Faculty Club: Voices from Iran – an Evening of Encounter and Reflection (fully booked)

At our university, we normally celebrate the beginning of the Persian New Year, Nowruz, on March 21^st. Due to the horrific events, this year we have decided to commemorate the people who were killed in Iran on 8 and 9 January 2026 and the days after, so that we can pay our respects to the bereaved and to the courageous individuals who offered their lives for freedom and democracy.

Please note: due to high interest, the programme from 18:00 – 19:30 will take place in the Aula of the Academiegebouw instead of the Faculty Club.

The Chair of Iranian and Persian Studies and the Faculty Club have put together a program that provides space for reflection, meeting, and contemplation. In a subdued atmosphere, we wish to come together with the hope that a new year can dawn for an Iran where freedom, equality, and human dignity are at the center.

Photography: we kindly ask visitors not to take photos or film during the evening. Photos will be taken by the organizers to document the event.

Programme (6:00–7:30 PM):

17:45 – 18:00 Check-in and Registration
18:00 – 18:10 Words of welcome
Prof. Ted Sanders (Utrecht University)
Prof. Asghar Seyed-Gohrab (Utrecht University)
18:10 – 18:25 Persian Music
Maryam Imanizadeh (vocals & daf/tanboor), Mehmet Polat (oud), Milad Ahmadi (vocals), Karvan Mustafa (kamanche), Arman Kavian (tombak), Ali Soltaninejad (santur)
18:25 – 18:40 Exhibition: Remembering the Rainbow God
Sara Emami
18:40 – 18:55 Visual Triggers of Iranian Feminism
Pooyan Tamimi Arab (Utrecht University)
18:55 – 19:05 Persian Poetry Recitation
Zhinia Noorian (Utrecht University)

Location: Aula, entrance via the University Hall (Domplein 29, Utrecht)

Programme (7:30–10:00 PM):

19:15 – 19:30 Check-in and Registration
19:30 – 19:50 Aynaz Najafi 
Exhibition: Les demoiselles de Tehran – Women, Identity and Resistance in Contemporary Iran
19:50 – 20:05 Nilou Yekta (Utrecht University)
“Don’t cry. Be Joyful.”: Funeral Videos as Protest in Iran
20:05 – 20:20 Misagh Javadpour (University of Amsterdam)
When the Bazaar Burns: Memory, Violence, and the Struggle for Public Space in Iran
20:20 – 20:35 Mina Etemad (Journalist, writer and podcast producer)
The endangered lives of Lake Urmia
20:35 – 21:05 Keynote Lecture: Professor Kamran Talattof (University of Arizona, online)
The Lion and Sun Uprising: Cultural Memory and Political Transformation in Iran
21:05 – 22:00 Q&A

Location: Aula, entrance via the University Hall (Domplein 29, Utrecht)

Background

Iranians have been striving for more than 150 years to establish a democratic system in which the rule of law is central, human rights are guaranteed, and all citizens—regardless of religion, gender, or background—are treated equally. The peaceful demonstrations that began in December 2025 against oppression by the Islamic regime reached a temporary peak on January 8 and 9, 2026. The regime responded ruthlessly, and in hundreds of cities across Iran, thousands of people were deliberately killed. This is a recent example of the excessive state violence that this regime is capable of. The scale of this massacre is already regarded as a national trauma that will occupy a place in Iranian history. Iranians mourn by demonstrating together in cities across Australia, Japan, Europe, Canada, and the United States. In doing so, they aim not only to give voice to their compatriots in Iran but also to show that a free and secular Iran can contribute to stability in a world where international relations are under pressure.

A Poem in Remembrance

The following poem by K. Khalili (1907–1987), of which some verses are cited below in a free translation, is currently widely referenced within Persian-speaking communities: