Whenever anyone asks me what my background is I am quick to say that I
am Iranian. Usually people will smile and nod, but sometimes you get
that person that gives you "the look". The look of judgement and
distaste because they think that every person from a Middle Eastern
country is a threat, and that is where they are SO wrong.
Iran is a beautiful place. It is where my parents grew up until they
immigrated to America in their late teens. The stories I have heard of
this place were all filled with happy and fond memories that my parents
will forever cherish. It wasn't until I went to school that I heard bad
things about the country that I had grown to love through my parents and
grandparents recollections.
My parents have always instilled a very good sense of my culture in me. I
learned to speak Farsi fluently in order to communicate with my
relatives who live in Iran and my grandparents who live close to me, and
to be able to secretly tell my mom that the woman across from us on the
airplane has a really botched nose job. My father is the President of
the New York Persian Parade and I have met some of the most successful
and distinguished Iranian people through that organization. My family
and I always celebrate Iranian holidays like Eid e Norooz (Persian New
Year), Charshanbe Soori (a holiday where you jump over fire to get rid
of any sickness and problems and to bring you health and happiness/
basically like a purification).
Imagine now how sad it is to see this country, that I am so in love
with, being portrayed so negatively by the media. I might not agree with
the way that Iran is governed, but that does not mean that the people
or the country are bad. I mean there are, of course, some bad people
there, but there are also PLENTY of bad people here in our own backyard
in America. The media doesn't even know how to pronounce Iran correctly,
(pronounced Ee-Ron NOT I-Ran), let alone know how amazing of a place it
is. I have been called a terrorist by kids in school, I have heard
someone tell my mother to "go back to where she came from", but with
every ignorant word that comes out of their mouths, my heart grows
fonder for my country and its values. I was taught by my parents to be
kind, open-minded, and to never let other people's opinions deter my
love and passion for anything. And I have seen those values in every
Iranian person I meet because they were all taught the same.
I am an Iranian and I am so damn proud. Páyandeh bád khak-e Iran-e má. (May the land of Iran be eternal).
I saw him after the 1998 World Cup where he had called a controversial penalty kick against Brazil for Norway. This was a friendly at Foxboro on September 12, 1998 between the US and Mexico's women's team that the US won 9-0 although he wasn't the ref but rather was there for some kind of award. I shouted out to him as he walked by "اسی چاکریم!" but he either didn't hear me or chose not to respond. https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2019/...-builder-award Esfandiar "Esse" Baharmast, a former referee, player, coach and current instructor who has been involved in more than a dozen World Cup tournaments and Olympic Games, has been named the 2020 winner of U.S. Soccer's prestigious Werner Fricker Builder Award. The Iranian who officiated the first MLS match and first MLS Cup, and won the inaugural MLS Referee of the Year award in 1997, is the second referee to receive U.S. Soccer's highest honor after Gerhard Mengel in 2005. The Wern...
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