Anti-Iranian sentiment (ایرانی ستیزی also ایران ستیزی) is feelings of hostility, hatred, or prejudice towards
Iran, its citizens, or
Iranian peoples.
Definitions and usage
Prior to 1935, "
Iran" was called "
Persia" by Western nations, and "Iranians" were referred to as "Persians" (as for example the
Safavids, of
Kurdish descent, were referred to as "
Persian").
[1]
For a more lengthy discussion on the particular ethnic groups, see the articles
Anti-Arabism and
Anti-Turkism.
By pan-Turkists
 | The neutrality of this section is disputed. Please see the discussion on the talk page. |
Kaveh Farrokh claims that pan-Turkist groups have encouraged anti-Iranian sentiments.
[2]
Turkey
- See also:
Iran's Minister of Culture
Hossein Saffar Harandi has called the disrespect to the Persian
Shahnameh by some Pan-Turkists, as the "introduction to Anti-Iranianism".
[3]
The Turkish discourtesy against the Persian language & culture is evident in modern-day Turkey where many people wish to rename Persian as "an Ottoman language". A printed guide of the Topkapi palace in Istanbul states that the "....verses on tablets are written in Ottoman Turkish" where almost everything written there is in pure Persian - the official language of the Ottoman court.
Anti-Iranian sentiments in Turkey may include ethnic-Iranian minority Kurds who are openly persecuted in the Turkish Republic.
By Arabs
"Ajam"
According to
Encyclopedia Iranica, the word "
ajam", in Arabic "is applied especially to Persians" and means "to mumble, and speak indistinctly"
[4] (similar to the
Slavic use of words from the root
nemoy "dumb" to refer to the
Germans; see
Names for Germany), which is the opposite of the meaning of speaking "chaste and correct Arabic language."
[5]
- "The distinction of Arab and Ajam is already discernible in pre- and early Islamic literature Cf. the Ajam Temtemī ("stuttering barbarian")." [6] (also mentioned in [7])
- "In general, ajam was a pejorative term, used by Arabs because of their contrived social and political superiority in early Islam."[8]
Dehkhoda Dictionary also verifies this, stating the meaning as "one who mumbles" (کند زبانان). For another detailed discourse on this subject see:
- Ignaz Goldziher, 'Arab und 'Agam. Muhammedanische Studien I. Halle. 1889-1890. I p.101. tr. London 1967-1971, I, p.98 C. E. Bosworth.
However,
Arabic dictionaries state that the word Ajami is used for all non-Arabs. The word itself is derived from the root A-J-M and refers to "to be unclear, vauge and/or incomprehensible" as opposed to Arabi, which means "clear, understandable, with perfect Arabic tongue". The word is used for non-Arabs and non-Arabic writing/speech because Arabs can not understand it clearly as it is in another language
[9] [10] [11] [12].
Anti-Iranianism in early Islam
By sources
Patrick Clawson states that "The Iranians chafed under Umayyid rule. The Umayyids rose from traditional Arab aristocracy. They tended to marry other Arabs, creating an ethnic stratification that discriminated against Iranians. Even as Arabs adopted traditional Iranian bureaucracy, Arab tribalism disadvantaged Iranians."
[13]
The conquest of Persia and beyond was thus seemingly intended to raise new revenues, and the native population naturally did not appreciate this exploitation. Many Arab Muslims believed that Iranian converts should not clothe themselves as Arabs, among many other forms discrimination that existed.
[14]
The inhumane treatment of Iranians by the victorious Arab forces are also documented. See:
[15]
Mu'awiyah, in a famous letter addressed to Ziyad ibn Abih, the then governor of Iraq, wrote:
- ''Be watchful of Iranian Muslims and never treat them as equals of Arabs. Arabs have a right to take in marriage their women, but they have no right to marry Arab women. Arabs are entitled to inherit their legacy, but they cannot inherit from an Arab. As far as possible they are to be given lesser pensions and lowly jobs. In the presence of an Arab a non-Arab shall not lead the congregation prayer, nor they are to be allowed to stand in the first row of prayer, nor to be entrusted with the job of guarding the frontiers or the post of a qadi.
Mistreatment of Persians and other non-Arabs during early Islam is well documented. To begin with, the Umayyids did not recognize equal rights of a Mawali, and believed that only "pure Arab blood" was worthy of ruling.
[16] Neither did they make any effort to mend relations with the Mawali after making declarations like:
- "We blessed you with the sword (referring to the conquests) and dragged you into heaven by chains of our religion. This by itself is enough for you to understand that we are superior to you." [17]
Many similar norms have been reported in various sources:
- "The Mawali were not allowed to lead the prayers or receive booty even if they had participated in battles and distinguished themselves. They were not allowed to ride horses, marry into Arab families, or administer governmental or religious affairs. Even the offspring of mixed marriages were not exempt. The Mawali did not have the right to walk alongside an Arab; if a Mawali met an Arab carrying a load, he had to carry that load to the Arab's home without expecting any payment. If a Mawali were riding a horse and saw an Arab, he had to dismount and allow the Arab to ride instead. In fact, he had to take the Arab to his destination. Furthermore, the Mawali did not have the right to marry their daughters without prior permission from their Arab masters. Even in death rituals, there was a distinction. As a rule, Arabs did not participate in funerals held for the Mawali and the Mawali were not allowed to perform funeral prayers for a deceased Arab."
The Umayyid Arabs are even reported to have prevented the Mawali from having
kunyas, as an Arab was only considered worthy of a
kunya.
[18] They were required to pay taxes for not being an Arab:
- "During the early centuries of Islam when the Islamic empire was really an 'Arab kingdom', the Iranians, Central Asians and other non-Arab peoples who had converted to Islam in growing numbers as mawali, or 'clients' of an Arab lord or clan, had in practice acquired an inferior socio-economic and racial status compared to Arab Muslims, though the mawali themselves fared better than the empire's non-Muslim subjects, the ahl al-dhimma ('people of the book'). The mawali, for instance, paid special taxes, often similar to the jizya (poll tax) and the kharaj (land tax) levied on the Zoroastrians and other non-Muslim subjects, taxes which were never paid by the Arab Muslims."[1]
References in Persian literature
Zarrinkoub presents a lengthy discussion on the large flux and influence of the victorious Arabs on the literature, language, culture, and society of Persia during the two centuries following the
Islamic conquest of Iran in his book "Two Centuries of Silence"
[19].
Persian language suppressed
After the Islamic conquest of the Persian Empire, during the reign of the
Ummayad dynasty, the
Arab conquerors imposed
Arabic as the primary language of the subject peoples throughout their empire. Hajjāj ibn Yusuf, who was not happy with the prevalence of the
Persian language in the
divan, ordered the official language of the conquered lands to be replaced by Arabic, sometimes by force.
[20]
In Biruni's
From The Remaining Signs of Past Centuries (الآثار الباقية عن القرون الخالية), for example it is written:
- وقتی قتبیه بن مسلم سردار حجاج، بار دوم بخوارزم رفت و آن را باز گشود هرکس را که خط خوارزمی می نوشت و از تاریخ و علوم و اخبار گذشته آگاهی داشت از دم تیغ بی دریغ درگذاشت و موبدان و هیربدان قوم را یکسر هلاک نمود و کتابهاشان همه بسوزانید و تباه کرد تا آنکه رفته رفته مردم امی ماندند و از خط و کتابت بی بهره گشتند و اخبار آنها اکثر فراموش شد و از میان رف?
- "When Qutaibah bin Muslim under the command of Al-Hajjaj bin Yousef was sent to Khwarazmia with a military expedition and conquered it for the second time, he swiftly killed whomwever wrote the Khwarazmian native language that knew of the Khwarazmian history, science, and culture. He then killed all their Zoroastrian priests and burned and wasted their books, until gradually the illiterate only remained, who knew nothing of writing, and hence their history was mostly forgotten." [21]
It is difficult to imagine the Arabs not implementing anti-Persian policies in light of such events, writes
Zarrinkoub in his famous
Two Centuries of Silence [22], where he exclusively writes of this topic. Reports of Persian speakers being tortured are also given in al-Aghānī
[23].
Shi'ism and Iranians
Predominantly Shia Iran has always exhibited a sympathetic side for Ali and his progeny. Even when Persia was largely Sunni, this was still evident as can be seen from the writings remaining from that era.
Rumi for example, praises Ali (in a section entitled "Learn from Ali"), which recounts Ali ibn Abi Talib's explanation as to why he declined to kill someone who had spit in his face as Ali was defeating him in battle.
Persian literature in praise of Ali's progeny is quite ubiquitous and abundant. These all stem from numerous traditions regarding Ali's favor of Persians being as equals to Arabs.
In
Bihar ul Anwar (vol.9, bab 124), a tradition quoted from Usul al-Kafi reads:
- "One day a group of the Mawali (Iranian clients of Arab tribes) came to Amir al-Mu'minin 'Ali and complained about the conduct of the Arabs. They said to him that the Messenger of God did not make any distinction between Arabs and non-Arabs in the disbursement of public funds (bayt ul-mal) or in the matter of marriage. They added that the Prophet distributed public funds equally among Muslims and let Salman, Bilal and Suhayb marry Arab women, but today Arabs discriminated between themselves and us. 'Ali went to the Arabs and discussed the matter with them, but it was to no avail. The Arabs shouted, "It is quite impossible! Impossible! "'All, annoyed and angered by this turn of affairs, returned to the Mawali and told them with utmost regret, "They are not prepared to treat you equally and as Muslims enjoying equal rights. I advise you to go into trade and God will make you prosper."
Several sources speak of a dispute arising between an Arab and an Iranian woman. Referring the case to
Ali for arbitration, Ali reportedly did not allow any discrimination between the two to take place. His judgment thus invited the protest of the Arab woman. Thereupon, Ali replied: "In the Quran, I did not find the progeny of Ishmael (the Arabs) to be any higher than the Iranians."
[24]
Again, Ali was once reciting a sermon in the city of
Kufah, when
Ash'as ibn Qays, a commander in the Arab army protested: "Amir-al-Momeneen! These Iranians are excelling the Arabs right in front of your eyes, and you are doing nothing about it!" He then roared: "I, will show them who the Arabs are!"
Ali immediately retorted: "While fat Arabs rest in soft beds, the Iranians work hard on the hottest days to please God with their efforts. And what do these Arabs want from me? To ostracize the Iranians and become an oppressor! I swear by the God that splits the nucleus and creates Man, I heard the prophet once say: Just as you strike the Iranians with your swords in the name of Islam, so will the Iranians one day strike you back the same way, for Islam."
[25]
When the
Sassanid city of Anbar fell to the forces of Mu'awiyeh, news reached Ali that the city had been sacked and plundered spilling much innocent blood. Ali gathered all the people of Kufah to the mosque, and gave a fiery sermon. After describing the massacre, he said: "If somebody, hearing this news now faints and dies of grief, I fully approve of it!"
[26] It is from here that Ali is said to have had more sympathy for Iranians while Omar highly resented them.
[27]
The following traditions are also recorded in Safinat al-Bihar
[28]:
- Mughirah, comparing Ali with 'Umar, always used to say, " 'Ali showed greater consideration and kindness to the Mawali, while 'Umar, on the contrary, did not like them."
- A man came to Ja'far al-Sadiq and said, "People say that one who is neither a pure Arab nor a pure mawla is of base origin." The Imam asked him, "What do you mean by 'pure mawla'?" The man replied, "It is a person whose parents were slaves earlier." The Imam asked again, "What is the merit in being a pure mawla?" The man answered, "That is because the Prophet said that a people's mawla is from themselves. Therefore, a pure mawla of Arabs is like Arabs. Hence the man of merit is one who is either a pure Arab or a pure mawla associated with Arabs." The Imam replied, "Haven't you heard that the Prophet declared that he was the wali (guardian) of those who have no wali? Didn't he also say, 'I am the wali of every Muslim, whether he be Arab or non-Arab'? And doesn't a person whose wali is the Prophet therefore belong to the Prophet?" He then added: "Of these two which is superior: the one who is related to the Prophet and is from him or the one related to a boorish Arab who urinates over his feet?" Then he said: "One who embraces Islam out of his free choice, willingly is far more superior to him who has embraced Islam due to fear. These hypocritical Arabs were converted to Islam because of fear, while the Iranians came to the fold of Islam willingly and with pleasure.
However, the viewpoint that Ali has always "loved" Iran has been disputed. There is evidence that these claims have been exaggerated to increase sympathy and loyalty for the Shia faith, instigated by the modern clercial institution of Iran. In addition, Al-Tabari's accounts are blantantly contradictory. Al-Tabari records that when the citizens of Pars and Kerman revolted, Ali sent in a large army by the name of "Ziyad" to put down the revolt of the "accursed Iranians"
[29]. However, this tradition lacks its authenticity owing to many monumental historical accounts written by both Sunni and non-Muslim historians which portray Ali as a paragon of Islamic equality and nobility.
Modern times
It was in
Baghdad where the first Arab nationalists, mainly of Palestinian and Syrian descent, formed the basis of their overall philosophies. Prominent among them were individuals such as
Mohammad Amin al-Husayni (the
Mufti of Jerusalem), and Syrian nationalists such as Shukri al-Quwatli and Jamil Mardam. Satia Al-Husri, who served as advisor to the Ministry of Education; and later Director General of Education, and Dean of the College of Law was particularly instrumental in shaping the Iraqi educational system. Other prominent
Pan-Arabists were
Michel Aflaq,
Khairallah Talfah, as well as
Sati' al-Husri,
Salah al-Din al-Bitar,
Zaki al-Arsuzi, and Sami Shwkat (brother of
Naji Shawkat). These individuals formed the nucleus and genesis of true pan-Arabism, and unfortunately, ushered in the basis of anti-Iranian thinking in mainstream Arab education and mass media.
Anti-Persian thinking can be seen in the result of Satia Al-Husri.
[2] Of special interest is one of Husri's works entitled "Iranian Teachers who caused Us (Arabs) Big Problems". His campaigns against schools suspected of being positive towards Persia are well documented. One dramatic example is found in the 1920s when the Iraqi Ministry of Education ordered Husri to appoint Muhammad Al-Jawahiri as a teacher in a Baghdad school. A short excerpt of Husri's interview with the teacher is revealing (
[30]):
- "Husri: First, I want to know your nationality.
- Jawahiri: I am an Iranian.
- Husri: In that case we cannot appoint you."[3]
Husri was eventually overruled by the Iraqi ministry and Jawahiri was appointed instead. Jawahiri was in fact an Arab. Yet like many Arabs of his day and the present, Jawahiri saw no reason to follow Husri's bigoted anti-Iranian racialism.
(see source)
Saddam Hussein Al Majid Al Tikriti forced out thousands of people of Persian origin from Iraq in the 1970s, after having been accused of being spies for
Iran and
Israel. Today, many of them live in
Iran.
Iran-Iraq war
Early on in his career,
Saddam Hussein and pan-Arab ideologues targeted the Arabs of southwest
Iran in an endeavour to have them separate and join “the Arab nation”. Saddam made no effort to conceal
Arab Nationalism in his war against Iran (which he called "the second Battle of al-Qādisiyyah). An intense campaign of propaganda during his reign meant that many school children were taught that Iran provoked Iraq into invading and that the invasion was fully justified. Saddām on numerous occasions alluded to the
Islamic conquest of Iran in propagating his
anti-Persian position against Iran. For example, on 02 April
1980, a half-year before the outbreak of the war, in a visit by Saddām to al-Mustansiriyyah University in Baghdad, drawing parallels to the 7th-Century defeat of Persia in the Battle of al-Qādisiyyah he announced:
- "In your name, brothers, and on behalf of the Iraqis and Arabs everywhere we tell those [Persian] cowards and dwarfs who try to avenge Al-Qadisiyah that the spirit of Al-Qadisiyah as well as the blood and honor of the people of Al-Qadisiyah who carried the message on their spearheads are greater than their attempts." [31]
Saddam also accused Iranians of "murdering the second (Umar), third (Uthman), and fourth (Ali) Caliphs of Islam", invading the three islands of
Abu Musa and
Greater and Lesser Tunbs in the "Arabic Gulf", and attempting to destroy the Arabic language and civilization.
[32]
Saddam was ideologically backed by his Arab brethren.
King Khalid of Saudi Arabia for example wrote to Saddam to "crush these stupid Iranians" (این ایرانیهای احمق را له کنید) as Saddam pushed on with the invasion of Iranian territory.
[4] It has often been claimed that Iraq recruited non-Iraqi Arabs during the war to balance the far superior number of Iranian forces on the ground.
[33]
In December 2006, Saddam Hussein said he would take responsibility "with honour" for any attacks on Iran using conventional or chemical weapons during the 1980-1988 war but he took issue with charges he ordered attacks on Iraqis.
[34][35]
On the execution day, Saddam Hussein said: "I spent my whole life fighting the infidels and the intruders [...] I destroyed the invaders and the Persians". He also stressed that the Iraqis should fight the Americans and the Persians.
[36] Mowaffak al Rubiae, Iraq's National Security adviser, who was a witness to Saddam's execution described Saddam as repeatedly shouting "down with
Persians."
[37]
Other Arab states
Some Arab states show hostility to Iran. Within
Saudi Arabia, for example, anti-Iranian rhetoric is openly gathering strength.
Al-Salafi magazine, quoted in
The New York Times, states: "Iran has become more dangerous than Israel itself. The Iranian revolution has come to renew the Persian presence in our region. This is the real clash of civilisations."
[38]
In January 2007
Saudi Arabian King Abdullah said that attempts to convert Muslim Sunnis to the Shi'a branch of Islam will not succeed, and that Sunnis would always make up the majority of the world Muslims. Although Abdullah did not mention Iran by name, his comments appeared aimed at easing Arab concerns over the Persian Shi'a nation's growing influence in the Middle East. "We are following up on this matter and we are aware of the dimensions of spreading Shi'ism and where it has reached," Abdullah told the
Kuwaiti Al-Siyassah daily. "However, we believe that this process will not achieve its goal because the majority of Sunni Muslims will never change their faith," he added. Ultimately, "the majority of Muslims seem immune to any attempts by other sects to penetrate it (Sunnism) or diminish its historical power." While there have been no specific examples of Iranians trying to convert Sunnis, Arabs fear such conversions would accompany Iran's growing powers.
[39]
In the United States


A Pro-Israeli protestor holding a sign in a demonstration in San Francisco,
United States. The sign reads "NUKE IRAN".
The November 1979
Iranian hostage crisis of the U.S. embassy in Tehran precipitated a wave of anti-Iranian sentiment in the United States, directed both against the
new Islamic regime and Iranian nationals and immigrants. And even though such sentiments gradually declined after the release of the hostages at the start of 1981, they sometimes flare up. In response, some Iranian immigrants to the U.S. have distanced themselves from their nationality and instead identify primarily on the basis of their ethnic or religious affiliations.
[40]
In October 2007,
Debra Cagan, a senior Pentagon official, shocked a group of
British MPs by saying "I hate all Iranians"
[41]
Post 9/11 discrimination
Zohreh Assemi, an
Iranian American Muslim owner of a nail salon in
Locust Valley,
New York, was robbed, beaten, and called a "terrorist" in September of 2007 in what authorities call a bias crime.
[42] Assemi was kicked, sliced with a boxcutter, and had her hand smashed with a hammer. The perpatrators, who forcibly removed $2,000 from the saloon and scrawled
anti-Muslim slurs on the mirrors, also told Assemi to "get out of town" and that her kind were not "welcomed" in the area.
[43]
Anti-Iranian sentiments in the media
Ann Coulter called Iranians "ragheads."
[44] Brent Scowcroft called the Iranian people "rug merchants." Additionally, the
Columbus Dispatch recently ran an cartoon that portrayed Iran as a sewer with
cockroaches crawling out of it.
[45]
Hollywood Depiction of Persians (Iranians)
Since the 1980s and especially since the 1990s Hollywood's depiction of Iranians has gradually shown signs of vilifying Iranians.
[46] Hollywood network productions such as
24 [47],
John Doe,
On Wings of Eagles (1986)
[48], (1981)
[49], and
JAG almost regularly host Persian speaking villains in their storylines. In fact, on Friday, May 9, 1997,
CBS aired an episode of
JAG in which several
Hamas terrorists take a Washington hospital under siege. According to the film, they spoke in fluent "Farsi" (or Persian), not "Arabic".
According to Kaveh Afrasiabi:
- "Hollywood's tall walls of exclusion and discrimination have yet to crumble when it comes to the movie industry's persistent misrepresentation of Iranians and their collective identity immersed in a long thread of history."[50]
Some of Hollywood's "stereotypical"
[51] and anti-Iranian movies include:
The Peacemaker (in which a character, apparently without any context, says "fuck Iran"),
The Hitman (in which several mobs join together to demolish an Iranian mob operating in Canada),
MadHouse (partially centering upon a wealthy Iranian who is in the process of divorcing his American wife. In one scene, the wife, speaking to her Iranian husband utters "you goddamn towel heads, sand rats"), ,
Under Siege,
The Delta Force,
Into the Night (1985),
Down and Out in Beverly Hills (1985),
Threads (1984),
The Final Options (1983), and
Silver Bears (1978).
Among the more recent and controversial films are
Not Without My Daughter,
Alexander, and
300.
Not Without My Daughter
The 1991 film
Not Without My Daughter was widely criticized for its portrayal of Iranian society. The film is based on the true story of
Betty Mahmoody, an American woman who traveled to Tehran with her young daughter to visit her Iranian-born husband's family. In the film, Mahmoody's husband undergoes a transformation in Iran. He becomes increasingly angry and abusive and eventually decides that he will not return to the United States. Betty is told that she can leave, but the couple's daughter will have to stay in Tehran. Ultimately, after 18 months in Iran, Betty and her daughter escape to the United States.
Several Western critics, including
Roger Ebert of the
Chicago Sun Times and Caryn James of
The New York Times, criticized the film for stereotyping Iranians as misogynistic and fanatical. According to Ebert, the film depicts Islamic society "in shrill terms," where women are "willing or unwilling captives of their men," deprived "of what in the West would be considered basic human rights." Further, Ebert says: "No attempt is made - deliberately, I assume - to explain the Muslim point of view, except in rigid sets of commands and rote statements."
[52][53] Ebert then contends:
| If a movie of such a vitriolic and spiteful nature were to be made in America about any other ethnic group, it would be denounced as racist and prejudiced.[54] | |
According to Jane Campbell, the film
| ...only serves to reinforce the media stereotype of Iranians as terrorists who, if not actively bombing public buildings or holding airline passengers hostage, are untrustworthy, irrational, cruel, and barbaric.[55]. | |
The film was also criticized in Iran. A 2002
Islamic Republic News Agency article claimed that the film made "[made] smears... against Iran" and "stereotyped Iranians as cruel characters and wife-beaters". In a Finnish documentary,
Without My Daughter[56], film maker
Alexis Kouros tells Mahmoody's husband's side of the story, showing Iranian eyewitnesses accusing the Hollywood film of spreading lies and "treasons". Alice Sharif, an American woman living with her Iranian husband in Tehran, accuses Mahmoody and the filmmakers of deliberately attempting to foment anti-Iranian sentiment in the United States.
[57][58]
Alexander
The 2004 film
Alexander, by American director
Oliver Stone, has been accused of negative and inaccurate portrayal of Persians.
[59][60] In the movie the Persians are portrayed as poor, gay, barbaric farmers that spend their time killing innocent neighbors. The movie was banned in Iran and some Arab nations but the movie still circulates in the Iranian
black market.
300


Critics charged "300" with portraying Persians as "deranged, ghastly, ruthless monsters."
[61]
The 2007 film
300, an
adaptation of
Frank Miller's 1998
graphic novel, was widely criticized for its "racist"
[62] portrayal of Persian combatants at the
Battle of Thermopylae. Reviewers in the United States and elsewhere "noted the political overtones of the West-against-Iran story line – and the way Persians are depicted as
decadent, sexually flamboyant and evil in contrast to the noble Greeks." (It should be noted Frank Miller did refer to many backwards and uncivilized aspects of Greek society.)
[63] With bootleg versions of the film already available in
Tehran with the film's international release and news of the film's surprising success at the U.S.
box office prompted widespread anger in that country.
Azadeh Moaveni of
Time reported: "All of Tehran was outraged. Everywhere I went yesterday, the talk vibrated with indignation over the film..."
[64] Newspapers in Iran featured headlines such as "Hollywood declares war on Iranians" and "300 AGAINST 70 MILLION" (Iran's population).
Ayende-No, an independent Iranian newspaper, said that "[t]he film depicts Iranians as demons, without culture, feeling or humanity, who think of nothing except attacking other nations and killing people"
[64] Four Iranian
Members of Parliament have called for Muslim countries to ban the film
[65], and a group of Iranian film makers have submitted a letter of protest to
UNESCO regarding the film's alleged misrepresentation of Iranian history and culture.
[66] Iran's cultural advisor to president
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has called the film an "American attempt for
psychological warfare against Iran".
[67]
Moaveni identified two factors which may have contributed to the intensity of Iranian indignation over the film. First, she describes the timing of the film's release, on the eve of
Norouz, the Persian
New Year, as "inauspicious". Second, Iranians tend to view the era depicted in the film as "a particularly noble page in their history." Moaveni also suggests that "the box office success of
300, compared with the relative flop of
Alexander (another spurious period epic dealing with Persians) is cause for considerable alarm, signaling ominous U.S. intentions."
[64]
According to
The Guardian, Iranian critics of
300, ranging from bloggers to government officials, have described the movie "as a calculated attempt to demonise Iran at a time of intensifying US pressure over the country's nuclear programme."
[65] An Iranian government
spokesman described the film as "hostile behavior which is the result of cultural and psychological warfare."
[65] Moaveni reported that the Iranians she interacted with were "adamant that the movie was secretly funded by the U.S. government to prepare Americans for going to war against Iran.
[64]
Dana Stevens of
Slate states:
| If 300, the new battle epic based on the graphic novel by Frank Miller and Lynn Varley, had been made in Germany in the mid-1930s, it would be studied today alongside The Eternal Jew as a textbook example of how race-baiting fantasy and nationalist myth can serve as an incitement to total war. Since it's a product of the post-ideological, post-Xbox 21st century, 300 will instead be talked about as a technical achievement, the next blip on the increasingly blurry line between movies and video games. [5] | |
1.
^ Browne, Edward G.,
A Literary History of Persia, Vol. 4, p. 14
2.
^ [6]
3.
^ In Persian
4.
^ Encyclopedia Iranica, p.700.
5.
^ ibid.
6.
^ ibid
7.
^ Goldziher. ''Muhammedanische Studien I. p.103. tr I, p.99
8.
^ Encyclopedia Iranica, p.700
9.
^ Al-Fairouzabadi; The Surrounding Ocian (Al Qamoos Al Muheet)
in Arabic
10.
^ Ibn Manthoor; The Toung of the Arabs (Lisan Al Arab)
in Arabic
11.
^ Al-Bustani, P.; Surrounding the Surrounding (Muheet Al Muheet)
in Arabic
12.
^ Abu Al-Azm, Abdul Ghani; The Rich (Al Ghani)
in Arabic
13.
^ Patrick Clawson.
Eternal Iran. Palgrave Macmillan. 2005. ISBN 1-4039-6276-6, p. 17.
14.
^ "
Ignaz Goldziher. Mohammedanische Studien". Vol 2. p.138-9
15.
^ The following sources:
- "Ansab al Ashraf" or "Futuh al-Buldan" by Baladhuri. p.417.
- "Tarikh-i Sistan". p82.
- "Tarikh e Qum". p254-6.
16. ^ Momtahen, H. Nehzat-i Shu'ubiyeh..., p.145. (ممتحن ، حسینعلی ، نهضت شعوبیه جنبش ملی ایرانیان در برابر خلافت اموی و عباسی ، تهران : باورداران ، چاپ دوم ، 1368)
17. ^ Momtahen, H. Nehzat-i Shu'ubiyeh..., p.146. (ممتحن ، حسینعلی ، نهضت شعوبیه جنبش ملی ایرانیان در برابر خلافت اموی و عباسی ، تهران : باورداران ، چاپ دوم ، 1368).
18. ^ Jurji Zaydan, p.228 (زیدان، جرجی، تاریخ تمدن اسلام ، ترجمه علی جواهرکلام، تهران: امیرکبیر ، چاپ نهم ، 137)
19. ^ ʻAbd al-Ḥusayn Zarrīnʹkūb (1379 (2000)). Dū qarn-i sukūt : sarguz̲asht-i ḥavādis̲ va awz̤āʻ-i tārīkhī dar dū qarn-i avval-i Islām (Two Centuries of Silence). Tihrān: Sukhan. OCLC 46632917, ISBN 964-5983-33-6.
20. ^ Cambridge History of Iran, by Richard Nelson Frye, Abdolhosein Zarrinkoub, et al. Section on The Arab Conquest of Iran and its aftermath. Vol 4, 1975. London. p.46
21. ^ Biruni. From The Remaining Signs of Past Centuries (الآثار الباقية عن القرون الخالية). p.35, 36, 48
22. ^ Zarrinkoub, Abdolhossein, Dū qarn-i sukūt : sarguz̲asht-i ḥavādis̲ va awz̤āʻ-i tārīkhī dar dū qarn-i avval-i Islām (Two Centuries of Silence), Tihrān: Sukhan, 1379 (2000), OCLC 46632917
23. ^ al-Aghānī (الاغانی). Abū al-Faraj al-Isfahāni. Vol 4, p.423
24. ^ See the following sources: - "Algharat" Vol 1 p70.
- "Tarikh-i Yaghubi" Vol 2 p183.
- Bihar-ol-Anwar Vol 41 p137.
25. ^ See the following sources: - Safinat-ol Bihar by Shaykh 'Abbas al-Qummi. Vol 2. p693.
- Sharh Nahj-ul Balaghih Ebn Abi-alhadid Vol 19, p124.
26. ^ Nahj ol Balagheh. Sobhi Saleh. Sermon 27
27. ^ Abtahi, S. Nureddin. Iranian dar Quran va rivayat. p75.
28. ^ Shaykh 'Abbas al-Qummi, (under wali), c.f. al-Kay.
29. ^ Rahnamoon, Fariborz. "Genocide." Iran Zameen 6(2006): p4.
30. ^ Samir El-Khalil, Republic of Fear, New York: Pantheon Books, 1989, p.153-154
31. ^ Saddām, 'Address given'. Baghdād, Voice of the Masses in Arabic, 1200 GMT 02 April 1980. FBIS-MEA-80-066. 03 April 1980, E2-3.)''
32. ^ Tallal Etrisi طلال عتریسی in: Arab-Iranian Relations, edited by: Khair El-Din Haseeb. 1998. ISBN 1-86064-156-3
33. ^ See the article میراث پان عربیسم in the journal مجله سیاسی-اقتصادی No. 209-210, p.12
34. ^ Saddam admits Iran gas attacks
35. ^ Saddam says responsible for any Iran gas attacks
36. ^ Witness to Saddam's death
37. ^ "'A Historic Day For Iraq'", Sky News, 2006-12-30. Retrieved on 2006-12-30.
38. ^ The Times: An unholy alliance threatening catastrophe. Anatole Kaletsky. Jan 4, 2007. [7]
39. ^ [8]
40. ^ Bozorgmehr, Mehdi. "No solidarity: Iranians in the U.S.", The Iranian, 2001-05-02. Retrieved on 2007-02-02.
41. ^ [9]
42. ^ [10]
43. ^ [11]
44. ^ [12]
45. ^ [13]
46. ^ See detailed analysis in: The U.S. Media and the Middle East: Image and Perception. Praeger, 1997; Greenwood, 1995.
47. ^ [14]
48. ^ [15]
49. ^ [16]
50. ^ "'Axis of evil' seeps into Hollywood". Asia Times. March 15, 2007. Link: [17]
51. ^ [18]
52. ^ Ebert, Roger. "Not Without My Daughter", Chicago Sun Times, 1991-01-11. Retrieved on 2007-03-20.
53. ^ James, Caryn. "Embrace the Stereotype; Kiss the Movie Goodbye", The New York Times, 1991-01-27. Retrieved on 2007-03-20.
54. ^ Ebert, Roger. Not Without My Daughter, Chicago Sun Times, January 11, 1991.
55. ^ Campbell, J. Portrayals of Iranians in U.S. Motion Pictures. 1997. p.180. Also see [19]
56. ^ [20]
57. ^ "Finnish documentary counters anti-Iran propaganda in US film" (reprint), Islamic Republic News Agency, 2002-11-22. Retrieved on 2007-03-20.
58. ^ Nesselson, Lisa. "Without My Daughter", Variety, 2003-04-10. Retrieved on 2007-03-20.
59. ^ Trita Parsi, Oliver Stone's "Alexander" - Miserably Lousy
60. ^ RadioFreeEurope - World: Oliver Stone's 'Alexander' Stirs Up Controversy
61. ^ "The battle against '300'", The Minnesota Daily. Retrieved on 2007-03-21.
62. ^ "A racist gorefest", The Guardian. Retrieved on 2007-03-21.
63. ^ Karimi, Nasser. "Iranians Outraged by `300' Movie" (reprint), Associated Press, 2007-03-13. Retrieved on 2007-03-14.
64. ^ Moaveni, Azadeh. "300 Versus 70 Million Iranians", Time (magazine), 2007-03-13. Retrieved on 2007-03-14.
65. ^ Tait, Robert. "Iran accuses Hollywood of 'psychological warfare'", The Guardian, 2007-03-14. Retrieved on 2007-03-14.
66. ^ See Baztab newspaper accessed March 15, 2007: [21]
67. ^ "واكنش مشاور رئیس جمهور به فیلم 300", Sharif News. Retrieved on 2007-03-21.
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Racism has many definitions, the most common and widely accepted being the belief that members of one race are intrinsically superior or inferior to members of other races.
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Sexism is commonly considered to be discrimination and/or hatred against people based on their sex rather than their individual merits, but can also refer to any and all systemic differentiations based on the sex of the individuals.
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Homophobia (from Greek ὁμο homo(sexual), "same, equal" + φοβία (phobia), "fear") is a non-scientific term[3][4]
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Antisemitism (alternatively spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is discrimination, hostility or prejudice directed at Jews.
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Genocide is the deliberate and systematic destruction of an ethnic, religious or national group. While precise definition varies among genocide scholars, the legal definition is found in the 1948 United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide
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Ethnocide is a concept related to genocide. Primarily, the term, close to cultural genocide, is used to describe the destruction of a culture of a people, as opposed to the people themselves. It may involve a linguicide, phenomenons of acculturation, etc.
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Ethnic cleansing refers to various policies or practices aimed at the displacement of an ethnic group from a particular territory in order to create a supposedly ethnically "pure" society.
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Xenophobia is a fear or contempt of foreigners or strangers and people .[1] It comes from the Greek words ξένος (xenos), meaning "foreigner," "stranger," and φόβος (phobos), meaning "fear.
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..... Click the link for more information. Aryan race" is a concept in European culture that was influential in the period of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It derives from the idea that the original speakers of the Indo-European languages and their descendents up to the present day constitute a
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Neo-Nazism (literally new Nazism) is the ideology of post-World War II political movements seeking to revive Nazism.
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White supremacy is a racist ideology based on the assertion that white people are superior to other races. The term is sometimes used specifically to describe a political ideology that advocates social and political dominance for whites.
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The term women's suffrage refers to an economic and political reform movement aimed at extending suffrage — the right to vote — to women. The movement's origins are usually traced to the United States in the 1820s.
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LGBT social movements share related goals of social acceptance of homosexuality, bisexuality, or transgenderism. LGBT refers to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, and their movements include the Gay and Lesbian Rights Movement
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