow. This post on NPR music section about an infectious garage rock band, The Orwells, consisted of a bunch of teenagers from Chicago reminded me of Iranian youth.

NPR is showcasing a music video of a song on their upcoming album. In the news segment, one of the band members tries to explain what the song is about and why it matters. Keep in mind that the song is about American history:

Speaking of the history shown in the historic images flashing behind the band in the "Who Needs You" video, guitarist Matt O'Keefe admits that his education on the subject matter is limited: "Our political knowledge ranges from what we were taught in junior-year U.S. history class — meaning that all we are really sure of is that Abraham Lincoln was a good guy, and that Bill Clinton got head in the Oval Office."

But he also says the song captures a much more innate feeling, and that it doesn't take history books to understand what "Who Needs You" is about: "The millions of people who had their history written for them, and how they felt they couldn't escape it. It's about being told what to do, about being told what to believe in — which is, in a nutshell, the story of America's youth."

Gotta say most of the the Iranian youth learn history also that way. While baseless rumors, conspiracy theories and whatnot are in abundance in the Iranian society, and unfortunately many Iranian youth "learn" about Iran that way, in America, there is freedom of expression and there is high-speed internet in most public libraries and schools. That makes a huge difference, but apparently this Chicago band does not think American kids know their history either.

At any rate, what this well-crafted music video and hear its joyous tunes.

"It's a theocracy. It's quite dangerous. We don't want to turn Georgia into next Iran." -- Georgian LGBT Rights activist

NPR:

Vacharadze is the executive director of an LGBT organization called Identova, or "Identity," and he was at the May 17 demonstration. He says that key members of Georgia's parliament, including the head of the Committee on Human Rights, have declared themselves subservient to the patriarch of the Orthodox Church.
"What does it mean," Vacharadze asks, "when the chair of the human rights committee says that 'our statement on the human rights violations will not go over what the patriarch has said'? It's a theocracy. It's quite dangerous. We don't want to turn Georgia into next Iran."

When violent, homophobic people use "Iran" in their verbal assaults, what can u do?

Two Men Allegedly Verbally, Physically Harass LGBT Subway Passengers After NYC Pride (VIDEO) 

And this happened: "[The older man] started to say things like, if you were in Iran you would be killed," Koirala said. Koirala is the one who made this video: 

Read the rest of it on huffington post.

"دنیای وارونه: من همه آن‌چه می‌گویید، هستم!"

This post, originally posted in Iran dar Jahan news website, is written by an Iranian Gay Asylum seeker, Hooman Khanipor, who is currently living in Turkey waiting for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees' decision on his asylum request.  The original post is in Persian, and that is how it is re-posted here. I will try to translate this post into English when I find the time.

The author, Hooman, used to work with TV/Cinema crews in Iran as an assistant set designer.  So, he worked with several Iranian film stars. Here, he writes of one instance of homophobia he had to endure on the set of a TV series he was working on. He recalls how two different famous actresses on the set insulted him because of his gayness which was an open secret for the crew. Unfortunately, he does not mention the name of these actresses in this piece.

هومن خانی‌پور ـ ایران در جهان: چند روز پیش در کوچه پس کوچه‌های آنکارا، نزدیک جایی که کار می‌کنم، اتفاقی و به شکل هیجان‌انگیزی یک هنرمند ایرانی را دیدم که برخلاف عادت مریض‌گون این یک سال که در این مواقع، کلامی حرف نمی‌زنم تا کسی نفهمد من هم ایرانی هستم، لبم به سلام باز شد.

از آن‌جایی که دو سال و نیم پیش، در یک سریال، نقشی را بازی می‌کرد که من هم درگروه طراحی صحنه آن، مشغول به کار بودم، آشنایی نسبی‌ای از من در ذهن داشت و به گپ و گفت نشستیم. او از اقداماتش برای رفتن به آمریکا گفت و من از چند و چون پناه‌جویی و بی‌پناهی.
در پی سئوال‌هایش، از دلیلِ پناه‌جوییم پرسید و شنید کههمجنس‌گرا هستم.
در طول مدت گفتگویمان چند بار با خلوص نیت خاصی یادآوری کرد که باز هم به ترکیه خواهد آمد و هر کاری داشتم و چنان‌چه چیزی لازم داشتم، کوله‌بارش همیشه سبک است و می‌تواند برایم بیاورد؛ نشانی‌های ارتباطی در فیس‌بوک و اینترنت رد و بدل شد و بعد از کلی اظهار خوشحالی از این غافل‌گیری، خداحافظی کردیم.
اما باز محبوس پنجره‌ای از خاطراتم شدم؛ بهار دو سال پیش که در آن سریال، دستیار طراح صحنه بودم، بعد از یک سال رابطه کاری، همه عوامل می‌دانستند که هومن یک همجنس‌گراست و تازه از کوره داغ یک شکست عشقی نابودکننده نجات پیدا کرده است.
یک روز صبح قبل از کلید خوردن کار، یکی از بازیگران معروف و سرشناس خانم در عرصه تئاتر و سینما که کلی جایزه و سیمرغ هم بهش داده‌اند و یکی از نقش‌های اصلی سریال را داشت، برای کمی خوش و بش صبح‌گاهی به من گفت: «هومن دیشب یه پسره به من زنگ زد و از بس با ناز و ادا حرف می‌زد فکر کردم تویی (و صدایش رو با عشوه‌ای که سعی می‌کرد اجرای تحقیرآمیزی داشته باشه تقلید کرد) پرسیدم هومن تویی؟ اونم گفت نه هومن کیه؟»
به او گفتم: «یعنی من این‌قدر با ناز و ادا حرف می‌زنم؟»
جواب داد: «گی هستی دیگه، فرقی نمی‌کنه بالاخره ناز و اداهایی داری!»
این انتخاب آگاهانه خودم بود که هویت واقعی‌ام را اعلام کنم و در محیط کارم خیلی هم راحت بودم و به کسی اجازه نمی‌دادم که به زندگی شخصیم اهانتی بکند.
در آن لحظاات کمی فکر کردم که «خب ناز و ادا دارم که دارم، تو دلم گفتم خانم... یکی طلبت تا به موقعش جواب این حکایت تعریف کردن تحقیر‌آمیزت رو بدم!»
افراد دیگری از جمله بازیگرها و گریمورها هم گفتگوی ما را می‌شنیدند، یکی دیگر از معروف‌ترین هنرپیشه‌های تئاتر و سینما که ایشان هم خانم بود و شخصیت عجیب و غریب و غیر طبیعی‌ای هم داشت، بی‌مقدمه رو به من کرد و گفت: «اِ تو هم از کو...ی‌هایی؟!»
از حرفش خیلی جا خوردم و ناراحت شدم، در عرضِ چند دقیقه مورد حمله دو برخورد همجنس‌گراستیز که هر کدام رنگ و بوی خودش را داشت، قرار گرفته بودم؛ اولی لحن تحقیر‌آمیزش کمتر بود و شوخی‌هایی باهم داشتیم، اما دومی خیلی تهاجمی و بدون آن‌که صمیمیتی بینمان باشد، تازید!
تفاوت میان این‌که از دو بازیگر به اصطلاح سرشناس و معروف و همه جا و همه کس دیده، خمپاره‌هایهمجنس‌گراستیزی دریافت کنی، تا از جانب آدم‌های ساده‌ای که در خیابان راه می‌روند، مانند شب با روز است.
یادم نیست چقدر طول کشید که جوابش را دادم، اما در جوابش و مقابل همه، گفتم: «اونی که شما می‌گی من نیستم، اونی که شما می‌گی معمولا دوست پسرا و شوهرای شماها هستند که این‌جوری از آب در میان، من گی هستم، همین!»
سکوت مرگ‌باری برقرار شد! می‌دانم که آن روز جواب همجنس‌گراستیزی را با همجنس‌گرا‌ستیزی دادم، آن جواب در حال حاضر چندان برای خودم هم قابل قبول نیست؛ دو سال و نیم گذشته و خیلی دلم می‌خواست بازیگر دوم را ببینم و چشم تو چشم به او بگویم: «خانم منم مثه دوست پسرا و شوهرای شما کو....ی‌ام، آره من کو....ی‌ام!»
من هر آن‌چه که بخواهند بر آن دیکتاتوری جنسیتی و جنسی اعمال کنند و اسمی به ظاهر تحقیرآمیز بر آن بگذارند، هستم!

29 خرداد 1392

Year 2013: Iran, Election & the Proverbial Donkey's Cock

Haft-e-Tir Square, Central Tehran, Citizens celebrating the results of the Election. 15-June-2013.

Those who follow this most humble tweep know of my indescribable affection for Donkey's Cock. Wait! Before u click away, read: Donkey's Cock has a prominent place in the Persian language spoken in Iran. I'm certain all those who've attended school in Iran are familiar with this enigmatic term. Donkey's Cock is like a symbol for Iranians. It can mean a nothing burger in the language of D.C. elites. It can also mean a huge middle finger. It is also the funniest thing  high school kids say to break a tense or boring situation. Bottom line is Donkey's Cock has many functions. It's a Swiss Army Knife that can be awesome, ridiculous or contemptuous depending on the setting. My personal take: In the conservative culture of Iran, where erotica, of almost any kinds is universally considered a big taboo, popularity of using Donkey's Cock is a symptom of censorship and  frustrated sexual desires. Keep that in mind. Now to the Presidential Election of Iran which just ended with the victory of Hasan Rowhani (or Rouhani, or whatever other spellings out there). 

Of the total votes of 36,704,156 cast in 58,764 boxes for the 11th Presidential Election in Iran, Mr.Rowhani received 18,613,329 votes. He won in the first round decisively. Foreigners aside, it seems the majority of Iranians are happy with Rowhani's victory, if not elated. See for yourself Iranians celebrating in different cities across Iran: Tehran, Isfahan, Tabriz, Shiraz, Mashahd, Koohdasht, and Kerman.

When the Election results indicated Rowhani's victory, my people came out to the streets dancing, honking their cars, waving their hands, holding their hands, holding pictures of Rowhani, Khatami and Hashemi Rafsanjani -- with a few holding pictures of jailed MirHossein Moussavi, Zahra Rahnavard & Mehdi Karroubi. Hasan Rowhani had inadvertently become a symbol for Iranians. 

As an Iranian, I am glad the majority of Iranians are happy. However, as one who is usually a pessimistic asshole, allow me to express myself. But, before I get there, let's clear up something important real quick:  Nobody voted for Rowhani because he has a stellar resume in managing crisis such as the ones hurting Iranians now: high inflation, crippling western sanctions, or the severe disregard for human rights in the Iranian justice system.  Nobody voted for him because of his tolerance for opposing views or his promises of uncensored, high-speed internet for everyone and increased salaries for the many under-paid nurses and teachers or such. Reasons many, many Iranians voted for him are:

1. Mohammad Reza Aref, a candidate with much more executive credentials and decency, in addition to being close to Reformists, resigned from running in the Election in favor of Rowhani. 
2. Former Presidents Hashemi Rafsanjani and Khatami endorsed Rowhani in this Election. 
3. Rowhani's generally worded promises of ending the suffocating atmosphere of censorship, much intensified since Summer of 2009, and finding a solution to the ever increasing crippling, economical sanctions imposed on the Iranian people by the US and the European Union.
4. The prospects of victory of his other election rivals (Jalili and Qalibaf) scared the shit out of Iranians.

Hashemi Rafsanjani's endorsement was very important because Hashemi is currently enjoying a huge revival of his soiled popularity: 

1. He is considered  a thorn in the side of the tyrant Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei. 
2. Rafsanjani famously supported the oppressed protesters of 2009 in his Friday Prayers's sermon. 
3. He has continuously asked for the release of Political Prisoners of Iran arrested in the aftermath of protests in 2009.
4. He has continuously criticized the incompetence of Ahmadinejad's administration which were mostly interpreted as his disapproval of Khamenei's leadership.
5. Two of his children, and a grandson, were arrested & imprisoned because of association with and participation in the protests against the rigged Presidential Election of 2009. 
6. Majority of Iranians have forgotten, or pretended they don't recognize this mess is actually direct result of  Hashemi Rafsanjani's conduct, his disgusting lust for power and his distrust in anyone but his clerical friends in the last 25 years.

In the absence of the highly respected and loved jailed leaders MirHossein Moussavi, Mehdi Karroubi and Zahra Rahnavard, and in the presence of scared and confused leaders such as former President Mohammad Khatami, and weak reformists-minded Grand Ayatollahs such as Sanei & Bayat in the holy city of Qom, Iranians initially bet all their chips on Hashemi Rafsanjani for the June 14 Presidential Election, but Supreme Leader crushed their dreams upon banning Hashemi Rafsanjani from running, and so Iranians found another rope to hold on to: Rowhani. If a fair and balanced election were held in Iran, Rowhani would have never won. But, now, he is everything for millions of jobless, hopeless, exhausted, frustrated, semi-psychotic and mostly young Iranians.

Happy Iranians Celebrating in Vali Asr Street, Tehran, Iran,. June 15, 2013.

Do you know the slogans my people were shouting on June 15 in Tehran, Tabriz, Kerman, Shiraz, Mashhad, Koohdasht, Bandar Abbas, ... ? I have translated a few for you:

My Martyred Brother / I Took Your Vote Back
(Referring to the many martyrs of protests in Summer of 2009 over the rigged election)

Victory is by Allah & Victory is Close /  A New 2nd of Khordad is Here
(2nd of Khordad refers to the Landslide Election Victory of Mohammad Khatami in 1997)

Victor of Election/ Reform, Reform

Ahmadi Bye Bye/ Ahmadi Bye Bye
(Ahmadi meaning outgoing president Ahmadinejad who is quite disliked!)

My Dear Neda / I took Your Vote Back!
(Neda was killed in Summer of 2009 and became a symbol of the oppressed protests of Iranian people.)

Ya Hossein / MirHossein 
(Referring to the beloved jailed MirHossein Moussavi)


Moussavi , Karroubi / Must Be Freed!


Remember Rowhani / Aref Must be Included too!
(Aref is of course Mohammad Reza Aref whose resignation in favor of Rowhani paved the way for Rowhani's victory. My people were giving cabinet advice to Rowhani, you see!)
.....
And alot more Slogans all of the same nature!

What you could not see in the many pictures and videos from my people's celebrations were pictures of the many jailed and tortured Human Rights Lawyers, Journalists, University Students, Professors, Political Activists, Labor Rights Activists ... who have been withering behind the bars of Supreme Leader Khamenei.

What you could not hear in the many slogans people shouted in their spontaneous street party were clear demands for an impartial Judiciary, Demands for the end of Guardian Council's shameful supervising the Electoral & legislative processes, Demands for Voluntary Islamic Hijab, Demands for Transparency in the government and the many cartels under the control of Supreme Leader, Demands for immediate release of Political Prisoners, Demands for Immediate Persecution of Rapists and Murderers of Kahrizak, Demands for the end of Stoning of People Convicted of Moral Crimes in the Law Books of Iran, Demands for Women Rights,  ....

My people always become happy with some generally worded statement on freedom and respect and dignity. Even on Facebook, in the many, many discussions, status updates, comments, replies, ... my people did not think most of the demands I mentioned above are of much importance compared to the task at hand: An Election Victory for Rowhani, and, consequently, making him our latest symbol of hope and change and all the good things we could only dream while Ahmadinejad was president!

For all I know, and all the Experts know, nobody has any idea about the the first things Rowhani will be doing once he is sworn in. We have no clue. Really.

Is he going to ask the Leader to free MirHossein Moussavi, Zahra Rahnavard, Mehdi Karroubi? I doubt.
Is he going to prevent Universities to stop firing dissident Professors?
Is he going to permit the many censored and unpublished books of literature get published? I Doubt.
Will he ask the Parliament to halt the subsidization plans?
Will he restore order to the economic institution of Iran such as Central Bank?
Will he seek to settle the nuclear debacle with the West? But, doe he have the permission of the Supreme Leader?
Will he seek to lessen the pressures on the many oppressed NGOs in Iran?
What the fuck is he going to do?

Nobody knows. And, not many care actually.

"Let's give him 4 years and see what is going to happen. Whatever we ask him will put him under pressure early in his administration. Let's just wait for a while and see what he does and how he does it." --- A Typical Iranian Voter who voted for Rowhani (not a real person, just some voice in my head!)

Now, let's bring in the proverbial Donkey's Cock : I know as much about Rowhani's agenda as I Know about Donkey's Cock.  Rowhani is as enigmatic as a good 'ol Donkey's Cock. Similar to what I said in the beginning to explain the meaning of  Donkey's Cock, Mr.Rowhani can be "awesome, ridiculous or contemptuous depending on the setting."

Mr.Rowhani is the latest Donkey's Cock that my People, my lovely Iranian Compatriots, have chosen, and I am glad my people are glad.

[April 17, 2003] Heterosexist Haji: Not a cry for censorship, but an appeal for journalistic responsibility

This piece is copied from pages of Iranian.com, thanks to Google Cache. I have not written this. I do not know the author. This piece was originally published here: http://iranian.com/Opinion/2003/April/Speech/index.html

Heterosexist Haji

Not a cry for censorship, but an appeal for journalistic responsibility

By Choob Dosargohi

April 17, 2003

The Iranian

Please read the following and consider publishing it. I prefer to remain anonymous, but if being "known" is a condition for being published, I will give you a name.

A friend sent me a link from iranian.com, along with a note that read, "have you seen this?" Eager to know what was awaiting my curious eyes, I clicked on the link, only to see an image of a headless naked female body, holding a sign that read (in Farsi), "lesbians going back to Iran to sell sex and do whatever we want to do."

Enraged by the message of this cartoon, I searched the archives of the Iranian and found another cartoon where the cartoonist, Hossein Hajiahga, materializes his distorted fantasy about lesbians through his drawing: Two female students lying to their parents, doing drugs, and having sex and confessing that they learned to be "hamjensbaaz" in their school. Hajiagha named this cartoon "The gift of the West to Iran."

As you can tell from my previous letter to iranian.com ("A Response to Responses to War"), I am dissapointed by the way that the dialogue on this destructive war exerts violence on female and queer bodies. This proliferation of homophobic language and imagery in the pages of iranian.com compelled me to write about what freedom of speech, as exercised by iranian.com, means to me.

I appreciate the fact that you are providing a forum for dialogue among Iranian diaspora. As a doctoral student in anthropology, I know how American nationalism has created a culture of fear that silences us in academic circles where any dissent leads to threats of being terminated or to loss of funding.

My letter to you is not a cry for censorship, but an appeal for journalistic responsibility. As Iranians and displaced people in the U.S., many of us can testify to the ways that violence of censorship breaks our pens and sticks duct-tapes on our lips. I understand your commitment to freedom of speech and am not asking you to silence impassioned voices of those who may think differently than you do.

On the contrary, I truly appreciate the Iranian, especially when all we see and hear through mainstream media is the masquerade of violence against Iraqi people under the guise of "liberation" and "freedom". There are those who voice their opinions in mainstream media without having to work hard to this end.

For these reasons, I value the fact that iranian.com has been a forum for people to express their dissent when their voices are lost in the drama of "public polls". I also appreciate seeing voices that repeat the dominant rhetoric of war on Iraq (albeit my disagreement with them). If nothing, these voices show that there is a lot of work to be done and a lot of questions to be asked.

Having said this, I hope that you do not take my objection to Hajiagha's heterosexist cartoons as an advocacy for leaving untouched, things deemed "sacred". If any thing, I think heterosexuality has taken the place of the "sacred" norm and needs to be questioned in cyber-pages of the Iranian. I am concerned that cartoons such as Hajiagha's are informed by a hegemonic knowledge that equates hamjensgarayee with drug addiction, deception, and perversion.

Hajiagha's obsession with lesbianism says something about his personal motivations and his deep hatred towards lesbians. But, I do not want to single out this cartoonist for his homophobia, for the problem is larger than him. What concerns me is that Hajiagha's cartoons that may provide a comic relief in these agonizing times of war, work along other texts within and without the Iranian to inscribe violence on the lesbian body.

This way of representation, constructs the lesbian Other as the "westoxified" abject without whom the existence of the "normal" and "authentic" Iranian heterosexual is impossible. This is where I think the freedom of speech reaches its limits. Speech is no longer a neutral utterance (it never has been), but an act of constituting subjects in accordance with complex workings of power.

Thus, while I understand your commitment to an open forum, I hope that you demonstrate your commitment to a critical questioning of discourses that have material consequences. How many more queers are going to be targets of hate crimes before we feel a sense of responsibility to our readers?

Mr. Javid, I know that this would perhaps be preaching to the converted if I told you that there is no necessary connection between being a lesbian and drugs use, hatred towards men, and/or being "westernized." This may not be news to you, if I told you that lesbian teachers and parents do not make lesbian students (As far as I recall, my parents and my teachers throughout my k-12 education in Iran were heterosexual. And look at me now! No, Mr. Hajiagha, I did not learn to become a lesbian in the U.S.; my desire for women extends to years back before my displacement).

But, dear Mr. Javid, you host a major on-line magazine and that puts you in a critical position. I know you like personal ways of writing, so here it goes: I expect you to be responsible to me and other queers who continue to read your magazine. I expect you to be responsible and create an alternative forum where not stereotypes, but creative dialogues are produced. There is no shortage of homophobic language out there in the world; no need for the Iranian to join in and allow hateful language.

At the end, I would like to encourage you to keep Iranian's committment to the questioning of the "sacred". In the light of this committment, let's rethink the concept of "freedom" as sacred. Let's think about how freedom for some entails material violence against others. Let's think about "Operation Iraqi Freedom" and let's think about "freedom of speech." Isn't there an irony in the way words are resignified?

Isn't there an irony in the violence that hides behind this "sacred" word, "freedom"? Yes, freedom comes with a cost, but who pays for whose freedom? Let us in our committment to write and speak against all that has suffocated us, think about those who die and those who get hurt in empty quests for "freedom".

At the end, I hope that you post both of my letters on your site... if nothing, in the spirit of "freedom of speech."

[July 27, 2004] Hamjenspeak:Iranian gay and lesbian lexicon

This piece was originally published on Iranian.com. I accessed this material via the fantastic Google Cache.
I am re-publishing this piece here with full disclosure that I'm not the author of this piece.


Original piece written in   July 27, 2004 in this address: http://iranian.com/ChoobDosarGohi/2004/July/Speak/index.html

Author: Choob Dosar-Gohi 

Screen-shot of original place of pulication

Hamjenspeak
Iranian gay and lesbian lexicon

July 27, 2004

iranian.com

I read the "Watch your language" piece in the Shorts section. "Queer" has tentatively been termed faraahanjaar by a group of Iranian queers. To get the theory behind it, refer to Homan magazine No.18, introduction (You can contact Homan L.A. for a copy if you don't have it). Also, In the lexicon section of a queer women's site, khanaye-doost.com, there is a list of terms in Farsi.

I say faraahanjaar is tentative (even as it has been taken up and coopted by some queer groups already) because it is a word under construction and was introduced as a term that could yield to more appropriate terms. It was certainly NOT introduced as a short-hand for a long list of identities such as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered, etc., but has been used as such.

Some of us have been talking about the way hamjensbaaz, because of it's negative connotations, could be re-signified by Iranian queers, the way "queer" has been owned up in the U.S. by queer theorists. However, more carfeul work on the history of the termhamjensbaaz and it's uses is needed before one makes such a move. Otherwise, this form of "translation" may risk a form of ahistorical copying.

(Time permitting, this fall, I am hoping to do some work on the discursive production ofbaazi, jens, and hamjens, their historical uses, and their roles as supplements, in the Derridean sense, in the reification of Iranian nationalism. If I get anywhere with it, I'll let you know. For now, Afsaneh Najmabadi's forthcoming book Women with Mustaches and Men without Beards has an excellent section on transformations of sexuality in Qajar Iran, where she talks about "fokoli" and effiminate figures as essential to imagining the nation in Modern Iran.)

Also, kooni is not really translatable as "asshole," but signifies an association with koon (of "ass"). It connotes a deviation from the "proper orifice", if you will. More often that not, it was (and still is) used to refer to the one who is penetrated and not thepenetrator. So long as the penetrator is not subjected to such "unmanly" deeds as being penetrated by another man, he does not count as kooni in heteronormative discourses. It has to do with notions of "manhood" and what takes to be demasculinized. It is curios how the Iranian man's manhood is constructed in hiskoon!

You are right about the prevelence of the term hamjensgaraaamong a large number of Iranian queers. Interestingly, because women's sexuality is all together erased in Iranian popular discourse, hamjensgaraa, has come to have a masculine designation. That is, used on its own, hamjensgaraa often connotes a male homosexual. Attaching zan becomes the way to get around this linguistic problem (Zanaan-e hamjensgaraa). The term is also exclusionary as it does not really account for those who do not fit within the naturalized and hegemonic heterosexuality, but are not solely attracted to their same sex either (some transgenders, bisexuals, etc.).

To make the long story short, there is no "correct" word to name non- normative sexualities, and as it is always the case, words are constantly resignified as they are circulated. Who knows, maybe hamjensbaaz will one day become a more common term reclaimed by Iranian queers than the terms hamjensgaraa or faraahanjaar.

As it is expected, there are many hamjensgaraas who would not agree with me on this. There are many who do not want to be called "queer" or "faraahanjaar" and insist on identifying as "hamjensgaraa." There are also those who use the word "queer" because it is perhaps the "chic" of diaspora these days. It makes one seem "cool" to be queer! Perhaps, as a friend once said, it is because of the desire for innovation in modernity that terms lose their political usefulness as they are appropriated.

Lastly, with a term such as "dyke" or "homo," it obviously depends on who uses it and how. Being called a dyke by homophobic bigots is being bashed by hate speech, but being called a dyke by a friend could even be a term of endearment. (As you know the march before the Gay Parade day in San Francisco is called the "Dyke March").

A List of Twitter Users Who Tweet About #Iran and are Not Assholes [Part 2]

The first part of this list was published a week ago  here.

This list is biased. The names in this list belong to people who have proven they are not assholes when tweeting about Iran. If your name is not in this list, it is not necessarily because you are an asshole -- it could just be because I do not know you.  The order of names in this list does not mean anything. I try to add a brief description for each name in this list. The third part of this list will be published as soon as I compile a list of non-Asshole #Iran Tweeps. I plan to publish a list of Asshole #Iran Tweeps for the Next week, if you have any suggestion for that list, contact me. 

If you have any suggestion about this post, please tweet them at @IranLGBT or comment in here. 

@SaeedK:  Not many Iranian journalist can claim they've interviewed Paul Auster -- an American Author who is very famous in Iran unlike his home country, USA, as far as I can say.  A 23-year-old Saeed Kamali Dehghan interviewed Auster for the weekly magazine Shahrvand Emrooz  5 years ago.  Saeed is now a journalist at the Guardian covering news of Iran.  He sometimes writes for the Comment is Free section of the Guardian. In July, 2012, he wrote a comment piece, aptly, and justly titled: Sanctions on Iran punish its people, not its leaders, which voiced the many concerns, fears and angers of many Iranians who oppose Ayatollahs but are not willing to sign off on the massacre of millions of Iranian by Western sanctions.  His brilliance  is not all I like about him, he is also an openly gay man. Considering he is Iranian, and worked in Iran for years,  this is big deal -- very big deal. Not many openly gay Iranians are out there, let alone a prominent gay journalist.  I guess he left Iran permanently following the bloody days of June, 2009, when the rigged presidential election took place and many journalists got arrested. I am glad he is not in Evin Prison, but in London. He mostly tweets news of Iran.  

@CDA: "Collin Anderson, a 26-year-old liberation-technology researcher from North Dakota who specializes in Iran," that's what The New York Times wrote in 2011.  He tweets about Internet censorship in Iran, sanctions on Iran, ... .  Apparently he knows Farsi for he does tweet in Farsi too. A good source. 

@RezaAsadi: Reza Asadi is a producer for the BBC. I don't know him. His tweets are surely a good source for #Iran. Moreover, he did tweet a blog post of mine which documented the murderous musings of Blake Hounshell on Iran. Hounshell is managing editor at Foreign Policy magazine, and a gate-keeper of Foreign News/commentary in US Media, consequently, not many Iranian journalists tweeted or re-tweeted my blog post out of either sheer disinterest in Iran news or considerations for Mr.Hounshell's image, but Reza Asadi did. So, for that, I gotta tell you, he does seem like an independent minded journalist, and independent journalists are those I trust!
  
@Jrezaian: Jason Rezaian is the Tehran correspondent for the Washington Post. He is apparently from Northern California. My impression is he is from an Iranian father and an American Mother. [Correct me anyone who knows better,please, if I am wrong.] His father had a Persian Rug store in California, so he proudly calls himself son of a Rug man. He is funny. His tweets from Iran and about Iran are always interesting. He is a good source indeed. More significantly foolish #Iran tweeps call him an Agent for the Islamic Regime in Iran, which could be funny if these people were not serious!  

@Nima: Nima Akbapour is "Presenter and Producer" for BBC Persian. He belongs to the first name twitter handler royal club, as if that was not enough, he has about 15,000 followers mostly Iranians. He tweets mostly in Farsi sometimes in English too, usually cool stuff. He is an excellent source for those interested in knowing what's going on in the Iranian blog-sphere. 

@yjtorbati: Yeganeh June Torbati has a long name, but thankfully it is not her twitter handler! She is a reporter for Reuters, based in Dubai covering news of Iran -- for a fuck-up Reuters did in Iran re: Iranian Ninjas, Reuters has been banned from working in Iran unfortunately. She is 2nd generation Iranian born in Oklahoma, USA as far as I know. She used to follow me till I made the mistake of talking to her about Arab Kings in the Persian Gulf, and she did not like my language and unfollowed me. All in all, she is a good source for reliable news about Iran. Tidbit: I once told her names of all the children of Boz Boz Ghandi: Shangool, Manbgool and Hab'be Angoor, which she thanked me afterwards. 

@SeyyedReza: His name is Alex Shams, a co-editor of the excellent @AjamMC blog, but because his twitter account is private now, I am not going to say anything about him. 

@parissasaranj: Parisa Saranj is a columnist for Aslan Media. She tweets pics of Isfahan, her hometown and a beautiful major city of Iran. When she is not tweeting pics of Isfahan, she tweets news and funny stuff about Iran. She used to tweet more till a few months ago. Hopefully she'll get back to tweeting more soon! 

@Lrozen: Laura Rozen is a reporter currently at @AlMonitor. She has a scary twitter profile pic, but seems like a nice person! Her tweets about Iran are mostly news, opinion about the nuclear negotiations, and politics of the Ahmadinejad government. A good source. 

@OurmaninIran: Our man in Iran is Western, probably British  journalist in Iran. I don't know him. He tweets good links about Iran. He does know the domestic politics of Iran as evident by his tweets speculating about the next presidential election in Iran. A good source! 

@SanazRaji: Sanaz Raji is a scholar at "University of Leeds exploring gender, sexuality, and satire in relation to social media in the Iranian diaspora." She does not tweet much, but when she does it is usually something interesting about Iran. 

@pedestrian:  Her name on twitter is Sidewalk Lyrics, she is obviously an anonymous tweep. I got to know about her from a piece that was published on Tehran Bureau from her blog. I can't find that piece now, but you should check her blog for some good stuff to read. Unfortunately, her activity on twitter and blog abruptly stopped on 30, November, 2012. I know she is Iranian, living or Studying in US, but for some family problem -- seemed she lost a dear relative in Tehran-- she went back to Iran a few months ago. She used to tweet from Iran, but then it all stopped late November. I hope she be all right wherever she is, and gets back to Tweeting or blogging, for she is excellent. 

A List of Twitter Users Who Tweet About #Iran and are Not Assholes [Part I]

Intro:

This list is biased. The names in this list belong to people who have proven they are not assholes when tweeting about Iran. If your name is not in this list, it is not necessarily because you are an asshole -- it could just be because I do not know you.  The order of names in this list does not mean anything. I try to add a very brief description for each name in this list. The second part of this list will be published next Friday in time for a proper Follow Friday (#FF).

If you have any suggestion, please tweet them at @IranLGBT or comment in here. 

@TehranBureau: Tehran Bureau is love. It used to be hosted on PBS -- it recently moved to The Guardian. It's the most reliable source of News and, more significantly, Commentary & in-depth Analysis for anything Iran. I got to know it in Summer of 2009 during the bloody days of post-Election protests in Iran.

@eborujerdi: Eskandar Sadeghi-Boroujerdi is editor of Iran Pulse of Al-Monitor news site, more importantly, he tweets Iran news and various interesting, cool stuff about culture, modern history, and society of Iran.Not Boring. Fun Person. I suggest avoiding debating things with him on Twitter. Chitchat is fine. 

@AjamMC: Ajam Media Collective is amazing. I don't like the name Ajam, but I can ignore it, because their work quality is high. Amazing Stuff. "Ajam Media Collective is a blog focused on high and low culture in Iran, Central Asia, & the Diaspora." 

@southsouth: Her full name is Maryam Monalisa Gharavi. A source of pride for me is she started following me, then I started to follow her back on twitter. It took me a while to like her. Some of her tweets are rare gems. We have forged a friendship over our mutual disdain for the phony liberal author: Nick Kristof of NYTimes. Her tweets are usually poetic,witty,and/or depressed. A tweet from her is always read in my shop. She is a grad student at Harvard, and so an elitist. Her twitter page background is always something interesting. 

@Roshanakt:  Roshanak Taghavi is a journalist. I have seen her works in The Christian Science Monitor newspaper and Huffington Post.  She tweets various news of Iran --  a good source. She is nice. Her twitter profile picture reminds me of a cousin I have in Tehran.

@BahmanKalbasi: He is from Isfahan, Iran. He is a reporter for BBC Persian in New York. He hates it when I say "Farsi" Language on Twitter, he has tried to correct me into saying "Persian" Language to no avail. He is cool.

@ThomasErdbrink: Thomas Erdbrink is the Chief of Tehran Bureau of The New York Times newspaper. He used to report for Washington Post from Iran before joining NYTimes. His reports/tweets from Tehran are invaluable and insightful -- a great source.

@Gkhosh: Gelare Khoshgozaran is an Iranian artist, more importantly she is a Lesbian. I like her tweets. She is fun, cool and somewhat gloomy. Her tweets are usually good stuff. I wish she tweets more. 

@__Ghazal__: Ghazal is an Iranian Lesbian living in Tehran. I do not know much about her -- I know,but I won't divulge it in here or anywhere. She is a fun and friendly tweep. Her tweets are somewhat depressing, but try being a lesbian living in Tehran under Western Sanction and then try to be jolly. She rightly has tweeted several times: Fuck you, world! I totally agree with her. 

@thekarami: Arash Karami is a journalist and producer for VOA Persian. He used to work for the popular Parazit show prior to working for Ofogh on VOA. His tweets are a good source. He is fun. His tweets are not boring.

@GEsfandiari:  Golnaz Esfandiari is a journalist. She is the editor of Persian Letters blog on Radio Free Europe. Her work is very high quality. She does amazing job of translating/compiling/reporting News of Iran. Her tweets are usually news meaning serious, solid tweets.  She follows few people considering number of people following her, but she's done a good job of replying to my tweets. 

@JasminRamsey:  Jasmin Ramsey is one of those people who has her full name as her twitter handler, like Bahamn Kalbasi or Thomas Erdbrink. She is a journalist. Editor of Lobe Blog. She is an excellent tweep to follow on news of Iran and developments in the US, Europe regarding Iran. She will retweet any tweets that links to Lobe Bog articles. Solid/Serious Tweets. She likes Lana Del Rey. 

@fahimn: Another Journalist. I don't know much about this tweep. But, been following him for a while now. He does an excellent job of tweeting Iran news in both Farsi and English. 

@dudi_cohen: Dudi Cohen is an Israeli journalist who knows Farsi -- apparently he learnt it recently. A couple of times, he asked me Farsi language questions! I like his choice of music. He doesn't tweet much. He likes to visit Iran. He once told me on twitter: "You happy, I happy."

@aminsabeti: Amin Sabeti is a freelance researcher of Persian Media, mostly blogs, and internet censorship in Iran. He tweets in Farsi and English. Mostly Iran news and usually tech news. He does a good job of Re-tweeting interesting Farsi tweets. 

@tparsi: Trita Parsi is head of NIAC: An Iranian-American lobby in Washington D.C. I like his views about sanctions on Iran and how to improve relations with Iran. I do not like his beard. He tweets news mostly. He is knowledgeable and well-respected in the Foreign Relations community as far as I can say. I want to know why his first name is Trita. 

@femiran: Leila Mouri is an Iranian Women's rights activist. She is good. 

@MishaZand: Misha Zand is a fun-loving Iranian girl living in Denmark. She is witty, funny, and critical of things. I remember she had it on her bio that she is some grad student in Iran Studies or Cinema. whichever is fine by me. I expect her to favorite the tweet which I will tweet later linking to this article. She likes kinky tweets. 

@Brenton_Clark84: Brenton Clark is an Australian PhD student interested in Iran, Tajikistan, Afghanistan.  Tweeting good stuff. He usually tweets interesting stuff/articles about Iran, Afghanistan and Tajikistan that very few people care to tweet. 






To be continued.