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International Committee to Save the Archeological Sites of Pasargad
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A Proposal for Reforming UNESCO's Membership
Our History and Culture Belongs to All Iranians; No One Has the Right to Destroy It An Interview with Shokouh Mirzadegi >>>> |
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Short stories Rashide (Link for reading Farsi Version) Blue writing on tarnished yellow papers
Reviews of "That Stranger Within Me": Coming to terms, By Tara Taghizadeh A voice of exile, By Jaleh Pirnazar
Biography
Shokooh Mirzadegi began her literary work, both as a novelist and a poet, with Ferdowsi magazine and Kayhan daily in the late 1960s. Within the last four decades, she has been one of the most active figures amongst the Iranian literary community, both inside and outside of Iran.
During her time in Iran, she published two collections of short stories, "Permanent restlessness" and "The Second Beginning", two plays: "The Exiled of the Year 3000" and "I Think, Therefore I Am", and a number of children books. Amongst the latter "The Flower and the Sun" is well-known. She also wrote numerous articles of literary, social and feministic nature. She was also the editor-in-chief of Talash Magazine.
Alongside her activities as a teacher of Persian language and Literature, she was actively involved in education and women studies and issues, the results of which have been published in the shape of a series of articles and papers.
In early 1970s, using her ex-husband's surname and writing under Shokooh Farhang, she participated in the activities of a group of Iranian writers and artist to free political prisoners. This led to their arrest and trial. She, along with many others, were sentenced to death. She and some of the prisoners, accepted to plea for pardon on a TV staged-show, and were freed after a while. Two of the group members were executed and some spent a long time in jail.
After regaining her freedom, she began writing again and in 1977 was able to get permission to travel abroad. She resided in London but soon returned home to witness the Revolution of 1978. After the new regime was installed, she was arrested again and was only released after the intervention of Human Rights activists such as Dr. A. Lahiji.
She returned to London to begin her life in exile in 1980. Her works in this period comprises of publishing of a socio-political periodical called Moghavemat (Resistance), and a socio-literary periodical called Mamnu'e-haa (The Forbiddens). She co-edited the latter with late Manouchehr Mahjoubi. She also wrote a pamphlet on the historical conditions of Iranian women called "The Downward trend of Social status of Iranian Women." Together with Esmail Nooriala, she co-edited a literary magazine called Puyeshgaran for eight years.
She founded the Iranian Women Organization of Great Britain and participated in the foundation of Society for Iranian Writers and Artists in Britain. She also has founded the Center for Iranian Women's Documents and Studies in the USA.
Her first full-scale novel, A Stranger within Me, was published in 1993.Three years later; she published a collection of her short stories (Golden Ark) and in 1987 she wrote and staged a play with feminist themes. The English translation of A Stranger within Me was published in 2000. Her other works have been translated to French, German and Japanese.
She has also published numerous articles on literary and social subjects during her stay in Britain and, now, the USA, and has widely traveled and lectured on literary and socio-feminist subjects.
She and her husband, Esmail Nooriala, immigrated to the USA in 1995 and between 2001 and 2005, they produced and hosted two weekly TV programs, The Thought Workshop and On the Operating table. In these programs, her emphasis was on women, human rights and political prisoners issues. The programs were broadcasted via satellite and reached all over the world, including Iran.
In August 2005, when the news of the construction of Sivand Dam in Fars province of Iran that was to flood the archeological sites of the Pasargad Plains was released, she became one of the two founders of the International Committee to Save the Archeological Sites of the Pasargad Plains. She has supervised the activities of the international branches of this Committee ever since.
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