film

I Call Myself Persian: Iranians in America

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Director(s)	Tanaz Eshaghian and Sara Nodjoumi
Release Date	1999
Work In Progress	n
Youth Media	n

Film Description

When the Shah of Iran was deposed and Iran became an Islamic state, one million Iranians seeking religious freedom, political asylum or educational opportunities emigrated to the United States. In the intervening decades, their sense of identity as immigrants in America has been challenged by the taking of the American Embassy in Tehran in 1979, the Gulf War in 1999 and the September 11 attacks in 2001.

Each event brought forth the same pattern of bigotry and political backlash against Iranians with homes defaced, people harassed and jobs lost. A fear of looking �too� Iranian began to dictate appearance. When media coverage encouraged dehumanization and demonization of Muslims, the fact that Iranians are not Arabs but have a different culture, language and history became lost. The fear of being perceived as Iranian caused some to refer to themselves as Persians, often followed by �Jew� or �Christian,� emphasizing their religious distance and difference from the Islamic fundamentalists in Iran. In this morass, the complexity of a diverse culture becomes invisible.

Through various voices, including a standup comic, a computer scientist, several college students, a wife and mother, and artist Shirin Neshat, this documentary explores their unique and common experiences as Iranians in the United States. Viewers also learn how the pressures of bigotry have brought the Iranian community together for the first time. Young Iranians who had avoided each other in the name of �being American� now seek one another for support. Several artists have stepped forward and created works that encourage and invite non-Iranian westerners to experience Iranian culture from within. And the United States government's efforts after September 11 to curb and discourage a negative response to Americans of Middle Eastern descent showed progress and strength.

This documentary explores the recent shared history of Iran and the U.S. in a clear, concise and sophisticated manner. Both teenagers and adults will have an opportunity to reevaluate their beliefs and impressions about Iranians in the United States.