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April 30, 2003 * Social problem: Homosexuality In reply to "Heterosexist Haji",
* Sexual orientation not for fun Regarding "Heterosexist
Haji" I think there are many Iranians who are in doubt about
their sexual orientation. You, as a journalist, should help but not mislead
them. By publishing these non-sense cartoons they may believe that sexual
orientation is just a matter of fun. Let's help people instead of misleading them and this is my message for Mr. haji: If you haven't experienced homosexuality and you know nothing about it, why are you abusing it? When you get fucked and enjoy it, then you may be eligible to express yourself. * Freedom to scream Dear writer, [Heterosexist Haji] I have also seen Hossein Hajiagha's cartoons on Iranian.com. Although Hossein is a talented artist, but he seems to have a certain pre-occupation with sexual matters especially with Iranian women in Canada! Perhaps he is expressing impressions from his personal experience, but when I see his cartoons, I often sens that he is a out of touch with thje reality of the Western societies and certainly the Iranian expat communities in US and Canada. Sure, there are biosexuals around and freely exercise their right to be that way, as there is freedom for just about any other weirdness and excentrism in these free societies. But to argue that this phenomenon has become such a central issue for the Iranian expat community, for example in Canada where Hossein Agha apparently lives very unhappily, is out of touch with reality! But then again, the key here and what I think iranian.com is to be praised for is the fact that Hossein Hajiagha, you and me can all have the freedom to scream from the top of our lungs whatever we think needs to be shouted and that our words, no matter how weird and out of touch with reality, get published! (See author's reply below) * Sexuality in its many forms Dear Farhad, [Freedom to scream] There's no doubt that Hajiagha is obsessed with lesbianism ["Heterosexist Haji"]. I hope he gets over it and moves on. Three points: 1. Bisexuality or any other kind of sexuality that is made to be the "other" of heterosexuality is not wierd. It's good to think why many people think of it as wierd, where heterosexuality has established itself as the norm. 2. It is not being out of touch with reality to think that this is an issue for the Iranian expat community. I agree that it may not be a central issue, but sexuality is implicated in our national imaginations in subtle ways. One needs to think about who this Iranian expat community is, and who is readily represented in its territorializations. It's only then that one will realize that sexuality in its many forms is a reality to be dealt with. 3. Yes, Kudos to iranian.com for publishing every voice. However, wierdness is subjective. I think it's more wierd to write about how to indoctrinate your teenage brother-in law into realms of heterosexuality and be published on the first page of iranian.com, when Iraq is being bombed, than to write how queers are targets of homophobic violence within the rhetoric of anti or pro-war. So, kudos to him for publishing my words, not because they are wierd, but because they are timely. EDITOR'S NOTE to Choob-e Dosargohi: Thanks for this very important debate. Issues do not get resolved or understood unless they are allowed to surface and be discussed. As you know, Hajiagha's views about homosexuality are not held by just a fringe group of Iranians. Therefore I think the best approach is to let him "speak" and bring the issue into the open. Only then can people like you come forward and challenge that perception. That's how we'll grow and move forward. Cheers -- Jahanshah Javid * Enjoyed your piece Dear Ms. Dosargohi, As an avid reader of Iranian.com (whenever I can spare the time), I enjoyed reading your piece that appeared today ["Heterosexist Haji"]. I hope your ethnographic works as readable as your letters-to-the-editor! PS My daughter was, like you, a PhD candidate in anthropology not long ago -- she now teaches and does research. * Lottery commerical (25 years ago) In responsne to the quiz, "No pain, no gain": yek saal bekhor naan o tareh Eat bread and leek for a year I have heard this one back in mid 70s (25 years ago) for the lottery commerical in Iran. I did not hear it after the commerical at all, because it did not make sence then and it does not make sence now. * Fanatics in Iraq: Disgusting Mr. Arshia Kiani's photo essay "Culture clash" is most revealing of the greater and greater Gap that is increasing between the younger generation more and more exposed to the positive and open influence to the modern world (which does not necessarily reject Islam) and the deeply fanatical practice of Islam in our country that is the absolutely disgusting masochistic ritual of Seeneh Zani that is so common among Shia's and resembles the practice of Cruxifiction among phillipine Christians. When will the day come when Iranians used to celebrate the eideh Fetr and other religious rituals with some Joy if not always enthusiasm ? The images of the fanatic clerics demonstrating in Baghdad in a similar way is truly disgusting. These people are hurting the image of Islam more than anybody else. I am not attached to Islam as a religion no more than anyother religion but spirituality is something all humans aspire to, even atheist are wrong to think that it should be wiped out. All artistic activities have their share of spirituality and one cannot understand Michealangelo, Leonardo Da Vinci or any other artistic Work in the West without some knowledge and interest in Christianity and Judaism. the same is true concerning our cultural heritage, from miniatures to poetry and Myths like the wonderful Thousand and One Nights which surprisingly is first and foremost a tribute to Woman intellectual superiority to Men symbolized by Sherehazad's luring of King Shahriar who hopes to hear more of her enchanting stories. This is very different from practicing it as a faith and which is part of the personal spiritual convictions to which any free person is entitled to or not. Religion should be seperated from politics it cannot be wiped out. It can and should however in the case of Islam rethink itself as Christianity did so by putting an end to the inquisition. Theologists, and clerics should strive to seek what are the positive and humanistic contributions of Islam to human civilization and certainly there are many both from a philisophical point of view as well as from an artistic point of view which is undeniable. Wheather we like it or Not Islam did play a role in the History of human civilization, deriving from both Judaism and Christianity, preaching goodness, love thy neighbour do not kill etc.. all of which are common in all monotheist religions. However in Practice today we see that it is totally the contrary, in Iran and many other radical Islamic countries and only preaching Jihad and hate. This is an insult to Islam itself and all those who are sincere and tolerant believers. Moderate clerics should speak up against such practices as was the case of Ayatollah Taheri in Isfahan who had the courage to speak up to the dismay of Ayatollah Khamenei the spiritual puppet of the Islamic Republic by critisizing the excesses of the Islamic police,the lack of democracy and corruption which he even was honest enough to admit that it surpassed that of the Shah's era. Moderate clerics have a golden oppurtunity to at least claim some credibility regarding their role in a secular democratic society to which the majority of Iranians aspire to in the same level as Christian priests who continue to have some spiritual and moral role in Western Democratic societies, otherwise they are doomed to dissapear. * Age of global mass communication Your recent article is once again refreshing and thought provoking [Linguistic deodorant]. Your reference to George Orwells work is also pertinent. I recall "the minute of Hate" and "Minute of Joy" to which George Orwell used to refer to in his futuristic novel which could easily be attributed to the Way both CNN and Al-Jazeara seem to indulge in. Orwell was quite a visionary, and as you very well know I am sure, Orwell wrote his book in 1948 and simply reversed the last to digits to situate his novel. Television was not yet in homes but Orwell had predicted its importance
way before. Another book which I also As strange as it may seem I read the book when I arrived in France as part of my English courses, but I had discovered the film in Iran shortly after the revolution. The irony was that the books social critisism of a totalitarian state where books are not allowed to be read by anyone and considered subversive were burnt by a fire squad. Fahrenheit 451 is the temperature at which paper is supposed to burn. However at the same time this film was aired on tv the Islamic government was encouraging western books to be burnt and had justified the Burning of Cinema Rex in Abadan. For your information as well as the readers A film adaptation of Orwell's book exists which was made in 1984 with John Hurt and Richard Burton which as also the latters very last screen appearance. As much as I think Truffaut's film is superior to Bradbury's novel, I am not sure the screen adaptation of 1984 was as good as the book, but it is certainly interesting to see. In any case it is certain that we are living in an age where global Mass communication is dissovling information itself, probably unwillingly but it is certainly preoccupying, and certainly represent if not a threat to Democracy since information is in Western Democracies are not State controlled, it is to a certain degree reducing the critical capacity of viewers. Sadly it reminds me of a Time when I used to hear elders saying that seeing all the executions on TV was immunizing them. Sadly the overdose of violence be it in movies or on the News bullitan is also immunizing. I was personally encouraged to see that in French Schools teachers are trying from a very young age to teach children to develope a critical judgment towards News reels and images. Being exposed to Computer Graphics both in CD-Rom Games or in movies and TV shows as you may know with their egree of realism can be confusing for young children and it is certainly important to take that into account from an educational point of view as it seems to be more and more the case. I would like to add that is equally important and certainly not easy to distinguish between propaganda driven images and those which try to simply inform you in Times of War like the one we are living through today. This is where I think "Cinema" as opposed to "Television" plays the similar role as books have as opposed to the daily press. Based on the creative talent of the filmaker or writer Cinema gives to the viewer what books give to the reader that is the necessary distance and intimacy necessary for judgment and critical thought as well as developing ones imagination. Maybe as far as intimacy is concerned their is a major difference between going to movies and reading a book. However DVD and video technology and certainly the miniaturization of these processes will in the future lead to transforming and domesticating access to films. Let's hope nevertheless even if I am confident it won't that it will not put an end to Cinema as a public entertainment, cultural necessity and Dreaming Machine (even if I do not like the term) that it has and continues to be since its invention. * Please do something For the love of god please do something about your photo
essays... it's so annoying when there are no explanation as to what
the hell we're looking at and to top it all off the pics are to large
for the screen....can't u install a scrolling mechanism of some kind....please
do something about it. * Ahmad Moghimzadeh Hi, I am looking for an old friend . He must be married now and have children. His name is Ahmad Moghimzadeh. Please let me know if you know where he can be reached. * Parisa Ashrafi Dolatabadi I am Hamid Shahabi and I live Tehran. I am searchinng for Parisa Ashrafi Dolatabadi. Please help me. More letters (April 30, 2003) |
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