Religious Persecution & Oppression: A Study of Iranian Baha’ís’ Strategies of Survival

Abstract

Members of the Baha’í faith in Iran have been ongoing targets of systematic oppression, persecution, and extreme hate since the religion was founded in 1844. Despite there being a large diaspora as a consequence of their persecution, Baha’ís remain a thoroughly underexplored population in the field of hate studies, in addition to being neglected in most other fields as well. The Baha’ís’ experiences and unique positionality as ethnic insiders and religious outsiders in their home country provide important and distinctive insights into their survival and response strategies in the face of violence, trauma, and persecution. Drawing on fifty in-depth interviews with Iranian Baha’í refugees in the United States, my research identifies and explores three ways that members of this religious community responded to their persecution: 1) passing as Muslim, 2) religious constancy in the face of danger, and 3) alternating passing with open displays. Several scholars have identified the persecution of this population as an attempted genocide, however there continues to be a lack of an international response to the human rights violations experienced by Baha’ís in Iran. As a consequence, members of this community remain caught between their own safety and authentically living their lives as members of this religious community.