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The Daily OrangeWait and see: Iranian SU professor doesn't want to return to Iran but he might have to
By Stephen Dockery
Posted: 10/22/08, 4:29 AM EST Section: News
The religious administration and government has made an effort to purge Iranians not in line with the government, Bashiriyeh said.
"The first round took place early on, after the revolution," he said. "And now they say they want to do it again. As a result, they have forced many faculty members to retire, early retirement."
In Bashiriyeh's case and the case of some of his colleagues, it wasn't just retirement, but expulsion.
Teaching in a turbulent time
Bashiriyeh comes from a Sufi family, a small religious sect of Islam known for its mystic practices. He credits some of his liberal ideas to the influence Sufism had on him.
"Sufis don't take the so-called appearances of religion seriously, like praying and fasting" he said. "But they regard the inner-most, the internal message of religion more important. Because Sufism is a liberal interpretation of Islam, it is based on toleration and accepting other people's points of view, and it is a very a-political type of sect."
Bashiriyeh began teaching political science at the University of Tehran in 1982, three years after the 1979 Iranian revolution. The revolution was driven by a popular uprising led by Shiite religious leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. It brought a conservative Islamic government to Iran, which was known for its suppression of dissidents and non-Islamic thinking.
Bashiriyeh's views didn't always mesh with those of the government. He taught during decades when other academics could not. He avoided controversial topics and political alliances.
"I've not written anything personal, in the sense of criticizing or attacking certain personalities," Bashiriyeh said. "I have been writing in a rather abstract way."
Others weren't as fortunate. Many of his colleagues were purged from universities by the religious government or left the country on their own.
Seyyed Javad Tabatabai, for one, was also considered one of the top pro-democratic Iranian intellectuals. He was forced to leave the University of Tehran more than 10 years before Bashiriyeh. Tabatabai was a visiting professor at SU from 2004 to 2006.
"The first round took place early on, after the revolution," he said. "And now they say they want to do it again. As a result, they have forced many faculty members to retire, early retirement."
In Bashiriyeh's case and the case of some of his colleagues, it wasn't just retirement, but expulsion.
Teaching in a turbulent time
Bashiriyeh comes from a Sufi family, a small religious sect of Islam known for its mystic practices. He credits some of his liberal ideas to the influence Sufism had on him.
"Sufis don't take the so-called appearances of religion seriously, like praying and fasting" he said. "But they regard the inner-most, the internal message of religion more important. Because Sufism is a liberal interpretation of Islam, it is based on toleration and accepting other people's points of view, and it is a very a-political type of sect."
Bashiriyeh began teaching political science at the University of Tehran in 1982, three years after the 1979 Iranian revolution. The revolution was driven by a popular uprising led by Shiite religious leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. It brought a conservative Islamic government to Iran, which was known for its suppression of dissidents and non-Islamic thinking.
Bashiriyeh's views didn't always mesh with those of the government. He taught during decades when other academics could not. He avoided controversial topics and political alliances.
"I've not written anything personal, in the sense of criticizing or attacking certain personalities," Bashiriyeh said. "I have been writing in a rather abstract way."
Others weren't as fortunate. Many of his colleagues were purged from universities by the religious government or left the country on their own.
Seyyed Javad Tabatabai, for one, was also considered one of the top pro-democratic Iranian intellectuals. He was forced to leave the University of Tehran more than 10 years before Bashiriyeh. Tabatabai was a visiting professor at SU from 2004 to 2006.
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Svetlana Peshkova
posted 10/24/08 @ 12:21 PM EST
I would like to respond to one part of the article as I find it extremely misleading - specifically the points made about Sufism by the writer and Pr. (Continued…)
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