Patriarchy & Islamism between Tehran and Cairo
The newest viral sensation in the Egyptian blogosphere is a video purporting to be a message from the “Women of Iran” directed towards the “Women of Egypt and Tunisia,” exhorting…
The Little Black Fish – Realism, Oppression, Revolution in Children’s Literature
What is the purpose of children’s literature? Looking back to my childhood, I often think of what was read to me before dozing off in bed. Some stories integrated morality…
Afghanistan: Touch Down in Flight + Dancing American Soldiers
Some years ago a cousin of mine went to Afghanistan for work. His company (a shoe manufacturer) was expanding its operations into a new mall being set up in Kabul…
Lifting the Pardeh on Revolutionary Poster Art
Indiana University will be showcasing “Graphics of the Revolution and War: Iranian Poster Arts” until December 18. On loan from the University of Chicago Library, the exhibit features dozens of…
The Treacherous Territory of Ta’arof
As a student (and sometimes teacher) of foreign languages, I can attest to the difficulties that learners face in pursuit of that most elusive of second (third, fourth, fifth) language…
Memory and Public Space in Tehran
Tehran is a city infused with politics. Every other street is named after a martyr of the Iran-Iraq war, and the most recent street signs include the word “martyr” in…
An Evening with Mohsen Namjoo at MIT
On Saturday, November 19, Iranian musician Mohsen Namjoo (dubbed “the Bob Dylan of Iran” by the New York Times) played to a packed house at MIT’s Kresge Auditorium. Known for…
Chicago’s Siskel Film Center holds 22nd Annual Festival of Films from Iran
October in Chicago was a good time for fans of Iranian cinema. The Siskel Film Center hosted the 22nd Annual Festival of Films from Iran, a month-long event dedicated to…
Arash, Melody, & Transnational Youth Identity
Transnational Iranian youth identity today has rather tenuous bonds, a fact lamented by elders who point to language, religion, or various other arbitrary markers of communitarian affiliation to re-affirm their…
The Met's Islamic Collection is back
After 8 years of waiting, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City finally opened its newly renovated Islamic Art Galleries on November 1, 2011. With a clunky and…