WHO ARE THE REAL ANGELINOS? (another in an ongoing series)—It is hard to believe that the first Iranian/Persian immigrants to America (often interchangeable terms and hereinafter referred to by the Persian moniker) was more than two centuries ago. It might also surprise you that Los Angeles hosts the largest Persian population in the world outside of Iran itself. Persians speak Farsi (not Arabic); are, in fact, not Arabs; and, without question, are an increasingly significant part of the American fabric.
This article elaborates on the theme “Who Are the Real Angelinos?”—a series that was begun a number of months ago to provide some depth into the richness of Los Angeles history and its culture.
Persian immigrés encountered singular challenges, in part, because of the historied, often volatile, relationship between Iran and the United States. “Government, politics, social norms, and organizational life in the United States were vastly different than (sic) in Iran, and the immigrants who arrived in Los Angeles had to adjust to these dramatic differences” as well.
Many of the early immigrants, however, felt a sense of “dual marginality”—neither quite Iranian nor quite American. Their children were often taunted in school with names like camel jockey and others that are not printable. For the most part, the aforementioned enmity has died down and the Persian-American population (I have been told that they like the hyphenated reference) is a growing and essential (and more welcome) part of all our communities.
Despite the many drawbacks, these Persians have thrived over the decades wherever in America they have settled. Their children and grand-children, however, have grown up under different circumstances from their elders, having not experienced the repression of post-Revolutionary Iran. Second-generation Persians have become a “pivotal force” in developing positive perceptions of America in general and Los Angeles in particular and of their place in the wider community.
The newly arrived immigrants (from the seventies) have taught their children and grandchildren that “there is no single accepted majority culture, but rather a melting pot of various minorities and that there is room for each culture to be preserved while also having a shared American identity.” Hence, successive generations have come to view assimilation as a good thing.
In Los Angeles many of Iranian ancestry like to refer to themselves as Irangelesor Tehrangeles. Among them are sub-groups which include Iranian Muslims, Jews, Armenians, and those from the Bahá’i faith. Assyrians, Christians, Kurds (who are Sunni), Turkish-speaking Iranians (of Zaeri origin) are also part of the greater Persian community. A goodly number have settled in Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Brentwood, and the San Fernando Valley.
The typical Persian home welcomes visitors with warm hospitality and plates of dates, berries, cucumbers, dainty petifores, and other refreshments. Flowers atop tables add lovely fragrances to the room, wonderful artworks adorn the walls, opulent carpets cover shining floors that are often made of the best marble.
Irangelinos (my term) as a whole have made it a point to speak fluent English (once here, most of those who fled Iran studied English-as-a-second language or were already fluent). Though often choosing to live among their own cultural neighbors and establishing many businesses in “Persian” locales, they often intermarry (ethnically and religiously) because that is the way they were brought up (to accept each person in his or her own right).
To clarify the sequence of events, there were actually three waves of Persian Immigration to America. The first was from the mid-twentieth century to the early eighties. Up to that time, many Persians had become part of a growing middle class in Iran and, as a consequence, had discretionary money, putting them and their children in a position to travel or study abroad (seeking university or advanced degrees).
Fortunately for them, large numbers of Persians were in America when the Iranian Revolution broke out in 1979. They soon realized they could not return to their war-torn nation for obvious reasons. Thus, there were many thousands that stayed here and were eventually able to obtain legal status.
Countless immigrés had had the foresight to place their savings in the banks of other countries (anticipating the very problems that came to pass). Thus, once here, they could set up their own businesses or enter diverse professional fields. Generally, they became a comfortable part of the higher socio-economic population in their new surroundings.
The second wave began in the early years of the Revolution and lasted until the turn of the century. Just as those in the first wave had caused a “partial” brain-drain on Iran, so did the second wave exacerbate that problem even further, precipitating the loss of another generation of highly educated Persians.
This new amalgam of Persian immigrants represented middle- and upper-class citizens, political refugees, persecuted religious groups, and a class of exiles arriving for other reasons. Out of fear of a reprise of repressive practices, many (including Jews, Christians, and even Muslims) fled after the installation of the new theocratic government there.
At first, many from this second wave thought the turmoil in their homeland would revert to the “normal,” Shah-style Western standard, but once they came to the realization that that would not be the case, they sought permanent residency here.
The last wave, commencing with the new millennium to the present, got its impetus from the 911 tragedy. President Bush labelled Iran as one of the countries in the axis of evil. As a result, these immigrants were treated similarly to how the Germans (before and during World War II) treated the Jews and others, making every one of them to register, obtain identification badges, submit to finger printing, and so forth.
There were demonstrations, particularly in Los Angeles, about this mean-spirited treatment. Many were arrested and even jailed. Not only were the Persians indignant about all of these measures but they were angered by how the media as a whole described them to the rest of us—as terrorists, menacing, evil “creatures” to be distrusted. Their clothes and food and mannerisms were similarly subject to satire by the comedic class of entertainers.
One result of all this has been an increased interest in politics and in how voting can make a difference to their lives. They have put up candidates for office (of Persian background or otherwise) at nearly every level with the goal of helping to ameliorate the oppressive practices being used against them. They are involved in local politics--they voted as a block for AntonioVillaraigosa when he was running for mayor and for Jimmy Delshad who became the first Persian-American mayor of Beverly Hills (who happens also to be Jewish).
Having lived in the Los Angeles area most of my life and for the last 40 years in the San Fernando Valley, I was surprised to learn just how many Jewish Persian-Americans are living in this geographic area.
These Jewish immigrants (along with others) were drawn to Los Angeles, often because of friends and family who had already established themselves here. Their departure left many neighborhoods in Iran virtually deserted after the mass, post-Revolution emigration. As a consequence, this same exodus created entire new Persian communities here. The vast majority of Persians were able to bring money and knowledge to Los Angeles and were, therefore, in a position to create or recreate lives that gave some semblance to the lifestyles many had enjoyed in the motherland.
The Nazarian Family made its mark with nightclubs, restaurants, and hotels—courting many celebrities along the way. It built factories for the Department of Defense and became executives for Qualcomm, a new company at that time that grew to hold billions in assets. One son now serves on the boards of the LA Philharmonic as well as the Rand Center for Middle East Policy.
Numerous Persian-Americans have become architects, designing many of our buildings and homes. The Mahboubis bought up real estate along the famous Rodeo Drive and partnered with Bijan (known for its menswear, jewelry, fragrances, and other accessories).
In the wealthier neighborhoods, a passer-by will find any number of mansions in which the first-generation Persian-Americans reside, but their children tend to be less ostentatious and are more modest in expressing their various tastes.
More recently, we have been blessed with the artistry of a divergent group of Persian-Americans: the actress, Nasim Pedrad, from SNL (and soon, a new television show called Mulaney); the outstanding writer, Reza Azlan, who wrote among other books, Zealot and No god but God; Mark Ameli who has served as judge pro tem in the Superior Court of Los Angeles. Then there are the comedians, Max Amini and Maz Jobrani; NASA’s Director of the Mars Project, Firouz Naderi—the list goes on. You might want to add to your home library the wonderful book by Sabeh Soomekh which is entitled Three Generations of Iranian Jewish Women. She and her works are currently the primary sources for Jewish Iranian history.
Persian women in America have thrived since the Iranian Revolution. They have been able to obtain advanced degrees here and many are CEOs or CFOs of any number of companies or have founded their own. They experience none of the constraints to which they would otherwise have been subjected back in Iran. They are stylish from their hair to their make-up to their clothing and jewelry and are often emulated for their fashion sense.
On the other hand, first-generation women have perpetuated a beloved custom, called the doreh. It is a semi-circle of “women who meet to eat home-cooked Persian fare, play cards, and gossip in Farsi”—thus maintaining for themselves and passing on traditions to a new generation of younger women who are becoming more interested in those time-honored customs. As one older woman exclaimed, “The younger generation [of Persian-American women] works more. In our generation in Iran, that was unheard of.”
There is the ongoing apprehension, however, that some of these traditions and rituals will eventually die out in America. Some of these younger women respond, however, with “We are [the new] reality,” intimating that such a loss just might transpire. We all must hope that these wonderful and exciting rituals will live on (despite such pessimism)!
The Persian community in Los Angeles has formed many organizations and set up schools and classes that promote their culture. In addition, it is very much involved with the creation and support of any number of charitable associations.
It has a reputation for celebrating its ancient and modern cultures alongside of uniquely American traditions, such as Thanksgiving and Independence Day. There are three Persian rites in particular that are most prominently observed: Nowruz is the Persian New Year. It has been observed for over 2000 years and is currently celebrated by more than 300 million people world-wide. Los Angeles celebrates it with grand ceremonies at LACMA and along many LA boulevards as well as in a number of restaurants such as Farid, Darya, Massoud Kababi, and Shiraz. Some cities also observe it with colorful parades.
Mehregan is the Festival of Autumn (much like Sukot for Jews). The third is Sadeh (meaning 100) which honors fire and the defeat of the forces of darkness, frost, and cold. It is observed 50 days and nights before the advent of Nowruz, the first day of the Spring Equinox.
President Obama has importantly stated: “Here in the United States, our own communities have been enhanced by the contributions of Iranian Americans.” We certainly enjoy a symbiotic relationship with them—learning from each other’s cultures and traditions—adding and subtracting and blending. What a wonderful melting pot which is enriched and strengthened each and every day.
● Read other articles in the Who Are the Real Angelinos series and other columns by Rosemary Jenkins.
(Rosemary Jenkins is a Democratic activist and chair of the Northeast Valley Green Alliance. Jenkins has written Leticia in Her Wedding Dress and Other Poems, and Vignettes for Understanding Literary and Related Concepts. She also writes for CityWatch. This piece is part of an ongoing CityWatch series … Who Are The Real Angelinos … exploring the myriad peoples and cultures that define Los Angeles.)
-cw
CityWatch
Vol 12 Issue 64
Pub: Aug 8, 2014
