About Center for Iranian Diaspora Studies Digital Archive (2018-2025)
This digital archive is a compilation of research, programs and events, and written documents that the Center for Iranian Diaspora Studies produced during the years of 2018-2025. Under the direction of Dr. Persis Karim, the Center sought to expand research and knowledge about Iranian diaspora communities and culture locally, nationally, and internationally. In June 2025, the program was defunded by the donor and university; this archive is a record of the many activities hosted and directed by the Center over its eight years of existence. Please cite this archive in any written materials you produce or programs or events. If you have questions, please contact, Persis Karim (former director) at: persiskarim@sfsu.edu. (more)
- Total number of items
- 151
- Total number of views
- 279,787
Collections
Darvag Theater Group
The Iranian student movements of the 1960s and 1970 in Berkeley, and the greater Bay Area, gave birth to a number of theater groups. The majority of these theater groups were interested in the Brechtian definition of theater as a tool for political provocation. In 1985, a small group of theater lovers got together...
Hushidar Mortezaie Collection
The Hushidar Mortezaie Collection is provided by the Los Angeles-based Iranian artist and fashion designer Hushidar Mortezaie. At the age of three, Mortezaie moved with his family from Iran to the Bay Area, where he was raised and educated. In 1994, he moved to New York City to work in fashion full-time with his long-time friend and collaborator...
Parviz Shokat
This collection, generously donated by Parviz Shokat, features various photos, documents, and other materials documenting early stages of Iranian immigration and organizing in the Bay Area. Some of the included materials document diasporic Iranian student and leftist political groups that were oriented toward shifting the political landscape and...
Hasha Collection
The HASHA and Bay Area Iranian-American LGBTQ Community Collection features various documents, images, and materials that record the rich history of LGBTQIA people of Iranian descent in the Bay Area, as well as their activism, organizing, and community-building work. It includes both issues of the LGBTQ-founded and focused HASHA newsletter,...
Norooz Collection
This collection focuses on the film Norouz: Persian Spring Festival , which was commissioned in 1961 by the San Francisco Iranian Consulate, under the direction of Dr. Majid Rahnema. It was made by Bay Area filmmaker Marie Louise Stine, and donated to the Center by her son, Peter Stine. The short documentary recounts an earlier...
Center for Iranian Diaspora Studies Monthly Newsletter (2017-2025)
This collection contains the Center's monthly newsletter that was sent to subscribers, followers, and the SF State campus community. This newsletter contained announcements about programs, events, as well as articles about the Center's projects, and also included articles from the blog post, "With a Trace."
Blog: With A Trace: Documenting and Sharing the Experiences of the Global Iranian Diaspora
This monthly blog post which began publishing in the winter of 2018 of the Center for Iranian Diaspora Studies. This collection contains all the contents of our blog including regular articles that published interviews and an in-depth profiles of members of the Iranian diaspora communities (nationally and globally), showcasing the stories...
Del-Beh-Del Podcast
This podcast ran a limited number of episodes that featured interviews with filmmakers, writers, activists, therapists, and academics who are contributing to the field of Iranian Diaspora Studies, or in some cases, are critically engaged with challenging some of the assumptions and stereotypes of Iranian diaspora life. This podcast can also be...
Events and Programs of the Center for Iranian Diaspora Studies, 2017-2025
This collection contains announcements, fliers, and recorded material from the many hundreds of events that the Center for Iranian Diaspora Studies hosted from its inception in 2017, right until its closure in 2025. Some of the events were in-person, while others, particularly during and after the pandemic were held online on zoom. It also...
The Dawn is Too Far: Stories of Iranian-American Life (Documentary Film Project)
This collection contains still photos, recorded material, outtakes, publicity, and other material that relates to the production of the documentary film, "The Dawn Is Too Far: Stories of Iranian-American Life," which started into production in 2018 and was completed by the film's co-director, Persis Karim, in 2024. It also includes posters from...
Persian Studies at San Jose State University
This collection contains material largely directed by and organized by Dr. Persis Karim when she was a professor at San Jose State University (1999-2017), when she directed the Persian Studies program, and initiated many of the projects that were foundational for Iranian Diaspora Studies and that would be later be a model for the Center's work....
Contact
If you have questions, please contact, Persis Karim (former director) at: persiskarim@sfsu.edu.