A Safe Refuge? Minorities and the State in Iranian Cyberspace

Author(s) Bronwen Robertson, James Marchant
Contact Bronwen Robertson, Small Media, Charlton St. Kings Cross, London NW1 1HB, UK. E-mail: bronwen@smallmedia.org.uk
Issue CyberOrient, Vol. 9, Iss. 2, 2015, pp. 4-5
Published November 10, 2015
Type Editorial
Abstract The Iranian state has consistently restricted spaces in open society for minorities to express their identities, especially where such identities are construed as representing a threat to the religious, political and sexual orthodoxies promulgated by the clerical establishment. As a result, many members of assorted Iranian minority groups have taken to cyberspace to build communities, articulate self- and group-identities, organise to overcome discriminatory practices, and connect with their allies from across national borders and around the world. This Iran-focused edition of CyberOrient aims to explore how Iranian minority groups have embraced technology to overcome systematised state discrimination, strengthen communities, and at the same time, push back against entrenched societal prejudices.
Keywords Internet studies, social media, internet, Arab Spring, Egypt, activism, cyberactivism, Iran