Open Call For Auckland #OurStoryIsOne Art Exhibition As Crackdown On Baha's In Iran Intensifies

Armed Iranian security agents raided the homes of more than 30 Baha’is on 7 November in Hamadan province. Many of the Baha’is were verbally abused and physically assaulted during the raids. The latest arrests and home searches—which included harassing five elderly women—confirms rising fears that Iran’s government has redoubled its crackdown on the Baha’i community in Iran. For details visit https://iranbahaipersecution.bic.org/archive/bahai-international-community-iran-news-bulletin-29-2023

These arrests and other abuses come in the context of the #OurStoryIsOne campaign, launched in June 2023, which connects the oppression of Baha'is to the wider Iranian effort to achieve justice and equality says Maria Reynen Clayton, spokesperson for the NZ Baha’i Office of Public Affairs. "This global campaign inspired expressions of solidarity across Iranian society inside and outside the country."

In New Zealand. Baha'is and the non-profit Iranian Women in New Zealand are sponsoring an "Our Story Is One" art exhibition to inspire and raise consciousness about the struggles for gender equality around the world. They are inviting visual artists at any career stage, including sculptors, weavers, filmmakers, photographers, and animators, to submit proposals for an exhibition of works at Studio One, Auckland from 18-31 March 2024. The artwork must be original and inspired by the Our Story Is One themes.

For more details on the Open Call for the art exhibition, visit https://www.facebook.com/newzealandbahaicommunity/

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