Iran Awakening

by Shirin Ebadi

What are some of the traditional Iranian foods that mothers prepare for their families? Join me and my guest Mana Derakhshani as we discuss Noble prize winning author Shirin Ebadi's book IRAN AWAKENING and learn more about this remarkable author's life on DINNER AND A BOOK.

Throughout an extraordinary career as a lawyer, writer, activist and dissident, Shirin Ebadi has spoken out clearly and strongly for her native Iran. Her memoir provides an eyewitness account of one woman's courageous stand at the crossroads of history. Winner of the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize, Ebadi describes her girlhood in Tehran, her household, education and early professional life. She speaks about the deals of the 1979 Islamic Revolution and of her disillusionment with the direction Iran has taken under the hard-line clerics. She speaks out against the conservative rulers who have stripped women of the basic rights and all citizens of their political freedoms. We see a devoted daughter, wife and mother. She has braved imprisonment, harassment, assassination attempts and humiliation all for the dream of a better Iran for her daughters. In the spring of 2007 I heard Ebadi speak at St. Mary's College and met my guest today, Mana Derakhsani who teaches French at St. Mary's College. We will talk more about Shirin Ebadi and prepare a meal that many Iranian women prepare for their families.

Original Air-Date: 10.06.2007