Although the Iranian government has condemned "300"
as insulting to the Persian civilization, the film has been
packing them in at movie houses across the country. This is
rather ironic, as what the current regime in Iran fears most is
the renaissance of this ancient culture.
On March 25, the fourth annual Persian parade will begin on 40th
Street and Madison Avenue. Organizers say the single-day festival
commemorates Noerooz, the Persian New Year of 1386, and its theme
will be "Celebrating the Persian-American Community."
In a statement, they said: "The 2007 parade is promising to
be bigger, better, and more colorful than ever."
That's because it's in New York, where we are free to express our
cultural heritage without losing our national identity. Judging
from persianparade.org, which shows last year's Iradj Javid
parade, I expect to see as many American flags as in tomorrow's
Irish-American St. Patrick's Day parade.
I spoke with one of the parade organizers, Iradj Javid, who
filled me in on the celebration of Charshambeh-Souri, an Iranian
festival dating to at least the early Zoroastrian era, 1,700
years before the common era. It is a prelude to Nowruz, which
marks the arrival of spring. To celebrate, bonfires are lit in
public places in the hope for enlightenment and happiness
throughout the coming year. People leap over the flames, shouting
variations of a Persian poem, "Sorkhi-e to az man, Zardie-e
man az to," meaning roughly, "Give me your beautiful
red color and take back my sickly yellow pallor!"
Mr. Javid told me celebrations are being held in various New
Jersey Iranian communities, with parade floats that depict
Persian historical events. In Iran, however, Islamic
Revolutionary Guards are patrolling the streets to suppress the
festival and will arrest anyone starting the fires, an Iranian
dissident friend who goes by Babak Iran tells me. He is a
spokesman for the New York branch of the Anjomane Padeshahi,
Iran's renaissance movement.
"New Yorkers who suffered so terribly on 9/11 should mourn
the fact that the Persian renaissance's leading cultural
strategist, Dr. Frood Fouladvand, is missing and believed
murdered by Iranian intelligence," he said. "Two of his
companions are also missing."
He said iransara. info is the only legitimate voice of the
Anjomane Padeshahi.
Mr. Javid said it wouldn't surprise him if Mr. Fouladvand had
been killed for attacking not only Islam but Muhammad in Iranian
broadcasts. "He out-Rushdied Salman Rushdie," Mr. Javid
said.
While not a follower of Mr. Fouladvand, he did verify that there
is a large and growing Persian renaissance movement in Iran, and
that many Iranians have dropped their Islamic names in favor of
Zoroastrian identities. The Persian renaissance is appealing to
many Iranians who feel lukewarm about Islam, according to Mr.
Javid. The ruling mullahs in Iran consider this movement a
dangerous challenge to their authority.
That is why these official statements from Iran condemning
"300" for insulting the Persian civilization seem so
puzzling. I'm not a history buff, but since when has Hollywood
been known for historical accuracy? The film depicts the 480
B.C.E. Battle of Thermopylae, when King Leonidas of Sparta fought
a Persian military invasion. Only Iran is taking it seriously.
I haven't seen "300" and can't say if I will. I'm
rather sick of seeing war battles on screen. The most recent
offerings tend to be politically correct, as if I have to be told
over and over that war is hell. I prefer the simplicity of 1941's
"Sergeant York," the story of Alvin York, a pacifist
who became a World War I hero because his sharpshooter skills
allowed him to stop an attack on his fellow soldiers.
Besides, it's almost spring, and I love a parade, don't you?