Evin Is Not the Only Prison in Iran

Counter/Argument: A Middle East Podcast

In October 2022, news broke out about a fire in Evin, Iran’s notorious prison, killing several prisoners and injuring many more. This fire became yet another flashpoint in Iran’s autumn of discontent and thrust Iran’s carceral system into the limelight. But what do we actually know about Evin and Iran’s system of crime and punishment? In part one of this two-part episode of Counter/Argument, we speak with Golnar Nikpour, assistant professor of history at Dartmouth College and former Neubauer Junior Research Fellow at the Crown Center, who is currently finishing her first book on a history of Iranian prisons and prisoners in a global context. Join host Naghmeh Sohrabi as she and Nikpour discuss some common misconceptions about prisons, prisoners, and crime in the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Golnar Nikpour, assistant professor of history at Dartmouth College and former Neubauer Junior Fellow at the Crown Center for Middle East Studies at Brandeis University.
Naghmeh Sohrabi, director for research at the Crown Center and the Charles (Corky) Goodman Professor of Middle East History.
More Resources

• Mohammad Ali Kadivar, Arang Keshavarzian, Nazanin Shahrokni, and Naghmeh Sohrabi, "'Women, Life, Freedom': What's New about Iran's 2022 Protests?" October 7, 2022.
• Arash Davari, Omid Tofighian, Golnar Nikpour, and Naveed Mansoori, "Is Abolition Global? Iran, Iranians, and Prison Politics (Part 1)," Jadaliyya, September 2, 2020.
• "Is Abolition Global? Iran, Iranians, and Prison Politics (Part 2)," September 8, 2020.
• Golnar Nikpour, "Drugs and Drug Policy in the Islamic Republic of Iran," Middle East Brief 119, June 2018.
• Golnar Nikpour, "All Prisoners Are Political Prisoners: Rethinking the Campaign to #FreeThemAll Beyond Borders and Beyond COVID-19," Jadaliyya, March 25, 2020.
• Golnar Nikpour,

Editorial team: Naghmeh Sohrabi, Karen Spira, Ramyar D. Rossoukh
Producer: Karen Spira
Audio engineer: Levon Henry
Podcast art: Chae Lee
Theme music: "Sleeky" by ComaStudio, Pixabay
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The opinions and findings expressed in this podcast belong to the speakers exclusively and do not reflect those of the Crown Center or Brandeis University....