5 minute read
Close Call
Iranian reflections on the death of Qasem Soleimani
U.S.-Iranian relations were thrown into turmoil after Major General Qasem Soleimani was killed by an American drone strike in Baghdad on Jan. 3. To the U.S., General Soleimani was a vicious terrorist responsible for the death of Americans, but to the Iranian people, he was a war hero who defeated ISIS numerous times in Iraq. His death drove people into the streets of Iran to mourn and to express their anger towards U.S. aggression.
Retaliatory efforts by the Iranian government soon followed General Soleimani’s death. On Jan. 8, Iran launched missiles toward two U.S. military bases. These attacks resulted in no casualties at the bases, according to remarks made by President Trump. However, one of the Iranian missiles struck a Ukrainian airliner, leading to a tragic crash. Ukraine’s Foreign Minister reported that all 176 passengers onboard were killed, 82 of whom were Iranian.
This latest spurt of violence between the two countries left Iranian Americans fearful of an escalation of aggression. “The last thing I want is a war to start,” said Amir Zafaranian, a University of Florida student and the son of Iranian immigrants. His family also worries about the potential outbreak of war.
Zafaranian was born and raised in Tampa, where he felt he lived a double life. “When I was at school with friends, when I was out not with family, I switched to my American identity.” However, at home, he was enveloped by Iranian culture as well as its history. “It’s almost like a switch, I’d go back home and be like ‘Oh, I’m home, Persian.’”
“Because my family is Iranian, I grew up with more knowledge about [the history between the U.S. and Iran].” Zafaranian believes that if more Americans had a broader understanding of Iran, they would believe “the whole country is not against America.”
Zafaranian believes both the U.S. and Iran have done wrong and wishes a more nuanced perspective on these events were covered by media organizations. He finds memes which portray Iranians as terrorists, or antiAmerican, as well as the stories of discriminatory treatment of Iranian Americans, disturbing.
His discomfort stems from a fear that Americans view Iranians as singleminded or homogenous. “I don’t want people to think that I want [a war] just because that’s where my family is from.”
Tara Sedagheh Pakravan, a student at Nova Southeastern University, was in Iran when General Soleimani was killed and witnessed firsthand the demonstrations and conflicts within Iran that followed.
Iranians who supported General Soleimani took to the streets to demonstrate their grief, while those who opposed the general expressed their elation. The presence of these rival perspectives created a palpable tension, and according to Pakravan,
“It’s leading to disaster, because there’s nobody in the middle. They’re all hiding away.”
At its worst, this polarization between Iranians expressed itself in gruesome ways. Pakravan detailed acts of sabotage that occurred by those in support of the current regime governing Iran, against those who spoke out against the government during recent demonstrations. She claimed pro-government protesters would poison the food of those who opposed them by poisoning shipments to the grocery stores where the protestors would shop.
Pakravan felt these attacks personally. “My distant cousin ate something — she wasn’t even part of the protest — it was just in the grocery store. She got a snack that had the poison in it and passed away.”
Because of the danger present in Iran, Pakravan fled the country only a week into her trip, but her mother stayed for a month. When she came home from Iran, Pakravan said her mother was in shock.
Born and raised in Iran, Pakravan’s mother lived through the Iranian revolution, a period of tumult and mass demonstrations as the Iranian government was removed and replaced with new leadership.
Pakravan recalled her mother’s words upon coming back to the U.S. “She was saying ‘I felt like the [Iranian Revolution] was being reenacted.’ She was like, ‘This is the worst thing that could ever happen to our country.’”
While the death of General Soleimani led to such a tempestuous environment in Iran, Pakravan sees a silver lining. “It was a little ounce of freedom that [the protestors] could get from all the censorship, they were able to express how they truly felt about a government Because the whole country was engaged in protest, the Iranian people felt more comfortable to speak their minds, and that’s rare according to Pakravan. “Everyone is scared of the government. They’re terrified of the government. Like even if we talk on the phone, say me and you are having a conversation and I was in Iran and you were in America, they could come to my house and take me to prison. That’s how intense it is.”
This is the worst thing that could ever happen to our country. — Tara Sedagheh Pakravan
Like Zafaranian, Pakravan has also been disturbed by the reaction to these events online. “It’s really painful to see all that’s being said about Iran … I remember everyone was posting the memes about World War III. I personally could not stand it.”
“Iran has a bad reputation already; this is getting worse,” Pakravan said. As someone who is proud of her Persian heritage and has lived in Iran for two years, it was disheartening for her to see her identity mocked and maligned online.
The future of Iran and its relationship to the U.S. is uncertain. But what is clear is that the issues surrounding this relationship are complicated. They deserve to be treated with respect and discussed with tact. There is diversity and nuance in the views and opinions Iranians hold toward the U.S. and the Iranian governments. That fact should be kept on the forefront of our minds as our leaders choose how the future will unfold.
