Dear Congressman

There are few people who wield enough power collectively and individually that can move this nation into action. This is the reason I am writing you, and I hope that you will listen.

On March 20, a confidential letter of the Iranian Government was made public by the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief. Based on this letter, it has become known that the Iranian government will be tracking the whereabouts of 300,000 Iranian Bahá’ís (largest religous minority in Iran) and will be monitoring their activities.

This is an alarming step that will possibly evolve in a systematic increase of persecutions of Bahá’ís. In the not so distant past, the Iranian government has committed grave crimes against the Iranian Bahá’ís, denial of higher education, removal of voting rights, torture, desecration of cemetaries,unjustified imprisonment, and murder. Justification was spun into baseless allegations that the Bahá’í Faith is a threat to the wellbeing of the Iranian government. The true basis? Religious hatred by Islamic fundamentalists who view the Bahá’í Faith as a threat to Islam particularly because the progressive position on women's rights, independent investigation of truth, and education.

I most respectfully urge you to review this issue thoroughly, discuss it with your fellow Congressmen, encourage a dialogue and contact others. Let the United States take a strong stand and raise a call to Iran to STOP the oppressive treatment and of the Bahá’ís.

This is a plea, not because I am myself an Iranian Bahai,not because I have been tortured or imprisoned by that country. I am simply a female American, born and raised in this country, who found out about the Bahá’í Faith during high school who found that actually it was possible to find a religion that demonstrated in deeds not words that elimination of all prejudice, world peace, equality for women and men, universal education, harmony of science and religion, no clergy, independent search for truth to see truth through my own eyes and not judged by others, was actually written within the precepts of a world wide religion with six million other souls.

A religion that engenders love, tolerance and utter and complete respect for every world religion today and in the past. How else could every Bahá’í temple have 9 sides representing each world faith and the physical unity of all religions?? This is my religion, this is my faith and it is unfair, unjust and completely insane that 300,000 believers in another country have to suffer for finding the same belief and who want but are threatened to practice this faith.

Please help.