فارسیGeorge (Yehuda) Haroonian
George (Yehuda) Haroonian was born in 1953 in Tehran. In a family who played an active role in the cultural and social affairs of the community. His father was the late Massood Haroonian and her mother Mrs. Pari Cohen Hashmonaim.
His late father was one of the prominent activists and leaders of the Jewish community, both in Tehran and after immigration to the United States. Before the 1979 upheavals, he was the head of the “Dispute Resolution Committee” of the Central Jewish Organization of Tehran and the chairman of the board of directors of Khairkhah Center (currently Dr. Sapir hospital). He was the founder of the Iranian Jewish Cultural Organization in Los Angeles, which provided many services in cultural and social affairs to the Iranian Jewish community in Los Angeles. His grandfather, Haji Yehuda Haroonian, was one of the pioneers of schools and the needy of the society, and one of the lovers of the Holy Land, who traveled there in the 1920s. His maternal uncle was the late Yousef Cohen, the last representative of the Jewish community to the parliament (period of the 24th Majlis) before the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
George spent his elementary school years until the eighth year of high school in Tehran’s Andisheh school and then went to the Etefagh school. In 1971, he went to America to continue his higher education. First, he studied economics and statistics at the University of Oklahoma and then at the California State University in Los Angeles. Since 1976, with the guidance of his father and the cooperation of his brothers, he has been working in the field of importing and selling carpets, which was the business of the ancestors of the family, and has continued to do so.
Since his arrival in the new homeland, George has been actively involved in social affairs of the Jewish community. After entering the University of Oklahoma, he joined the American Jewish student organization Hillel and participated in its meetings and programs. It should be noted that all the Jewish students of that university were from cities in America such as New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles, and basically, at that time, the central and southern states did not have a significant Jewish population. At that time, the number of Iranian Jewish students was also very few, and this familiarity was new for both groups. It was during this period that Haroonian became more familiar with the completely different and free-spirited approach of American Jews, who were all from the third or fourth generation of European Jewish immigrants to America.
He moved to Los Angeles in late 1973 and after graduating from California State University and starting a business, he paid more attention to communal issues. Among his activities, he helped in the adaptation and acculturation of newly arrived Iranian Jews. He assisted in settling and dealing with various problems the new arrivals faced. He was also involved in dealing with the case of 13 Jews arrested in Shiraz and 11 missing while leaving through the border with Pakistan. By accepting the presidency of the Council of Iranian American Jewish Organizations for four years from 2000-2004, he worked hard to inform and mobilize the community to defend the rights and issues related to the above two groups. The member organizations of the council were Eretz Synagogue, Siamak Organization, Iranian Jewish Cultural Organization, Beith David Synagogue, Or Emuna Synagogue, Ohel Rahel synagogue and Committee for Rights of Religious Minorities in Iran.
He was the organizer of several gathering programs on the occasion of “Yom Yashua” (Holocaust Remembrance Day) after Mahmoud Ahmadinejad denied the Holocaust. In one of these gatherings, on the occasion of the commemoration of Abdul Hossein Sardari, the savior of the Iranian Jews in World War II, hundreds of people gathered at Nessah Synagogue and more than 1,000 people gathered at the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles.
In the late 1980s, he joined the editorial board of the magazine “Cashmadaz” (Viewpoint) under the supervision of the organization of Iranian Jews living in California (SIAMK), and after holding internal elections, he was elected to the position of vice president of that organization. During its activity, this organization provided significant services for advancing the interests of Iranian Jews and facing their problems.
In 1982, George Haroonian married Miss Jina Shadgoo , and the result of this marriage was three daughters (Gilda, Sheila and Nora). All three have successfully completed higher education.
In 2007 to 2008, along with his learned and knowledgeable friend, the late Faryar Nikbakht, he ran the weekly radio program “Rangin Kaman” (Rainbow) that addressed the issues and challenges of Iranian Jews. In this program, the guests were invited to discuss the history and culture of Iranian Jews, their contributions to Iran’s advancement, their role in Iranian culture, and also getting more knowledgable about Israel .
In the years 2015 to 2017, George, in cooperation with his friends, published “Etehad Periodical”, which contained articles and information about the history and culture of the Jews of Iran and the world. In 2022, together with a group of like-minded people in United States, Israel and Europe, with the recognition that the most proper way to face the phenomenon of anti-Semitism is to create a website and to be present in the virtual world, the site “No to Anti-Semitism” www.notoantisemitism.org was launched which after much efforts finally announced its existence in January 2022.
The creation of this site, followed by the inclusion of numerous articles and interviews with Persian-language media and conversations in virtual space, has attracted the attention of Farsi as well as non Farsi speakers. This organization is now recognized as a non-profit organization . In January 2023, by inviting Prince Reza Pahlavi to the Museum of Tolerance, “No to Anti-Semitism” became recognized on a wider level. In this gathering, George Haroonian discussed the long common history of Jews and Iranians and pointed to the long-standing friendship and understanding among them and recalled some parts of this history and those exceptional relations.
George Haroonian in December 2024 in a meeting along Mr. Mensheh Amir, the veteran journalist and analyst was recognized and commended by Iranian Jewish Women’s organization and a plaque of appreciation was presented to him.
Three generations of social activists, standing right: Masoud Harounian with his father (Haji Yehuda Harounian) and sitting grandfather (Molla Agha Jouni Harounian), Tehran, winter 1948
Ceremony to commemorate and present a plaque of appreciation to George Harounian and Menshe Amir by the Iranian Jewish Women’s Organization, Los Angeles, December 2024