Following President Trump’s announcement that the U.S. would seek new sanctions, but not immediate military escalation, against Iran, most people in the United States likely breathed a sigh of relief.
For Iranians and Iranian Americans like myself, that relief was accompanied by a reminder of just how painful existing conditions can be. Sanctions starve our people of food, medicine, and safety while public figures threatenus with more violence. We may no longer be at immediate risk of all-out, open combat, but this is hardly peace.
Every part of the US relationship with Iran feels asymmetrical, and looking through coverage of Iran in US media makes that imbalance incredibly obvious. It’s even been memed: Every few months I see friends share an image from a 1998 interview in which Iran’s then-President Mohammad Khatami refers to Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America – which he states, perhaps fancifully, “I am sure most Americans have read.”
Continue reading “Americans Need to Hear More from Iranians. Here’s Where to Start.”