Patriotic American Citizens, Scholars, Journalists Must Speak Up Against US-Led Global Hegemony – American-Iranian Journalist
In this edition, the Personality we had encounter with, and the First to feature on this Column is Marzieh Hashime – an American-Iranian Journalist and Television Anchor. She is a natural-born citizen of the United States and a naturalized citizen of Iran. She was born into a Christian African-American family. She was a student in the field of broadcasting in 1979, when the Iranian revolution happened, as a result of which she converted to Islam and began her career in Islamic newspapers and magazines in the U.S. She is employed by Tehran-based Press TV.
Marzieh Hashime is a household name among viewers of Pr ess TV all over the world, and is simply the only known courageous Female Muslim Journalist on earth today. Could you please tell us your background and what prompted or inspired your sojourn into this difficult terrain which is mostly seen as ‘Man’s World’?
Yes, I am Marzieh Hashime. I am a Franklin- born citizen of America. I studied journalism when i was at Louisiana State University (LSU), Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
I guess it was pretty natural because I always cared about global affairs and was always curious and will investigate on my own about world events and thereafter take informed decision or stand on them. I have always tried to study about various events. Also, as an activist in my teen years, i was always active against oppression, imperialism and really always cared about the oppressed and perhaps I was born to do something for them.
So, for me, Journalism was very natural because of my concern about global events and, actually, the most natural place where I have worked is Press TV, because it tries to represent the voice of the voiceless, those oppressed that I have always cared about. For me, of course entering a
‘Man’s World’ or whatever you call it, I do not actually see it as such, because when I first started practicing journalism as a profession, I did not see any sex barrier in it or allowed myself to feel segregated against on that basis. I joined the profession while i was in the United States even before becoming a Muslim, and so, i was not wearing the hijab, and I was very active and effective.
But, after my reversion to Islam and when i started wearing the hijab, I didn’t work with any Television Channel in the states again, because they will not even hire me because of my hijab. I, however, chose to work in the print media for some Muslim journals, magazines, newspapers, until I later came to the Islamic Republic of Iran where i started working with a radio station and later joined the Press TV, where I am presently an Anchor, and also do documentaries.
How did you find yourself in the Islamic Republic and how has life been here, as an American?
Well, after I became a Muslim, I married an Iranian and we were in the States together for few years until we relocated to Iran.
Therefore, It was natural for me to want to come to Iran not only because my husband is Iranian, but also because, as a curious journalist that i have been all my years, i also actually wanted to come and see what shook the western world and made it go demented, about the Islamic Revolution brought about by the black-turbaned and old Seminary Graduate – Imam Khomaini (Rahmatullahi Alaihi), which was actually the spark for me to study about Islam. As I said, I was a journalist when the revolution took place in Iran in 1979, which i wanted to know exactly what was going on because I didn’t really have any information about Iran, the Shah or the revolution before 1979. So, there were Iranian students on the campus that I lived with at the university. There were two Camps of those students – those who were in support of the revolution and those that were against it. I asked both of them about what was going on. Their divergent responses which left me with more unanswered questions further provoked my interest in wanting to come and see for myself the whole myth, conjecture or reality about this only existing defender of the oppressed in the world today.
As an activist myself, and a Christian looking for the truth and its flag bearers, I was mostly associated with Socialists, Communists, Marxists, because they were the only ones, prior to 1979, that were doing anything or trying to be active against Imperialism. But because they did not believe in God, Who, I had always had, I was never totally comfortable with them as a devout Christian, Alhamdulillah. So, with the Imam Khomeini-led revolution in 1979, someone told me that in other to really understand Islam I had to read and understand the Qur’an, and that started a phase for me to study for a couple of years and at the end of that phase, I became Muslim. So, it was quite natural for me, as a new Revert to Islam, to want to come to live in the only republic that is Islamic.
I have not had any problem being here as an American. Actually, I am very comfortable here because of the whole belief system that I have, and couple with fact that that is what the Islamic republic represents. Even though I have been here now without my husband who actually died in 2001, I am still comfortable, spiritually and ideologically. Also, that I am working for an entity like Press TV that is in line with my belief system, that makes it very easy for me to even sleep at night, compared to working with channels like the CNN or others that are owned by the Imperialists where if I was there, I don’t think I will be able to live with herself.
Last year or so, you were arrested by the FBI when you were in the United States to visit your family, particularly your ailing sibling, but you were later released unexpectedly. What did the FBI actually accuse you of?
Actually, it was January this year (2019) that the FBI arrested me when they took me from the Airport in handcuffs and later on chained me on my legs and took me to various jails and ultimately prison, interestingly enough they said that you’re not charged with anything, and I said really? I’m not charged with a crime and this is the way you’re treating me? and they said NO, you are a witness, and I said a witness to what? And then the question was if I was a witness, why pick me up and treat me like a common criminal? They also put me in a plane and took me to another city I was in St Louis from where they took me to Washington DC.
The the main problem for them is Iran, me living in Iran and being active there. They asked me questions about press TV, our editorial line and several other questions like why we don’t cover certain stories and why we do cover other stories, why don’t we cover Israel positively, why don’t we show more of the MKO, which is the terrorist group. They asked very odd questions like that. They also asked me about the conferences held inside of Iran and why they have invited various American figures there. They asked me in general different questions about the Iranian government and its policies. Why they have different decisions on different things. I told them I’m not a government official so I don’t even understand why you’re asking me all these, and what I said does not mean a lie because I’m not an official involved in making any kind of decisions.
It was a very odd situation, I think overall, when looking back, it was basically intimidation, to intimidate me and people like me, journalists, who are active and other activists.
They wanted to intimidate me and use that to send a message to other activists, intellectuals and independent scholars across the world not to have any close relationship with Iran or the whole revolutionary front. They also did that to scare all pro-truth and pro-Iran activists to be very careful and watch out because anything could happen.