Article January 14, 2002 Issue

Removing the mental veil

By Marta Greenwood

AS A YOUNG GIRL growing up in Iran, I was always grateful that my father didn't have any sons. We were three girls, and I often wondered what my life might have been like if one of us had been born a boy. As it happened, my father converted from Islam to Christianity, and so, by Eastern standards, my sisters and I were given a good education. Nevertheless, my upbringing was very strict. We were confined mainly to life within the four walls of our house. Our knowledge of the outside world came to us only through books.

I used to look at pictures of me as a child in Iran and think how ugly I was. I realized why—we women were never given a right to think of ourselves as human beings, never mind equal citizens!

About the author

Marta is married and lives with her British husband in the UK. They have two daughters. Marta has not returned to Iran since 1974, but along with her Iranian family members who make their home in the United States, she longs to return one day.

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