Last night, associate professor of Purdue University and recipient of the award for Best Dissertation of the Year from the Foundation of Iranian Studies, Dr. Janet Afary explored homosexuality in Iran. Naturally, it was in response to Ahmadinejad’s claim that homosexuals don’t exist. Although, most people have already realized that the translation was rather inaccurate. But somehow we still continue to pine away with our “homosexuals not in Iran” chant, just for the hell of it.

Afary dispelled many previous misconceptions and noted that homosexuality has been thoroughly documented in both European and Persian literature (See Symposium):

Her lecture focused mainly on the evolution of the culture and tolerance of homosexuality in Iran. She began by discussing the rich history of Iranian homosexual relationships dating back to medieval Persia, where older men of high status would couple with younger, lower-class men. Such relationships, she said, were recognized and even condoned, as long as they were kept discreet and did not interfere with socially recognized marriages.

An attendee of the event was astonished:

“I found it fascinating that … gay identity [in Iran] is kind of seen as a new phenomenon, whereas it’s clearly rooted deep in Iranian sexual expression and companionship.”

Apparently, people find it fascinating that homosexuality isn’t a strictly Western phenomenon. Who would have thought Iran had homosexuals more than twenty years ago?