Ajam Media Collective
Alex Shams
A Nowruz Dedicated to the Iraqi People, 10 Years Later
Iranian-American reflections on the meaning of Nowruz, 10 years after the invasion of Iraq. May we all be inspired this year again by the rebirth and resilience of nature and of love that Nowruz signifies, and may we be reminded of the need to live freely, honorably, and bravely as the ongoing Iraqi struggle for liberation inspires us to do. Continue reading
Seeing Through the Haze: the Politics of Reporting Sanctions and Smog in Tehran
This winter has been a particularly rough one in Tehran. For the third year in a row, air pollution has frequently reached highly unhealthy levels, and schools and other public institutions have closed for days at a time in response. Although Tehran’s air quality has been a major issue for decades, never in recent memory … Continue reading
Ferdowsi’s Legacy: Examining Persian Nationalist Myths of the Shahnameh
A tribute to Ajam Media Collective’s name and inspiration, this post was written by Ajam’s editors, Alex Shams, Rustin Zarkar, and Beeta Baghoolizadeh. Photographs by Preethi Nallu originally published in Al Akhbar English, republished with author permission. Epic literature occupies a key role in formulating and maintaining cohesive national and cultural identities– elucidating the spirit … Continue reading
No, Iran Didn't Just Ban Women From Universities.
I awoke yesterday morning to a barrage of excited, fearful, and shocked emails and messages demanding to understand why Iran had suddenly decided to ban women from entering university. Given that Iranian women comprise over 60% of students in upper education in Iran and that women’s rights to education is deeply embedded in both the … Continue reading
Misreading Feminism & Women's Rights in Tehran: Beyond Chadors, Ninjabis, & Secular Fantasies
It is nearly impossible to read any article about Iranian women and not spend the entire time rolling your eyes. Historically, the Western media has tended to make liberal use of Orientalist and infantilizing depictions of Iranian women as, alternatively, trapped in the harems of their turbaned overseers (a historically pre-1979 trope applied liberally to … Continue reading
A “Persian” Iran?: Challenging the Aryan Myth and Persian Ethnocentrism
Over the next few months, Ajam Media Collective will host a series that focuses on and describes various elements of the cultural, ethnic and linguistic mosaic that we refer to collectively as Iran. This is Part 1 in that series. I am often confronted by the question “Are you Iranian or Persian, and what’s the … Continue reading
Politics of the Iranian Box Office: Mocking the Morality Police and Green Movement Conspiracies
Over the last few decades, Iranian cinema has burst onto the global stage, earning worldwide acclaim and, most recently, a Golden Globe and an Oscar. No major film festival is complete without at least one Iranian film these days, and it’s no longer hyperbole to suggest that the Iranian film vies against the Persian carpet … Continue reading
A Nowruz Uprising: Ringing in the Persian New Year with a Spirit of Resistance
The Persian New Year 1391 is upon us and it seems that yet again that we will celebrate amidst a climate of global fear and relentless persecution. In Turkey, the police have cracked down on Nowruz celebrations and at least two are dead already as the country braces for mass demonstrations in support of greater … Continue reading
Welcome to Qom: City of Samosas and Mullah Factories
The first glimpses of Qom are always a let-down. The approach begins about an hour into the journey south on the Tehran-Qom road, when, after a long stretch of craggy red hills and dusty desert, the bus reaches the top of its last peak. As it passes the summit and begins its final descent, laid … Continue reading
From Tehran to Homs: Musical Solidarity & Revolutionary Culture in a Time of Siege
The Syrian Revolution is approaching it’s first anniversary and the situation is looking bloodier by the day. In a not entirely unexpected move, Iran recently sent two ships through the Suez Canal to dock in Tartus for a short time, achieving very little but reminding the world (and Israel) that they intend to stand with … Continue reading
