Boise man who fled Iran shares perspective as protests escalate overseas

Originally Published: 15 JAN 26 13:19 ET

By Riley Shoemaker

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    BOISE, Idaho (KIVI) -- As tensions in Iran escalate, policymakers in Washington are weighing whether the United States should get involved. For most Idahoans, the debate can feel worlds away. But for some Iranians now living in Boise, the stakes are far more personal.

Sami, who asked that his last name not be published for safety reasons, said the images coming out of Iran are not just headlines – they are home.

“I was born in Iran… and when I was three, my mom escaped, kind of got tired of living in fear under prosecution,” Sami said.

Sami’s family is part of the Baha’i minority in Iran. He said his family lived without rights under the Islamic regime.

“You have no justice…the government can do whatever they want to you, you have no opportunity, so my mom was always worried about her kids being taken away from her,” he said.

He said his mother eventually fled Iran with him and his sister, traveling through the desert to escape.

“She went through the desert mountains into Pakistan. It was like a four-day journey. They're hiding in the backs of trucks. They are walking…,” Sami said.

After several years in Pakistan, the family was granted asylum in the United States.

Sami later served in the U.S. Marine Corps, worked in finance and tech, and eventually settled in Boise, where he and his wife run SmashAlley, a downtown pop-up burger business.

But Sami still has family in Iran – and said he has not heard from them in more than a week as protests intensify.

“I think what people are really fighting for is this freedom…. we see the photos from our families, the stories from our families, our parents have told us how it used to be,” he said.

Activists say more than 2,500 people have been killed during the Iranian government’s latest crackdown, and many Iranians are pleading for international help.

Sami said U.S. support could be decisive.

"Almost every Iranian that I know is aligned with the idea that the U.S. should intervene in some way... whatever the minimal necessary amount is,” he said. “We should be helping people live in free societies all over the world whenever that opportunity is available.”

But even among local advocates, there is debate over what U.S. involvement should look like.

“I believe the people of Iran really want their freedom… and they’re really going to fight as hard as they can for it,” said Lotus, leadership with Idaho 50501, a Boise-based activist organization.

Lotus said she supports the movement for freedom in Iran, but has concerns about foreign intervention.

“No one deserves to live underneath of an authoritarian regime… however we have a very poor track record in the Middle East,” she said.

“My hope is that the Islamic regime is removed… and then some plans are made for an alternative path forward,” Sami concluded.

Meanwhile in Washington, Idaho Sen. Jim Risch released a bipartisan statement supporting protesters, saying:

“Congress and the American people stand with the resilient people of Iran… we condemn in the strongest possible terms the reported killing of thousands of peaceful protestors… the future of Iran should be decided by the Iranian people.”

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