Maine entrepreneur from Iran reflects on US airstrikes
Shahin Khojastehzad’s parents fled after the Iranian revolution as the current regime rose to power
And Shaheen is joining us in studio this morning, so I appreciate you taking the time to come in to to talk about this, and, and you have such *** remarkable backstory here. I imagine that last weekend, seeing news that the US was performing strikes on military targets in Iran, um, although civilians were not the target there, you’re probably thinking about family overseas. What’s going through your mind when you learn about that operation, um. The first thing I thought of was just how this is going to impact the Iranian people and how they don’t really actually want this war at all, and it’s kind of they’re protesting the same government who’s bringing them into *** war, so it’s kind of *** double edged sword and I contacted my dad. He said that my aunt and cousins and most of our family members left and they were going to head to Tabriz, where my father’s from, but that was also bombed, so they ended up turning around and going somewhere else. Um, last I talked to them, they’re safe, but since the internet’s gone down and Instagram’s gone down, it’s kind of *** Being on *** cliffhanger trying to figure out how to communicate with *** loved one. And do you have *** lot of family that’s still overseas in Tehran? Yeah, I think part of the diaspora too in Turkey, Toronto, but definitely have *** lot of families still in Iran and over the last 15 years with social media have been able to reconnect with them and It’s great because I kind of I hear stories because I was so young when I came here, but now I actually get to see somebody who like looks like me living *** whole different life so and so you were *** toddler uh when, when your parents uh brought you here they were fleeing the revolution at that time. What was that early life like? What do you remember from that time period and what have they shared with you about their reasons for coming. the United States. Yeah, like my parents, my father was in the Shah’s Air Force and actually studied at the Boeing Institute in Seattle and at US air bases all around the US and um once the revolution started, they started purging the military as well and um my father was helping Americans and other Western friends like get out of the country. Uh we were being investigated and within *** week we sold whatever we could and took *** vacation to Hanover, Germany, where we lived there for about *** year and then. We sponsored by *** lovely couple in Bath, Maine and moved to Bath, Maine. That’s remarkable. And what was the assimilation like for for your parents, and then I know that in in your teenage years too post 9/11, it sounds like you you face some pretty tough times and difficult treatment too. Yeah, because I think when we first came here it was like at the height of the hostage crisis and um. It was interesting because my father, as *** flight engineer who studied in the US, decided to try to see if he could continue that career, but since he studied under *** foreign government, he wasn’t allowed to. So instead of being *** flight engineer, he actually delivered newspapers for the Portland Press Herald and then also pizzas at pizza time. So there are *** lot of Americans that in their perception of these strikes, they’re sleeping easier at night. They feel like the nuclear capability is dramatically diminished by what American forces did in dropping those bombs. Walk me through your thoughts on that. Is your concern that you feel like that that could lead to an escalation on the ground there? Yes, like not only the breaking of international law of not bombing nuclear sites, um, the human rights issues that come along with this, because even though the Israeli strikes were targeted, there are still civilian deaths, including children, and I think that’s kind of the main thing for me is like I don’t really care about your religion or your politics. I just care about another human’s life. You’re an entrepreneur as well, and you bring *** Persian flavor, I suppose, with your latest initiative here. Tell us about that and what you’re bringing to the Portland community. Being *** part of the Maine craft beer community forever, I really have always been proud about bringing Iranian ingredients into the fold, and it kind of just brings another layer of complexity to Maine’s craft beer scene. And while doing that, I really wanted to kind of make *** company that was Minority owned in Maine, which there’s not many in the beverage industry, um, and really kind of share like my two homes. So that’s why I call it handshake because it has Iranian ingredients, has main ingredients, and I want them to both be familiar and exotic. So you’re you’re raising *** family here, you have *** wife, you have *** young son, and you’re, of course, you’ve lived here for the majority of your life. How do you talk to your son and do you about the the situation overseas and do you share your feelings about this with, uh, your neighbors here in Maine? Yeah, I think for the most part it’s just I’ve had *** lot of friends reach out and ask about like how I’m doing, about my family over there, and I think it’s my job as part of the Iranian diaspora to be *** voice for the people there. It’s really hard to sit on the sidelines and see this, and I really want to make sure that I can educate people that we’re not. Uh, just what you see on TV. It’s almost as though if you looked at the current administration that all Americans are like this, um, I think there’s more complexity to it and there’s *** lot more um. *** lot more diversity in Iran and *** lot more diverse opinions who don’t agree with their current regime. Oh, we’re so grateful that you’re able to come in here today and share with us your perspective on this. Thank you so much. Thank you.
Maine entrepreneur from Iran reflects on US airstrikes
Shahin Khojastehzad’s parents fled after the Iranian revolution as the current regime rose to power
A Maine father and entrepreneur originally from Iran is sharing a new perspective on recent U.S. military airstrikes on nuclear targets overseas. Shahin Khojastehzad was born in Tehran. His family left their home country during the Iranian revolution and first moved to Germany before eventually settling in Bath, Maine. “My father was in the shah’s air force and actually studied at the Boeing Institute in Seattle and U.S. air bases all around the U.S. Once the revolution started, they started purging the military. My father was helping American and other Western friends get out of the country. We were being investigated and within a week, we sold whatever we could,” Khojastehzad said. After last weekend’s U.S. airstrikes on nuclear facilities and other recent strikes from Israel, Khojastehzad thought about civilians in Iran and his extended family. “I contacted my dad. He said that my aunt and cousins and most of our family members left and they were going to head to Tabriz, where my father’s from, but that was also bombed. They ended up turning around and going somewhere else. Last I talked to them, they’re safe but since the internet has gone down and Instagram has gone down, it’s kind of like being left on a cliffhanger trying to figure out how to communicate with a loved one,” Khojastehzad explained. Most Iranians do not want war with the U.S., Khojastehzad said. He opposes the current government but does not want regime change to come as a result of U.S. military intervention. Khojastehzad, who has been part of Maine’s craft beer industry for several years, is drawing from his home country for inspiration in his latest venture. He is the founder of Handshake Persian digestif bitters, which he describes as “representing my two homes: Iran and Maine.”
A Maine father and entrepreneur originally from Iran is sharing a new perspective on recent U.S. military airstrikes on nuclear targets overseas.
Shahin Khojastehzad was born in Tehran.
His family left their home country during the Iranian revolution and first moved to Germany before eventually settling in Bath, Maine.
“My father was in the shah’s air force and actually studied at the Boeing Institute in Seattle and U.S. air bases all around the U.S. Once the revolution started, they started purging the military. My father was helping American and other Western friends get out of the country. We were being investigated and within a week, we sold whatever we could,” Khojastehzad said.
After last weekend’s U.S. airstrikes on nuclear facilities and other recent strikes from Israel, Khojastehzad thought about civilians in Iran and his extended family.
“I contacted my dad. He said that my aunt and cousins and most of our family members left and they were going to head to Tabriz, where my father’s from, but that was also bombed. They ended up turning around and going somewhere else. Last I talked to them, they’re safe but since the internet has gone down and Instagram has gone down, it’s kind of like being left on a cliffhanger trying to figure out how to communicate with a loved one,” Khojastehzad explained.
Most Iranians do not want war with the U.S., Khojastehzad said.
He opposes the current government but does not want regime change to come as a result of U.S. military intervention.
Khojastehzad, who has been part of Maine’s craft beer industry for several years, is drawing from his home country for inspiration in his latest venture.
He is the founder of Handshake Persian digestif bitters, which he describes as “representing my two homes: Iran and Maine.”