CORRECTION: Due to a reporting error, a previous version of this article misidentified Fara Soubouti as president of the Persian Cultural Society. Her title is co-president. It also misidentified Aigin Masoomi as co-president of the club. She is the president. The article has been changed to reflect this. The Daily Tar Heel apologizes for the errors.
Members of the Persian Cultural Society want people to see the full Iranian culture, not just the negative portrayal of it in the media.
To accomplish this, they started by making their New Year’s celebration open not only to students as in years past, but also to the greater community.
Impressions of Iran coming from the media center around the country’s politics, and Iran’s culture and people are largely overlooked, members said.
Saturday night, UNC’s Persian Cultural Society held a Norooz celebration in honor of the Persian New Year, hoping to shed light on Iranian culture.
Norooz, which takes place at the start of spring, means “new day” in Farsi, and emphasizes new beginnings, family and friends, event organizers said.
“Everyone associates Iran with politics, but really they don’t understand that Iran is a rich and layered culture. It’s about love and peace and family,” said Fara Soubouti, co-president of the Persian Cultural Society.
Soubouti said she hoped the event would foster greater understanding and appreciation of Iranian culture.
“What better way to do it than by our biggest holiday that can show everyone the fun side of Persian culture in Iran, especially in the midst of all this negative attention,” she said.
