Learn Persian with Chai and Conversation1 Jun 2025

Interview | Yassamin Ansari, Congresswoman from Arizona, on Politics, Protest, and Persian Identity

In this episode of Growing Up Neem-Rooni, Leyla talks with Representative Yassamin Ansari, the youngest member of Congress and the first Iranian-American Democrat to be elected. From growing up in a mostly white Arizona suburb to representing her diverse district in Washington, D.C., Yassamin shares her story of identity, community, and public service.

We talk about her family's immigration journey, what it was like growing up Persian in Arizona, the political awakenings that shaped her career, and the urgent fights she’s now taking on—climate change, immigration justice, labor rights, and Iranian-American visibility. She also opens up about the personal weight of carrying a diaspora story into the halls of power, and why this moment in American politics requires all of us to show up, speak out, and organize.

🟢 Topics covered include:

Her upbringing in Arizona and the influence of her Iranian family
Why she got into politics, and how the first Trump presidency galvanized her
Her work on Iranian-American Heritage Month and immigration reform
The erosion of climate policy and the importance of mass mobilization
What gives her hope—and why we need to fight harder than ever

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Episoder(233)

Culture | Attar's Conference of the Birds, Part 2

In the second part of our discussion of Attar's Conference of the Birds, Leyla is joined by Omid Arabian of the YOUniversal Center as the Hoopoe finally names the king the birds have been seeking — th...

2 Sep 18min

Culture | Attar's Conference of the Birds, Part 1

In this lesson, Leyla is joined by Omid Arabian of the YOUniversal Center for an overview of Attar's Conference of the Birds. Working through selected verses from across the poem, they trace the birds...

27 Aug 29min

Poetry | Simin Behbahani's dobāré meesāzamet vatan, Part 6

In this final part of the discussion of Simin Behbahani's dobāré meesāzamat vatan, we go over the end of the poem in detail.

2 Aug 21min

Poetry | Simin Behbahani's dobāré meesāzamet vatan, Part 5

In this fifth part of the discussion of Simin Behbahani's dobāré meesāzamat vatan, we go over the second-to-last part of the poem in detail.

29 Jul 17min

Interview | Sasha von Oldershausen on the Crown Prince of Lubbock, Texas

In this episode, Leyla sits down with Sasha von Oldershausen — an Iranian American journalist on the news and politics team at Texas Monthly, and soon to be the New York Times' first-ever Texas cultur...

29 Jul 1h 11min

Poetry | Simin Behbahani's dobāré meesāzamet vatan, Part 4

In this fourth part of the discussion of Simin Behbahani's dobāré meesāzamat vatan, we go over the next six lines of the poem in detail.

20 Jul 19min

Interview | Yasmin Khan on Food, Culture & Compassion Across Borders

In this episode, Leyla sits down with Yasmin Khan — the acclaimed British-Iranian-Pakistani food writer, activist, and author of *The Saffron Tales*, *Zaitoun*, *Ripe Figs*, and her newest cookbook, *...

13 Jul 59min