The Journal

Issue date: 4/13/06 Section: Lifestyle

Media Credit: Linda Golden Sophomore Ali "Alex" Jafari, an animation major, discusses his home, his future and how he came to the United States.

Ali "Alex" Jafari, sophomore animation major, has seen how many Americans believe the images presented by the media without question. He and his friend were talking once, and he realized just how true this is.

"I was like, 'You don't believe I'm a terrorist, do you?' He said, 'Umm…maybe?' 'Well, why?' I said. He said, 'That's what they say on TV,' " Jafari recalls, shaking his head.

Jafari moved to the United States from Iran three years ago. He sees the names of the terrorists on television, and the names are not Persian. However, Americans don't make the distinction, and he has learned not to expect them to.

"They think I ride camels," Jafari said. "How can they make the distinction that I am Persian?"

Jafari lives in St. Peters with his father, mother, his 25-year-old brother and his 16-year-old sister. He has lived in the same home for his three years here, but that time span pales in comparison to the amount of time he lived in Rasht, Iran.

Rasht is a bigger city compared to other towns in northern Iran. It is about a five-hour drive from Tehran, but it takes that long because the areas are separated by a mountain range. Jafari said Rasht is also more advanced than other towns in the area. Like many larger towns in America, there are banks, hospitals and plans to build a shopping mall, he said.

Jafari said his family still owns the home in Rasht. His parents may return to Iran some day, and he knows he will be a frequent visitor. Jafari, 22, said he plans to make the United States his home, but he doesn't know where his life will lead him.

Jafari said he came to America to finish his education. Each year, about 1 million students try to enter Iranian universities, but only 300,000 get in. Students who want to go to college must take a test. Students are allowed only 30 seconds per question, even though some questions may take 10 minutes to figure out, he said. Jafari didn't pass the test, but he wasn't worried. He knew that if he didn't pass, his family would move to the United States.

"I didn't even take it seriously," Jafari said.

He was familiar with the United States because his family
would visit his aunt, who lives in St. Louis. He remembers seeing the Arch, the zoo and museums as a child. In addition, his aunt convinced his older brother to stay with her 12 years ago, so he went to high school in St. Louis and then went on to college.

Shahnaz "Shana" Jafari, Alex's mother, said the family knew basic grammar before coming to the United States, but they had to move here before they could completely learn the language. She and her husband perfected their English at work and by talking to the people they met. Her children learned at school. Shahnaz Jafari said once the family was immersed in American society, they picked up what they hadn't already learned fairly quickly.

Alex Jafari also wanted to come to the United States so he could pursue his goal of making his own cartoon. Iranian universities don't offer a program for animation majors. Alex Jafari wants to make a cartoon about the heroes in the old Persian stories. These stories resemble Greek mythology, and the character Rostam is much like Hercules. He wants the story of Rostam to be like the Disney cartoon "Hercules," where he will be able to make unique characters that tell an entertaining story.

Comparing Cultures

Alex Jafari notices many of the differences, both large and small, between the two cultures he has lived in during his life.

For example, Americans form orderly lines. In Iran, many people will cram the counter and try to hand over their money instead of waiting their turn. In addition, driving is much easier in the United States. Even though Iran has begun to crack down on traffic law violators, Alex Jafari said the lines in the roads mean little to drivers.

His childhood was similar to children in the United States. He said he sees kids running around and playing, much like he did as a boy. However, Alex Jafari said his home life was much different. In Iran, only the father would work. This affected the family structure.

"Just because the dad is providing for the family, he has more power," Alex Jafari said.

While living in Iran, he would ask his parents for money. He now makes his own money. In 2003, he worked at a parking garage in St. Louis, and he now is employed at Dillard's at Chesterfield Mall.

The issue of women's rights is beginning to gain momentum in Iran, Alex Jafari said. Some films have been released recently that tell stories of women who have been abused by their husbands.

Even though Muslim women do not dress like Americans, their dress is a lot less strict than it used to be, Alex Jafari said. The Islam religion tells women to cover everything but their face and wrists, and they used to always dress this way. Their clothing covered everything but their facial features, but many Muslim women now wear only a tiny piece of cloth over their head.

Alex Jafari said life in school is very different in America. In Iran, he was never allowed to eat or drink in class. He also had to stand up when the teacher entered the room out of respect. Students always use formal titles when addressing teachers, at both the high school and college level.

He said the teachers in the United States try to be more friendly with their students. Alex Jafari attended St. Louis Community College at Meramec for 1 ½ years before transferring to Webster. He addressed one of his teachers there as "Mr. Steiner."

"He said, 'What the hell is Mr. Steiner? I'm Frank,' " Alex Jafari recalled.

Unique Opinions

Alex Jafari has many of his own opinions on the current conflicts in the Middle East.

He said that Saddam Hussein was a dictator. However, he doesn't believe the United Sates invaded Iraq simply to help the Iraqi people. He believes the United States went into Iraq knowing they would get something in return oil.

Alex Jafari said Iran is an Islamic Republic, which doesn't make any sense to him. These two ideas oppose each other, and he also doesn't like how Islam is treated like a political party in Iran. He said the politicians take what was said by Muhammad and use it for their own purposes. Muslims know this is wrong. Alex Jafari, who decided on his own at age 15 to be Islam, incorporates the parts of the religion that makes sense to him into his life.

"For me, I have my own Islam," he said.

For example, Islam says followers shouldn't shave. Alex Jafari said this belief first began because people used knives and daggers to shave in the past, and this was permanently damaging their faces. Alex Jafari said razors should have done away with this belief.

Alex Jafari also believes Iran should be allowed to have nuclear power. Iran has its own oil sources, but when this resource runs out, the country will need a source of energy.

With nuclear power, the country would be able to remain powerful and independent, he said. However, Alex Jafari said he doesn't understand why so many other countries have nuclear bombs and Iran cannot.

Dealing with stereotypes

During his three years here, some people had asked Alex Jafari questions that made him realize how little Americans know about the Middle East. There are vast differences between the countries in the Middle East, Alex Jafari said. Iran is more powerful and advanced than many of its neighbors, but most Americans have the same stereotypes for all Middle Easterners.

People have asked if they drive cars in Iran. One person wanted to know if he rode camels.. Alex Jafari said no one in Iran rides camels, because unlike some areas in the Middle East, no one lives in the deserts of Iran. The people who ride camels have no other way of getting around, he pointed out.

However, most people are friendly and curious. About one
person out of 100 are rude to him, he said. These very few people will make their conversations shorter when they hear where he is from. Alex Jafari says he just ignores it. He recalled an incident in 2003 at a United States airport that made him realize the stereotype. He became separated from his father while he was looking for his luggage. He was standing by himself, and a police officer approached him and demanded to search his luggage.

Tahmineh Entessar is an international relations and history lecturer at Webster. She teaches both undergraduate and graduate courses on the Middle East. Entessar said the
environment is entirely different compared to when she came to the United States in the 1970s. The war against terrorism presents a challenge to Middle Eastern students, she said.

"Now if you say you are from the Middle East, you are Muslim, whatever … they are not sure if they should say that or not," Entessar said.

Despite this fear, Entessar encourages students from the Middle East to tell people where they are from. If this leads to questions, they should answer them to clarify the negative stereotypes.

Entessar's classes have "fantastic" discussions and debates because of the world situation, she said. Students are hungry for knowledge about the Middle East. Her job is to encourage expression of opinion, diversity of thought and thinking so students do not accept the stereotypical analysis of the media, she said.

Alex Jafari hopes his thoughts and ideas will help others realize that Iran is not filled with terrorists. Before he came to the United States, he thought all Americans were evil terrorists because they support Israel unconditionally, and he was taught to think this way in school. He now realizes that Americans are friendly, and the politicians make the decisions that make the country look bad. He knows that many Americans view Iran based on the decisions made by its politicians, but he hopes Americans can realize the truth as he has.

"I hope this interview makes a few people get the real idea about what my country is," Alex Jafari said, "and what a great country it is."

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