Babak_SD

Imagine you live in a country such as the U.S., U.K., Sweden or Spain. You, your wife and 3 kids have lived and worked in that country for 30 years. You have tried your best to live a clean simple life focusing only on raising your children as best as you can to ensure for them a life better than yours. Lets also imagine that you and your wife are naturalized citizens and all your 3 kids are born citizens of that country.

Your family is a devote practicing Muslim family; you pray 5 times a day, observe the fast for its duration and read the Q'uran weekly in a class in your home. But you are not fanatic and don't wear hijab, you listen to western music, you hold parties in your home and dance, and you socialize with non Iranians to that point that you would even not mind your kids marrying a non Muslim so long as s/he is a decent human being.

Something even graver than 9/11 happens where you live and Muslims are accused of being the perpetrators. A huge percent of the population of your adopted country turns against Muslims. You and your wife are fired from your work without severance pay, your youngest kid is harassed at her Jr. High school to the point that she doesn't go to school anymore. Your older kids in college are thrown out because they are Muslim. The last time you held a Q'uran class at your home, so many rocks were thrown to your home that most of your windows were broken.

You cannot get a job anywhere because you look middle eastern and also many of your neighbors know you as a Muslim and therefore no one you know is willing to even give you odd jobs. You rarely leave your home to go outside due to fear of retribution; physical and verbal abuse. Your bank accounts are frozen and even if you sell your home to get some money to live on, you are not sure if you see the money.

This has been the plight of most (NOT ALL) Iranian Baha'i's living in Iran for the past 30 years. Situation is graver in smaller cities, towns and villages.

The government of the Islamic Republic of Iran has systematically implemented its plan to create an under class out of the Iranian Baha'i's.

This is not just nor fair according to any standard. Turning a blind eye to this situation is also not human.

There are probably close to 150,000 Baha'i's in Iran. Please ask yourself this question: In the past 30, 20, 10, 5 or 1 year, have you as an Iranian taken a positive step towards correcting this injustice?