A Dark Privilege

A few weeks ago, I submitted an essay to America Public Media's On Being blog. It was published yesterday. It contains some personal reminiscences of handling the files of roughly 200 Baha'i who were executed for their beliefs following the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

You can read the full essay and watch a related video here:

A DARK PRIVILEGE: BEARING WITNESS TO VICTIMS AND PRISONERS OF CONSCIENCE IN IRAN

5 Years Too Many

This month marks the 5th anniversary of the imprisonment of 7 Baha'i leaders in Iran, for no crime other than their belief in a faith deemed "heretical" by the Shiite clerics. This is a faith that teachers the oneness of God, the oneness of religion, universal education, the equality of men and women, and the unity of humankind. You can learn more about the persecution of the Iranian Baha'is here: http://www.bic.org/fiveyears/

In addition to the 7 imprisoned leaders, the Iranian government has also arrested and imprisoned numerous Baha'i professors, educational leaders, and students in a systematic attempt to bar Baha'is from access to higher education. In response, the Baha'is established a correspondence course which over time became one of the world's most successful underground online institutions - the Baha'i Institute of Higher Education - which is now supported by professors from around the world. Yet another example of how suffering burnishes the human spirit into action for the common good.

Daily Byte: Smallmedia.org

Having worked for almost a year with an Iranian journalist on issues of forced confessions, denial of education, and human rights in Iran, I see the future of the country as a bellwether for 21st century crises and opportunities. 

One organisation that seems to agree with this assessment is Small Media, which aims to "support the free flow of information in closed societies," with a particular focus on Iran. One project in particular caught my eye:

KNOWLEDGE AS RESISTANCE: THE BAHA'I INSTITUTE OF HIGHER EDUCATION

The documentary I was working on last year was about the BIHE, and it is a subject I feel has great relevance for the future of education. I feel the Institute is leading the way toward a new form of knowledge creation and dissemination forged out of repression and injustice. It is schooling students in  independent thought, global service, and moral courage. And it will be a topic explored in various ways throughout this blog.