Page 53 - issue
P. 53
“Some people have only pleasant 45
memories, and want to return,
and some who lived through the harsh
conditions of the revolutionary
times have no desire to go back.
ni’s rule. An electrical engineer by training, Mr. Hakakian had
been fired from his teaching job in Iran for the crime of being a
Jew. In his late 20s, he fled Iran in 1986 with his pregnant wife
”and young child. It was an arduous journey, hiking and trav-
eling by camel for five or six days until they reached Pakistan.
After nearly a year’s journey, including nine months in Vienna
(where the baby was born), HIAS was able to help him get a
visa to the U.S., where he had siblings. Mr. Hakakian initially
found work as a sewing machine technician. His father had
owned a commercial sewing machine business in Shiraz, and
he knew a lot about them.
Asked how long it took for him to feel comfortable in his
new environment, he said, “only a few years. For each person
it is different.” Although he had learned some English in high
school, he was not fluent when he arrived. His parents were
able to move to Baltimore in 1996 to join of their children, all of
whom had by then settled here. As they were in their 60s, it was
a more difficult transition.
Of the Jews remaining in Iran, Mr. Hakakian says, “They still
have a good life. Only the government is crazy.” They are free to
leave but many choose not to because of the loss of assets and
hardship of moving to a foreign country.
The Hakakians’ two daughters married first-generation Per-
sian Americans, but he has no expectation or requirement that
his other children limit their shidduch choices to Persians.
“My main purpose is that they should be happy,” he says. He
does feel, though, that marrying into the same culture makes
things easier. His children understand Farsi but don’t use it to
speak to one another. As a matter of fact, as in many homes,
u 410 358 8509 u
memories, and want to return,
and some who lived through the harsh
conditions of the revolutionary
times have no desire to go back.
ni’s rule. An electrical engineer by training, Mr. Hakakian had
been fired from his teaching job in Iran for the crime of being a
Jew. In his late 20s, he fled Iran in 1986 with his pregnant wife
”and young child. It was an arduous journey, hiking and trav-
eling by camel for five or six days until they reached Pakistan.
After nearly a year’s journey, including nine months in Vienna
(where the baby was born), HIAS was able to help him get a
visa to the U.S., where he had siblings. Mr. Hakakian initially
found work as a sewing machine technician. His father had
owned a commercial sewing machine business in Shiraz, and
he knew a lot about them.
Asked how long it took for him to feel comfortable in his
new environment, he said, “only a few years. For each person
it is different.” Although he had learned some English in high
school, he was not fluent when he arrived. His parents were
able to move to Baltimore in 1996 to join of their children, all of
whom had by then settled here. As they were in their 60s, it was
a more difficult transition.
Of the Jews remaining in Iran, Mr. Hakakian says, “They still
have a good life. Only the government is crazy.” They are free to
leave but many choose not to because of the loss of assets and
hardship of moving to a foreign country.
The Hakakians’ two daughters married first-generation Per-
sian Americans, but he has no expectation or requirement that
his other children limit their shidduch choices to Persians.
“My main purpose is that they should be happy,” he says. He
does feel, though, that marrying into the same culture makes
things easier. His children understand Farsi but don’t use it to
speak to one another. As a matter of fact, as in many homes,
u 410 358 8509 u
