We, a group of families of executed political prisoners in Iran, Oberlin College students and alumni, and human rights activists, are holding a protest against the reported “crimes against humanity” conducted by Oberlin College Professor, Mohammad Jafar Mahallati. The protest will be held on Tuesday, November 2, 2021, from 12 to 2 pm in front of the Cox Administration Building at Oberlin College, Ohio.
According to Amnesty International’s 2018 report, Blood-soaked secrets: Why Iran’s 1988 prison massacres are ongoing crimes against humanity, Mahallati was among the senior officials who “were actively involved in denying the mass killings in media interviews and exchanges with the UN to shield those responsible from accountability.”
We believe the continuation of employment of Mr. Mahallati is in contrast with Oberlin’s mission statement, emphasizing “an enduring commitment to a sustainable and just society.”
Mahallati, the Islamic Regime of Iran’s Ambassador to the United Nations covered up the 1988 Massacre of more than 5000 thousand innocent political prisoners. Mahallati also stoked incitement against the persecuted Baha’i people and delivered anti-Semitic speeches against Israel and Jewish people at the UN.
Lawdan Bazargan, sister of one of the Leftists victims of this atrocity, said “While Mahallati was enjoying high ranking position in an oppressive Islamic regime, my brother was behind bars fighting for human rights and human dignity. Why does a liberal art school such as Oberlin College that must be the beacon of hope, protect the perpetrators instead of the victims?”
Kaveh Shahrooz, who lost his uncle in this Massacre said, “Oberlin College has been completely non-responsive to the demands of hundreds of survivors and families of the 1988 massacre. They refuse to explain why they have granted tenure to a man who misled the world on crimes against humanity. This protest is to bring attention to Mahallati’s role in the cover-up of a mass killing, and Oberlin’s complicity.”
Dr. Wahied Wahdat-Hagh, a leading Baháʼí intellectual, said Mr. Mahallati ”legitimizes the mass executions in the 1980s.”
Regrettably, despite the promise of Ms. Ambar, Oberlin College’s President and Mr. Hertz, chief of staff, to investigate Mr. Mahallati’s role in this atrocity, they did not publish any report, did not engage with the families of the victims, and allowed Mr. Mahallati to go back to teaching students. We repeat our campaign demand of October 2020 and ask for Mr. Mahallati’s immediate removal.
Oberlin Committee for Justice for Mahallati’s Victims
Due to COVID travel restrictions, we will stream the event on ZOOM so our supporters can join virtually and support us.
https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUqdO2urjstGdMRLM1fPQAC39RHtPnxB2N7