Eskandar Abadi

“Who really cares about the problems of the blind? There are so many annoying stereotypes we are confronted with that oftentimes result in people feeling very insecure,” says Eskandar Abadi, an editor for DW’s Persian Service. Abadi was born in southern Iran and has been blind all his life.

He first came to Germany in 1980. He then studied political science and German language and literature at the University of Marburg and was a lecturer there from 1991 to 2002. Having worked at DW since 2002, he values DW’s commitment to independent journalism—especially for providing valuable information to people in Iran who have restricted access to media.

His new book “Aus dem Leben eines Blindgängers” (The life of a blind man) is a journey through the past 50 years in Iran, that focuses less on Iran’s authoritarian regime and more on the people living under a dictatorship, including the blind and their everyday struggles.

Abadi hosts a music podcast and has worked for years as a representative for people with disabilities. When he is not writing or immersed in literature, he picks up his violin or plays his drums.

His new project for DW Farsi involves a podcast and video format on the topic of “living with disabilities”. Working alongside a colleague, he conducts interviews and contributes the ideas. The podcast is set to start in the second half of 2022.