Un-Happy in Iran

In Blogs, Current Affairs by Chris KatulkaLeave a Comment

image_pdfimage_print

Videos young adults are posting of themselves dancing, singing, and having a good time have become commonplace to most Americans. It even seems like much of our news these days is centered around viral videos of funny, happy moments caught on our phones. The same can’t be said about Iran though. Six people were arrested on Monday after a video of them dancing to Pharrell Williams’ hit song, “Happy” went viral, grabbing the attention of the Iranian government.

Share this Post

Remember, Iran is first a Muslim theocracy that attempts to present itself as a democracy to the nations. So when Negar Mortazavi, an Iranian journalist in Washington, D.C. told Mashable she saw these young men and women dancing together and women without hijab (head coverings), these were “big red flags.” Pharrell Williams recently posted on his Facebook page:

The government is yet to announce the reason for arresting these six “Happy” dancers, but these videos show the longing of the young Iranian people to be free of the oppression they experience for doing what our culture takes advantage of every day.

*** As of 5/21/2014 the dancers in the video have been released, but not the director.

About the Author
Avatar photo

Chris Katulka

Chris Katulka is the director of North American Ministries for The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry, the host of The Friends of Israel Today radio program, a Bible teacher, and writer for Israel My Glory magazine. He is also the author of Israel Always: Experiencing God’s Pursuit of You Through His Chosen People. If you would like to support Chris, please click here.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.