Iran: Protest the closure of Zanan women's magazine

This Letter is addressed to the following:

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (Supreme Leader of Islamic Republic of Iran);
Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi (Head of the Judiciary of IRI);
Dr. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (President of the Islamic Republic of Iran);
Dr. Gholam Ali Haddad-Adel (Speaker of the Parliament of the Islamic Republic of Iran)

C/O H.E. Mohammad Khazaee
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations
Fax: 212-867-7086

We the undersigned are deeply dismayed to hear that the publishing license of the monthly magazine Zanan has been revoked by the Press Supervisory Board.

For the past 16 years, Zanan has been an important voice reporting on issues that Iranian women face — their problems as well as their achievements.

It has also been an indispensable forum for encouraging dialogue among those genuinely interested in solving broader social problems. Its sustained coverage of women's lives in Iran has allowed a balanced international understanding of Iranian society. Revoking Zanan's publication license deprives all Iranians a vital source on women's issues and closes one more journal at a critical moment of the country's life.

We are extremely disturbed by this revocation by a body that constitutionally does not have the authority to revoke the license of any publication. We ask for its immediate withdrawal, and reconstitution of publishing permit for Zanan. The revocation of Zanan’s permit stands in violation of the right to free expression and is, as such, unacceptable by any standards.

Signed by:

· Dr. Margaret Abraham, Professor and Special Advisor to the Provost for Diversity Initiatives, Hofstra University
· Dr. Janet Afary, Associate Professor, Purdue University
· Dr. Haleh Afshar, Baroness OBE and Professor, University of York
· Dr. Leila Ahmed, Professor, Harvard Divinity School, Harvard University
· Dr. Kazem Alamdari, California State University, Los Angeles
· Dr. Margot Badran, Alwaleed bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, Georgetown University
· Dr. Shaul Bakhash, Professor, George Mason University
· Dr. Ali Banuazizi, Professor, Boston College, and Past President of the Middle East Studies Association (MESA)
· Dr. Nimat Hafez Barazangi, Research Fellow, Cornell University
· Dr. Asma Barlas, Professor and Program Director, Ithaca College
· Dr. Golbarg Bashi, Visiting Scholar, Columbia University
· Dr Asef Bayat, Professor and Academic Director, International Institute for the Study of Islam in the Modern World (ISIM), Leiden University, The Netherlands
· Dr. Jane Bayes, Professor and Director, Institute of Globalization, Gender and Democracy, California State University, Northridge
· Judith Bello, Peace Activist, New York
· Dr. Elizabeth Berry, Professor Emeritus, California State University, Northridge
· Dr. Marilyn Booth, Associate professor and Director, Center for South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
· Dr. Ladan Boroumand, Research Director, Abdorrahman Boroumand Foundation
· Dr. Roya Boroumand, Executive Director, Abdorrahman Boroumand Foundation
· Dr. Mehrzad Boroujerdi, Associate Professor, Founding Director, Middle Eastern Studies Program, Syracuse University
· Dr. Stephen Eric Bronner, Professor, Rutgers University
· Margaret Burke, Assistant Professor, Hofstra University
· Dr. Houchang Chehabi, Professor, Boston University
· Dr. Noam Chomsky, Professor and Author, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
· Dr. Esther Ngan-ling Chow, Professor, American University
· Dr. Juan Cole, Professor, University of Michigan and Past President of the Middle East Studies Association (MESA)
· Dr. Hamid Dabbashi, Professor, Columbia University
· Kathleen Desautels, 8th Day Center for Justice, Chicago
· Dr. Ellen Carol DuBois, Professor, University of California, Los Angeles
· Dr. Shirin Ebadi, Nobel Peace Laureate, Iran
· Dr. Goudarz Eghtedari, Host, Voices of the Middle East
· Dr. Kaveh Ehsani, Research Scholar, University of Illinois at Chicago
· Dr. Nada Elia, President, Association of Middle East Women’s Studies (AMEWS)
· Dr. Nader Entessar, Professor and Chair, Department of Political Science and Criminal Justice, University of South Alabama
· Dr. Fatemeh Etemad Moghadam, Professor, Hofstra University
· Dr. Brenda Elsey, Assistant Professor, Hofstra University and Co-Coordinator, Long Island Teachers for Human Rights
· Dr. Haleh Esfandiari, Director, Middle East Program, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
· Priscilla Fairbank, Peace Activist, New York City
· Dr. Farideh Farhi, Adjunct Professor, University of Hawaii
· Jean Feraca, Host, Here on Earth: Radio without Borders, Wisconsin Public Radio
· Dr. Ellen Fleischmann, Associate Professor, University of Dayton
· Dr. Nancy Fraser, Professor, New School University, New York
· Akbar Ganji, Journalist and Author
· Dr. Hadi Ghaemi, International Campaign for Human Rights, New York
· Dr. Lina Gurvich, Assistant Professor, Hofstra University
· Dr. Jürgen Habermas, Professor Emeritus and Philosopher, Germany
· Dr. Shahla Haeri, Associate Professor and Director, Women’s Studies Program, Boston University
· Dr. Fatemeh Haghighatjoo, Fellow, Women and Public Policy Program, Harvard University
· Dr. Sondra Hale, Professor, University of California, Los Angeles; Co-Editor of Journal of Middle East Women’s Studies (JMEWS )
· Dr. Donna Haraway, Professor and Chair, History of Consciousness Program, University of California, Santa Cruz
· Dr. Nader Hashemi, Global Fellow, University of California, Los Angeles
· Dr. Alia Hogben, Executive Director, Canadian Council of Muslim Women
· Dr. Mehri Honarbin-Holliday, Research Fellow, Canterbury Christ Church University
· Dr. Homa Hoodfar, Professor, Concordia University
· Doug Ireland, Journalist, New York
· Dr. Nancy W. Jabbra, Professor and Chair, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angles
· Dr. Suad Joseph, Professor, University of California, Davis
· Mehrangiz Kar, Visiting Scholar at Law School, Harvard University
· Dr. Ahmad Karimi-Hakkak, Professor and Founding Director, Center for Persian Studies, University of Maryland
· Dr. Nikki Keddie, Professor Emeritus, University of California, Los Angeles
· Dr. Fatemeh Keshavarz, Professor, Washington University, St. Louis
· Dr. Azadeh Kian-Thiebaut, Professor and Director, Research and Documentation for Feminist Studies, University of Paris 7
· Dr. Rachel Kreier, Assistant Professor, Hofstra University
· Stephen Kinzer, Author and Lecturer, Northwestern University
· Joanne Landy, Co-Director, Campaign for Peace and Democracy, New York
· Dr. Kate Lang, Associate Professor and Chair, Department of History, University of Wisconsin
· Dr. Mary N. Layoun, Professor and Director, Graduate Studies, University of Wisconsin, Madison
· Dr. Marta Lopez-Garza, Professor, California State University, Northridge
· Mairead Corrigan Maguire, Nobel Peace Laureate, Ireland
· Dr. Akbar Mahdi, Professor, Ohio Wesleyan University
· Dr. Saba Mahmood, Associate Professor, University of California, Berkeley
· Dr. Sheena Malhotra, Associate Professor, California State University, Northridge
· Rev Sandra R Mackie, ELCA, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
· Dr. Ricky Manoff, Lecturer, California State University, Northridge
· Dr. Kathleen McHugh, Professor and Director, Center for the Study of Women, University of California, Los Angles
· Betty Mandell, Co-Editor, New Politics
· Marvin Mandell, Co-Editor, New Politics
· Dr. Gregory M. Maney, Assistant Professor, Hofstra University
· Dr. Ann Elizabeth Mayer, Associate Professor, University of Pennsylvania
· Dr. Mehrdad Mashayekhi, Georgetown University
· Dr. Avon Mattison, President, Pathway to Peace
· Dr. Martin Melkonian, Adjunct Associate Professor, Hofstra University
· Dr. Abbas Milani, Professor and Director, Iranian Studies Program, Stanford University
· Dr. Farzaneh Milani, Professor, University of Virginia
· Dr. Ziba Mir-Hosseini, Senior Research Associate, Middle East Institute, London
· Dr. Minoo Moallem, Professor, University of California, Berkeley
· Dr. Valentine Moghadam, Professor and Director, Women’s Studies Program, Purdue University
· Dr. Haideh Moghissi, Professor, York University, Toronto
· Monireh Mohammadi, Pearson Education / Penguin, Canada
· Dr. Juana M. Mora, Professor and Interim Chair, Asian American Studies, California State University, Northridge
· Dr. Clair G. Moses, Professor, University of Maryland, and Editor, Feminist Studies Journal
· Dr. Norma Moruzzi, Associate Professor, University of Illinois at Chicago
· Dr. Negin Nabavi, Assistant Professor, Montclair University
· Yamin Nair, Freelance Journalist, Chicago
· Dr. Afsaneh Najmabadi, Professor, Harvard University
· Dr. Arash Naraghi, lecturer, California State University, San Bernardino
· Dr. Jennifer Olmsted, Associate Professor, Drew University, Madison
· Dr. Misagh Parsa, Professor, Dartmouth College, Hanover
· Dr. Omid Payrow Shabani, Associate Professor, University of Guelph
· Katha Pollitt, Journalist, The Nation Magazine,
· Danny Postel, Journalist and Author, Chicago
· Dr. Sherene Razack, Professor, University of Toronto
· Dr. Juana Maria Rodriguez, Associate Professor, University of California, Berkeley
· Dr. Cindy Rosenthal, Associate Professor, Hofstra University
· Dr. Elaheh Rostami-Povey, Lecturer, University of London
· Dr. Leila J. Rupp, Professor and Associate Dean, Social Science, University of California, Santa Barbara
· Dr. Layla Saatchi, Wayne State University
· Dr. Fatima Sadiqi, Professor, President and Founder, ISIS Center For Women and Development (ICWAD), Morocco
· Dr. Ahmad Sadri, Professor and Chair, Sociology and Anthropology Department, Lake Forest College
· Dr. Zakia Salime, Professor, Michigan State University
· Dr. Caroline Seymour-Jorn, Assistant Professor, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
· Dr. Sussan Siavoshi, Professor and Chair, Department of Political Science, Trinity University, San Antonio
· Dr. Diane Singerman, Associate Professor, American University
· Dr. Mary Ann Tetreault, Professor, Trinity University, San Antonio
· Dr. Charis Thompson, Associate Professor, Hofstra University
· Dr. Barrie Thorne, Professor and Chair, Gender and Women Studies, University of California, Berkeley
· Dr. Nayereh Tohidi, Professor and Chair, Gender and Women’s Studies Department, California State University, Northridge
· Betty Williams, Nobel Peace Laureate, Ireland
· Judy Williams, Nobel Peace Laureate, USA
· Dr. Amy Elizabeth Young, Assistant Professor, Gettysburg College, Pennsylvania
· Dr. Elise G. Young, Associate Professor, Founder and Coordinator, The Global Women’s History Project, Westfield State College
· Dr. Fariba Zarinbaf, Assistant Professor, University of Virginia
· Dr. Howard Zinn, Author and Professor Emeritus, Boston University
· Dr. Sherifa Zuhur, Research Professor and Director, Institute of Middle Eastern, Islamic and Diasporic Studies
· Aisha Lee Shaheed, freelance writer and Women Living Under Muslim Laws networker, UK