“This needs to be an established way of thinking in the west that the Middle East is not a place where pain and suffering are normal; people feel the same pain, the same suffering, and because of the propaganda in the west of how the Middle East is portrayed as an abstract region of pain and suffering where it’s okay for these people to go through this because they have been going through this for a long time… and that mentality needs to change,” – Elika Ashoori

Elika Ashoori is an actress, and a pastry chef based in the United Kingdom and moved to the UK from Iran at the age of 16. Elika is a huge advocate and has worked tirelessly toward human and women’s rights in Iran. Elika has also been featured in various news outlets, including the British Vogue fashion magazine. The Universal Radio Network’s own Sapreet Buttar had the chance to sit down with Elika to discuss her experience of growing up in Iran, the ongoing Iranian protests, and much more in this interview.

At the beginning of the interview, Elika Ashoori shares what life was like growing up in Iran and becoming a full-fledged woman at the age of 9 under Iranian law (1:30), what age did she realize her circumstances were different compared to the others (5:22), if she agrees whether the modern-day protests taking place in Iran and across the world should be labelled as Iran Revolution (9:16), and what the movement of women cutting their hair in Iran symbolizes to her (14:53).

In the middle of their conversation, Elika and Sapreet talk about whether she thinks the west has done enough and what more can be done by western countries and organizations towards Iran (20:39), if she maintains communication with people back home during the protests (26:03), and which news sources or social media accounts people can look for to stay up to date with the events ongoing in Iran (29:17).

Finally, Elika shares how her father is doing ever since his release after being detained for 5 years (32:01), what the words Zan, Zendegi, and Azadi mean to her (35:31), and gives a message for the listeners on how they can help the women of Iran (42:34).