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Roya Hakakian

Biography

Roya Hakakian

Roya Hakakian (1966) was born in Tehran, Iran, and lived through the Iranian revolution of 1979, later emigrating to America in 1985 on political asylum. A lauded Farsi poet turned television producer with programs like "60 Minutes," she became well known for her memoir, JOURNEY FROM THE LAND OF NO in 2004 and frequent essays on Iranian issues during the 2000s. Awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2008, Roya published ASSASSINS OF THE TURQOISE PALACE in 2011, a nonfiction account of the Mykonos restaurant assassinations of Iranian opposition leaders in Berlin.

She is a founding member of the Iran Human Rights Documentation Center, and serves on the board of Refugees International.

Roya Hakakian