Hassan Hussain, Esha's fiance, reading the first poem Esha wrote in English. Photo by Jay Davis.
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The Karabal Nightlife kicked off the event with their song, "Mare Nostrum." John Daquioag and Kara Lawton thanked people for their support, then summarized Esha's academic research and the circumstances of her arrest. Wearing "Please Free Esha" stickers, audience members started lighting pink candles that were passed out at the entrance. Each person held a lit candle until the end of the vigil, when the emcees led everyone in a lively chant, "FREE ESHA!" Fort King played folk music as the event concluded. See more
pictures of the vigil.
The efforts of many people working together made the vigil a memorable event. People in other cities and countries even helped spread the
word.
Key participants were affiliated with CSUN, friends of Esha, or had connections to us (the vigil organizers). Some performers, speakers, volunteers, and sponsors contacted the organizers and offered their help. The CSUN community responded to Esha's imprisonment with a great deal of support. The CSUN Performance Ensemble created an original spoken word piece for the vigil. Members of the
One Million Signatures Campaign came to support Esha and set up a table where they shared information about their work for gender equality in Iran.
These people graced the Please Free Esha stage and/or worked behind the scenes at the vigil. When possible, links to performances or speeches are provided. See a full list of acknowledgments on our Thanks page.
Performers
The Karabal NightlifeLindsay Mancha, Jesse Davis, Courtney Olsen
www.thekarabalnightlife.comwww.myspace.com/thekarabalnightlifeFort KingRyan Fuller
www.myspace.com/fortkingCSUN Performance EnsembleChristine Burke, Ashley Beard, Wade MacDonald
Jennifer Marshall, Kathryn Sorrells
text version of their spoken word performanceSpeakers
Melissa WallAssociate Professor and Graduate Adviser, CSUN
Esha's professor, adviser, and thesis committee member
read transcript of Dr. Wall's speechread Dr. Wall's blogs about EshaRoja BandariChange For Equality member, UCLA Ph.D. student
Esha's friend and campaign associateread transcript of Roja's speechDavid BlumenkrantzAssistant Professor, CSUN
Esha's professor, documentary photographyread Blumenkrantz's blog about EshaNayereh TohidiProfessor and Dept. Chair, Gender & Women's Studies, CSUN
Hassan HussainEsha's fianceread "Dear Eve," the first poem Esha wrote in EnglishEsha's friends in the Journalism graduate programJudith Klapper, Seth Koury, John Daquioag, and Kara Lawton
Volunteers
Chanram Bigler, Michele Clevering, Dodd Harrington, Judith Klapper, Seth Koury, Sandra Kukla, Jay Davis, Vanessa Mura, Lori Baker-Schena, Sarah Wolfson, Haniff Zarabi
