In the city of Ardabil, cultural activists are drawing attention to the ban on education in the Turkish language in Iran by distributing books in Turkish to students on the occasion of the start of the school year.
In images shared on social media, activists can be seen giving books to students or to the parents who are bringing them to school during the first days of the school year, near the schools.
This campaign by activists from Southern Azerbaijan has also attracted the attention of non-Persian activists and cultural groups in other regions of Iran.
"Turkish activists, through this campaign, are expressing their respect for their native language while also protesting against the monolingual policy in Iran," stated the Tavaana Institute's Twitter account.فعالین تُرک در اردبیل همزمان با آغاز سال تحصیلی، با حضور در ورودی مدارس با توزیع کتاب به زبان تُرکی در بین دانشآموزان، ضمن تکریم زبان مادری، سیاستهای تکزبانی در ایران را مورد نقد قرار دادند.
— توانا Tavaana (@Tavaana) September 24, 2018
این مطلب درمورد اهمیت آموزش زبان مادری را بخوانید:https://t.co/bZjNukKTbx#زبان_مادری pic.twitter.com/tdW73X6wQM
The Tavaana Institute, based in the United States, provides online training to Iranian cultural activists.
Similar campaigns have been organized in various cities of Iranian Azerbaijan on occasions such as the opening of schools, International Mother Language Day, and the anniversary of the Azerbaijani National Government.
Link to the original text in Turkish on the Azerbaijani section of Voice of America:
Güneyli fəallar dərs ilinin ilk həftəsində türk dilində kitablar paylayırlar