Children Of The Revolution – Part 1 and 2 – October 1-8, 2008 – BBC World Service –
With all the news in 2015 regarding pending negotiations with Iran, I stumbled across this series of documentaries produced by the BBC World Service in October of 2008, which sheds some light on the current state of Iranian society; what the youth of Iran are up to; those kids who were born during or after the Revolution of 1979 – what they were thinking about – who they are – what all of this means to them. And consider the kids in the above photograph were children born somewhere around 1978-1979; no doubt, have only a passing familiarity of The Shah and would probably feel a lot better if The Revolutionary Guard weren’t breathing down their necks.
We tend to look at the news of other countries and consider the actions of governments and factions as a reflection of all the people in those countries. Much as many people around the world look at our own domestic trials and tribulations as a reflection on who every American is, Americans have a tendency to paint the rest of the world with the same broad brush. All Iranians are screaming fundamentalists who are determined to get Nuclear arms. All Israelis hate all non-Israelis. All Arabs are Muslim terrorists. Everybody has it in for us and are convinced Americans are world-class haters.
Much that people around the world look at the situations in our own cities as a reflection of who we are – it’s just not so, and we can attest to that. Most of the people I know don’t own guns, they like or dislike people on an individual basis; colors and genders and beliefs don’t enter the picture – just want to live reasonably drama-free lives and don’t watch much television. Most of the people I know who live in other countries feel the same way. We all just want to get through the day and enjoy life. Simple. We like waking up in the morning, not worrying. We want to be able to pay our bills, go to movies and have conversations with people because they have something interesting to say. We like the buzz of good chat, not necessarily the induced kind (that’s up to you).
So this documentary is a reminder that, the bottom line is – we’re all just trying to live our lives – and in the manner of Rodney King; we’re all trying to get along.
Much as you may be convinced the children born during the revolution in Iran are any different from the youth of say, Flagstaff or Boston or Hamtramck – they are more similar than you imagine. Funny. . . there’s even a Crack problem in Tehran too.
Check it out – it’s an hour and the BBC World Service Website is a treasure-trove of great documentaries and information about a world you need to know about. Just sayin’.
