As you read this, Iranians have just finished voting in one of their most highly anticipated elections in decades. Whatever the outcome of the election, both the US and Iranian governments will need to catch up to their citizens—we are ready for peace. This isn’t just something I’ve read or heard — I documented it in both countries to break through the fear propagated by politicians and pundits. Watch our video of messages of peace from Iranians and Americans, then join thousands of people in becoming a Citizen Diplomat.

Together we have to stand strong. The notorious fear-mongering group United Against a Nuclear Iran, cofounded by Obama’s Iran adviser Dennis Ross, just released a TV ad designed to scare people about Iran’s nuclear program. This week, Republicans in the House pulled a ridiculous stunt, trying to force a vote on Iran sanctions to send a message to Iranians right before their election. We need to make sure Americans see the true desires of Iranians and Americans, not more scare tactics and saber-rattling. Watch our video and honor these voices by committing to participate in the movement for diplomacy with Iran.

I was truly touched by the warmth and kindness of the messages of peace you wrote and recorded before my trip – THANK YOU. Spending time in Iran confirmed my belief that peace between our countries is possible. I couldn’t have received a kinder reception from the people I met, and every person I talked to wanted a better dialogue with Americans. With a real understanding of Iran’s perspective, and a partnership based on respect, we can begin to fundamentally change our relationship with Iran. But don’t take it from me. Watch the video.

I have always been motivated to stop war and sanctions against Iran by a fundamental belief in the value of human life. But now this is not abstract for me—these are friends who invited me into their homes, welcomed me to their cities, and taught me about their history and culture.  I am more committed than ever to breaking through the deception of our media and politicians and pressuring our government for diplomacy. If we can show enough people the real Iran, we can outnumber and drown out the voices of fear.

Since I returned from Iran, I have been poring over photos and videos and preparing to report back about the amazing experience I had, and to mobilize people to take action to pressure our government for a better Iran policy. I am excited to share what I learned while I had the privilege to be one of a small number of Americans who travel to Iran each year.

What would you like to know about my trip? How I was received? What Iranians think about Americans? Our government? Why Iranians put ketchup on their pizza? Ask anything in the comments and I’ll respond.

You can read the blog posts I wrote from Iran here and see photos here.

Speaking with American Studies students at Tehran University

On our last day in Tehran, we had a meeting with Dr. Hosseini, professor of American Studies at Tehran University, and some of his M.A. students. The American Studies program has only existed for a year and a half, and they focus on learning about American culture and life, as well as about politics. Dr. Hosseini feels they have a unique approach in that they are reading contemporary writings in the original language, a practice he says is not used in the US in Iranian studies programs. For instance, the students we met with had all read Barack Obama’s two books in English (something I have not yet done). I have been impressed with many people I’ve talked to in Iran and their sophisticated understanding of US politics and culture.

We talked a bit about cultural similarities between the US and Iran, and I mentioned that most Iranians I have met have seen more American movies and TV shows than I have.  When I mentioned that I don’t have cable TV, Dr. Hosseini said, “See! An American without cable!” We discussed some of what the students are studying, from American ethnicities to family life in the US to American cinema. The students have very interesting research projects planned. One woman is working on a dissertation about representations of Muslims in post-9/11 literature, with John Updike’s Terrorist as one of her sources. Another student is interested in studying the growth of nonviolent movements within the United States and how it contrasts with the US’s role engaging in violence abroad.

We spent most of the time talking about US-Iran relations. When I asked what they most wanted people in the US to know about Iran, one simple but important idea that came up is that Iranians are just ordinary people, living their lives, separate from their government. Dr. Hosseini mentioned the problem of using threats as opposed to communication. On this topic, I mentioned that we are working to pressure Congress to stop hostile rhetoric and sanctions, and explaining to them how it is counterproductive, and I asked for their perspective on the congressional strategy.  Dr. Hosseini said that Iran has existed for thousands of years more than the US, and would not exist as it does today if it were vulnerable to these types of threats. He said that the “good cop/bad cop” idea that some members of Congress have regarding Iran is childish, and we need to engage in actual dialogue. Iranians are smart, educated people who understand a lot about American politics and will respond much more positively to respectful negotiations.

I told Dr. Hosseini and his students that I would carry their messages and my stories about the wonderful people of Iran and their desire for peace, and also work to encourage more exchanges between both countries so we can learn more about each other. As I get ready to head the airport to return to the US, I am reminded again of what a privilege it has been to have the opportunity to spend time here, witness the beautiful culture, meet amazing people, and reinforce my commitment to building a peaceful relationship between our countries.  Thank you to all of you for your comments on the blog and your warm and encouraging emails of support. I am excited to come back and share my photos, videos and stories with you soon.

We moved along to northern Tehran to visit the former residence of Imam Khomeini, a revered figure in Iran who was central to the Iranian revolution in 1979. Like at the airport, the security lines were segregated by gender, only the security was even more stringent. I received a pat down from a very friendly woman who welcomed me to Iran. She went through every single item in my bag, asking me to turn on both my camera and video camera to demonstrate them to her. She squeezed the Cliff Bar I had in my bag and told me she didn’t understand what it was. After I explained it was a kind of snack, she was satisfied and sent me on my way, again welcoming me to her country.

On our walk up to the main house, we were greeted by a flock of young schoolgirls and their teacher, and David quickly pulled out his peace balloons to hand out. The girls giggled and yelled things like “hello!” “what’s your name?” and “goodbye!” and posed for pictures. When we finally approached the house, it was a stark contrast to the lavish palaces we had seen in every city we visited. The only room we could see, through a window, looked like a very simple living room with a couch, a table, some books, and a pair of slippers. The house is connected by a tunnel to a small room where Khomeini would address visitors from a chair on the balcony.

We ended our day with lunch in a beautiful outdoor restaurant in the mountains of Tehran. After walking up through narrow streets full of vendors selling fruit, we climbed three flights of stairs to an open deck where we sat on raised Persian rugs under a tree, with the mountains behind us and a rushing river below us. That area of town is where young couples go to spend time alone, and we saw several young Iranians on dates, eating food and smoking hookah (or “hubble bubble” as they call it in English here). It was a truly beautiful scene. As one of our companions said when taking a photo of us, “in fifty years, you will look at these photos and say ‘those were the days.’”

It was interesting to read Hillary Mann Leverett and Flynt Leverett’s OpEd in the New York Times today in light of my recent conversations with Iranians. They write:

More broadly, President Obama has made several policy and personnel decisions that have undermined the promise of his encouraging rhetoric about Iran. On the personnel front, the problem begins at the top, with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. As a presidential candidate, then-Senator Clinton ran well to the right of Mr. Obama on Iran, even saying she would “totally obliterate” Iran if it attacked Israel. Since becoming secretary of state, Clinton has told a number of allies in Europe and the Persian Gulf that she is skeptical that diplomacy with Iran will prove fruitful and testified to Congress that negotiations are primarily useful to garner support for “crippling” multilateral sanctions against Iran.

First of all, this posture is feckless, as Secretary Clinton does not have broad international support for sanctions that would come anywhere close to being crippling. More significantly, this posture is cynically counterproductive, for it eviscerates the credibility of any American diplomatic overtures in the eyes of Iranian leaders across the Islamic Republic’s political spectrum.

Even more disturbing is President Obama’s willingness to have Dennis Ross become the point person for Iran policy at the State Department. Mr. Ross has long been an advocate of what he describes as an “engagement with pressure” strategy toward Tehran, meaning that the United States should project a willingness to negotiate with Iran largely to elicit broader regional and international support for intensifying economic pressure on the Islamic Republic.

In conversations with Mr. Ross before Mr. Obama’s election, we asked him if he really believed that engage-with-pressure would bring concessions from Iran. He forthrightly acknowledged that this was unlikely. Why, then, was he advocating a diplomatic course that, in his judgment, would probably fail? Because, he told us, if Iran continued to expand its nuclear fuel program, at some point in the next couple of years President Bush’s successor would need to order military strikes against Iranian nuclear targets. Citing past “diplomacy” would be necessary for that president to claim any military action was legitimate.

It is important to think about how what the Leveretts call an “incoherent” policy appears to Iranians, and Hossein’s explanation sums up what I have heard from many people here, and echoes the message we have been carrying to members of Congress who support harsh sanctions. There is a serious lack of trust here of the United States government, generally well-earned given the history of US intervention in Iran, but the mistrust on both sides has become paralyzing and remains a serious barrier to moving forward with a diplomatc relationship. Of course direct negotiations, based on mutual respect and covering a broad range of issues, are the best means available for resolving these tensions.

The Leveretts conclude their piece with this:

It was not easy for President Richard Nixon to discard a quarter-century of failed policy toward the People’s Republic of China and to reorient America’s posture toward Beijing in ways that have served America’s interests extremely well for more than 30 years. That took strategic vision, political ruthlessness and personal determination. We hope that President Obama — contrary to his record so far — will soon begin to demonstrate those same qualities in forging a new approach toward Iran.

I have been very encouraged by the shift in rhetoric from the Obama administration, but I share many of the concerns they raise in their piece. In my discussions with Iranians, I have told them that I believe that President Obama is genuine in his desire to pursue diplomacy and understands that it is the best option, but faces many obstacles and pushback from various factions in the US. I am still optimistic, and of course inspired by the shared desire for peace I have seen demonstrated on my trip, and have assured people I meet here that we are working as hard as we can to pressure our government to follow through on opening up a diplomatic relationship with Iran.

Recording Ashkan's message of peace

Yesterday morning, our tour guide for Shiraz, Ashkan, picked us up at the hotel. He was very interested not only in showing us around, but in learning about the work we are doing to bring peace and helping us spread that message while we traveled throughout the city. Ashkan originally studied electrical engineering in school, but later changed his major to tourism management because he believes cultural exchange can help bring about peace, while also pleasing politicians by stimulating the economy. The told me he is working on his thesis entitled “Sustainable Tourism as a Means to Achieve Sustainable Peace.” He said he has given tours to people from all over the world, and he thinks Americans are the most similar people to Iranians that he has met. Ashkan was full of ideas about more actively promoting our peace work while we are in Iran, and while we are at lunch, he put together a miniature flag pole with an Iranian and American flag on it to help demonstrate our work to promote friendship between our countries. He was a great help in finding young people and students in Shiraz to record messages of peace to share with you.

We started off the day seeing some of the beautiful monuments of Shiraz. The city is especially well known for housing the tombs of two of Iran’s most famous poets: Hafez and Sa’di.  Sa’di is the poet President Barack Obama quoted in his Norooz message to the Iranian people: “The children of Adam are limbs to each other, having been created of one essence.” Ashkan, like many Iranians, was able to recite their poetry from memory. Visitors place their fingers on the tombs and recite verses from the Koran as a blessing to the great poets.

In the early evening, we went to a museum that also held an exhibition of local crafts and foods.  We got such a warm reception from all the local artisans who were excited to have us as guests. I went home with gifts of dried cherries, nuts, CDs, and posters, and many people wanted to get their picture taken with us. We discussed our work here to promote peace and I passed out my business card with our website and encouraged people to go listen to your peace messages.

At our next stop, we met a British archaeology student named Sophy who joined us for tea and shopping in the bazaar. Sophy decided to buck the trend in her university and study Iran rather than Greece, and was getting ready to head to Persepolis the next day for her work. This is her third trip to Iran, and she is traveling alone. She said it’s one of the easiest countries to travel in. I can definitely understand why she would feel comfortable here as the times I have been by myself walking around I’ve always felt safe and welcomed, and I’m sure that defies many people’s expectations of Iran.

For our last stop of the evening, Ashkan suggested we go to the massive shopping mall to find young people to record messages of peace. He said it was one of the main “modern” parts of Shiraz, though he said he was sure we had seen things more modern. I pointed out to him that he grew up in Shiraz, a city of more than one million people, while I grew up in a town of 20,000 in Maine, so I’m sure he’s as familiar with “modern living” as I am.

The mall was indeed massive, with an arcade, a bowling alley, and many clothing stores. It was just like any mall in the US (which I generally try to avoid, though I enjoyed hanging out at the mall in my high school days). There were many young Iranians in more western-influenced dress, with women sporting lots of makeup and showing dyed, puffy hair under their head scarves. Ashkan went on a mission finding people who spoke English and we stopped in some stores and talked to Iranians about what they want people in the US to know about Iran and what they hope for in our future relationship. In the food court, I learned that Iranians douse their pizza in ketchup, an interesting custom I decided to forgo. I wish we could have spent more time in Shiraz, a beautiful city that lived up to its reputation for friendliness. Due to a mistake in the length of our visas, I will be returning three days early, but I have had a wonderful taste of Iran and I am looking forward to our last few days here in Tehran.

with activists from Miles for Peace in their office in Tehran

After a lovely morning of sightseeing in northern Tehran, we met today with members of Miles for Peace, and Iranian organization dedicated to promoting peace. Their mission statement begins:

We Iranians are peace-loving people; we aspire for a genuine and sustainable peace, for our own nation as well as other members of the great family of humankind.

To spread this message, in 2007 fourteen of the members biked across Italy, France, Germany, the UK, and the US to conduct people to people diplomacy and demonstrate that Iranians want a peaceful world.

We started out our meeting hearing from the director of the organization, Dr. Rohani. He shared his three major concerns in moving forward with peace between the US and Iran. He noted that exerting pressure on the Iranian government results in additional power for “fanatic elements,” the hardline factions in Iran that do not want a strong relationship with the US. He also called for international governance that features genuine cooperation and equal say for all countries, as opposed to the current system in which countries are treated differently. Lastly, he highlighted the problem of the American military machine and how it has grown to its current exorbitant size. He expressed concern that President Obama could face dire consequences if he tried to oppose it. Dr. Rohani fears that the military machine in the US needs a war to nourish it, and feels that we must make sure that Iran is not a target for a US military attack.

I talked to the group about the work we are currently doing in our country to pressure our government for better relations with Iran. I highlighted the work we are doing to build public support for President Obama’s plans to negotiate and work to overwhelm the opposition coming from groups like United Against a Nuclear Iran (he had also taken notice of them as a troublesome organization). I told them that through grassroots and lobbying efforts we are working to bring the same message to Congress about how this is the wrong time to put economic pressure on Iran while we are trying to open up negotiations, and opposing the current sanctions bills. He was aware of our victory in stopping H. Con. Res. 362, something Miles for Peace had also helped oppose. I explained the work we are doing around my trip to promote citizen diplomacy—to help educate Americans about Iran and counteract the fear-mongering that politicians and pundits are using to scare Americans into supporting harsh action against Iran.

After our discussion, the group shared some videos about their bicycle journey across Europe and the US. It was incredibly inspiring to see these young activists tirelessly biking, sometimes through hours of cold and rain, to engage with people on an individual level and promote Iran’s image as a peaceful nation. You could see the impact they were having in meeting with people on the street, other organizations and politicians.

Following the videos, we took some time to listen to some of your messages of peace together. I had been very touched in listening to all the kind words you recorded, and it was rewarding to be able to sit in a room with Iranians and share those messages. The messages of hope and solidarity were much appreciated, and one of the woman told me she “really loves the CD.” I also took video of several members of the group sharing their messages of peace, and I look forward to sharing those with you soon.

One thing that has really struck me since I have been here is how the Iran-Iraq war has affected Iranians’ views about peace. This conflict is not something we in the United States hear very much about, but it was a devastating eight year conflict in which one million Iranians died. Many innocent civilians were killed, in some cases with chemical weapons. The United States’ support for Saddam Hussein during this war is another source of anger at the United States government. Even though the war was over more than twenty years ago, the tragic consequences are still very fresh in the minds of Iranians today. Even the young people I videotaped today are motivated to promote peace particularly because they have seen the impacts of the Iran-Iraq war on their friends and family. At no time in history has Iran aggressively attacked another country, but they are bearing the scars from what some call a “defensive Holy War” that lasted eight devastating years.

with the man who sold me my first manteau in Tehran

After many hours of being in planes and waiting for planes, we finally touched down in Tehran around 1:30 this morning. Amongst the announcements about tray tables and electronic devices was a reminder from the Iranian government that all women must cover their hair before leaving the aircraft, as the law requires women to wear follow Islamic dress code. It took another hour and half to leave the airport because the small group of us who were from the United States had to be taken to another area to be fingerprinted. Back in 2004, the United States decided that foreign citizens entering the US must go through this tedious ritual, so the Iranian government decided to reciprocate.

Things were quiet in the early morning hours on the outskirts of Tehran, but Leila (our guide from Fellowship of Reconciliation, who grew up in Iran), got involved in a lively discussion about politics and the upcoming election with the taxi driver, with Leila occasionally paraphrasing bits of the conversation for David and me in the back of the cab. She said the driver appreciates the work that we are doing for peace with Iran, because he opposes the current regime, but he would pick up a gun to defend Iran if the United States ever attacked. Leila explained that Iranians refer to their country as a “mother,” with the requisite mandate to defend her from violence. This is a point we have brought up many times when misguided politicians and pundits think that the US can turn the Iranian people against their government through harsh action. As an Iranian friend pointed out later in the day, Iranians are highly suspicious of foreign interference and any whiff of regime change after the US overthrew their democratically elected government in 1953. They are nationalists who are likely to put their country first whether they agree with their government (as are many people in the US).

The first order of business today was shopping for manteaus. Most women prefer to wear hijab, combining a head scarf and a manteau (a long jacket/shirt) as opposed to the more conservative chador. Leila compared what we were seeing today with her years growing up in Iran. When she was a child, you could get arrested for wearing colors that were too light or showing too much hair. Today, women are wearing makeup and manteaus and scarves in every color you could imagine, and the styles are much more trendy and tight fitting than would have been allowed back then.

After visiting a few stores, I finally settled on a green manteau, and Leila went about haggling with the man at the shop about the price. It is customary to push for a bargain when you are shopping in Iran, and considered socially inept not to attempt to get a better deal, so I was happy to have a Farsi speaker to do my bargaining for me.  They went back and forth for a while, and it was entertaining to pick up the flavor of the conversation even though I didn’t know what they were saying. They had more or less settled on a price when somehow it came up in conversation that I am American. He and his coworkers brought over a chair for me to sit in, and we called in David from outside and they brought us all tea and cookies. Once he knew I was from the US, he tried to refuse my money. There is a custom in Iran known as ta’arof, in which a person insists on refusing your money, and you go back and forth but it is a formality and people really do expect ultimately to get paid. Leila said in shops they don’t do this as much and might only refuse once, but this man was insistent. I eventually paid him the price they had discussed before and he generously gave me a bigger discount than he originally planned.

After our morning walk and shopping, we headed over to meet some friends of Leila’s for lunch at a traditional Persian restaurant to discuss some plans for our trip. What you have probably heard about traffic in Tehran is true—crossing the street is a daunting experience, with cars and motorcycles whizzing around people and some intersections lacking clear traffic signals. My strategy so far has been to try to jump in with some Iranians who are crossing, assuming they know how to do so without getting hit by a car.

At lunch, we talked some about the politics of relations between our two countries and the problems of both Iranians and Americans being demonized by the other’s government. When I asked whether they felt a major difference between the Obama administration and the Bush administration, I heard a sentiment that has come up before. They like the way he is talking now, like his Noruz message to the Iranian people. But the real test is in his actions, and they are waiting to see whether he can follow through on his plans. There is some concern that the problem is really systemic and not something that is overcome but putting one man in office. When asked whether I was optimistic about Obama, I said that I really want to be optimistic and I genuinely believe that he wants to pursue a better Iran agenda, but there are many obstacles and there are people in the way who don’t want to see that policy succeed. One woman at lunch, Shirin, said it was encouraging to see how people in the US had made social change in the past. Leila brought up our victory in stopping H. Con. Res. 362, the sanctions bill that essentially called for a naval blockade in Iran, as a sign that we can have significant influence on the Iran issue.

* The very slow internet connection in my hotel isn’t cooperating with my attempts to add some photos to this post, but I’ll try to get some to you all soon!