Shirin Ebadi and the Women of Iran

The Fellowship of Reconciliation's fifth peace delegation to Iran has now arrived in the city of Shiraz, considered by many to be jewel of classical Islamic culture as well as the seat of the ancient Persian pre-Islamic civilization. As the delegation concluded its first few days, spent in Tehran, one delegation member, Rick Zand, was afforded an unusual opportunity to meet with Nobel Peace Laureate Shirin Ebadi and a group of 20 Iranian women. Rick's thoughtful commentary on that gathering, "Inshallah," is posted on his blog: read it by clicking here. Two other written reflections by delegation members were also sent this morning, and one of them similarly addressed the topic of women in Iran. Here is that report:

Written by Priscilla Fairbank of Averill Park, NY, December 6, 2007

After four days in Tehran, the images in my mind are of the women:

• traditional, religious women dressed in the chador, who seem to flow as they move down the street;
• architectural students eager to explain a new direction in design that incorporates some traditional Iranian lines and elements in their design; they wore fashionable knee-length wool coats accented with belts;
• a high school art teacher who also helps organize the art exhibit in support of the victims of chemical warfare and promote peace, who spoke passionately about both of her jobs;
• a medical student who explained that her medical school is also training them in complementary and alternative medicine and is proud of how strong women are;
• an artist with a large exhibit in a major museum whose paintings celebrate women, freely showing beautiful long hair, radiant faces, and creative dresses of brilliant colors;
• a primary school teacher who approached us and asked if we would speak with her group of 8 and 9-year-old girls – spontaneously creating an opportunity for her students to interact with foreign visitors;
• girls in the third and fourth grades, wearing their school hijab – a few with knit stocking caps jauntily perched on top of the required headscarf – demonstrating the usual range from quiet watchers to those confident to speak with strangers;
• a young mother who works as a driving instructor in this city of unparalleled driving challenges, sporting long fingernails with deep blue polish and a narrow, knit scarf of bulky yarn loosely around her styled hair;
• a Shambhala yoga instructor who spoke passionately of her practice and expressed her energy in a brightly striped coat of fabric from Turkmenistan and heavy Central Asian jewelry.

We are surrounded by contradictions everywhere we turn here, and yet, I sense in these women: grace and elegance, confidence and determination, energy and focus. On a few occasions, they were able to speak of their challenges and frustrations; for many, these difficulties are major. I have learned many things from these women I have met and they have led me to believe in their future.