Waves of Freedom (Iranian Women Surfers)
I feel really good about the world choosing peace today. And when I read a story like this, I know we can all get along, if we continue to choose peace. 
Balochistan. The place sounds made up, like something from a terrible Borat sequel. But it’s very real, and it’s very dangerous. The New York Times recently christened Balochistan as “The Scariest Little Corner of the World.” It’s an amorphous blob making up rural and often lawless parts of Pakistan, Afghanistan, and southeastern Iran. It also boasts the only coastline in Iran that’s even relatively open to swell. In this case, a small 60 mile stretch that faces southwest into the Gulf of Oman, and further out, to the Arabian Sea. It’s remote, it’s rugged, and not somewhere typically visited by Westerners, let alone surfers.
All of this sounded good to Irish surfer Easkey Britton. In 2010, she took time off from finishing a PhD in Marine Science (and towing into beasts at Mullaghmore) to surf this moonscape of a coastline. It was a lark, a chance to see and surf someplace new, a serious adventure. It ended up being the beginning of a brand new surf culture: the women surfers of Iran. French filmmaker Marion Poizeau recorded a short video of Britton riding a few small Iranian waves near the village of Chabahar—a traditional hijab worn over her wetsuit—and posted the clip on the Internet. A handful of Iranian women saw the clip, and they wanted in. They found Britton online and asked her to come back to teach them how to surf.
Britton and Poizeau have since made two more trips to the Chabahar area, and last year, they made a longform documentary about the nascent Iranian surf scene—a scene Britton says is uniquely pioneered by women—called “Into the Sea.” It recently premiered on the international surf film circuit. Intrigued, I spoke with Britton about Iran, and the Waves of Freedom project she co-founded with Poizeau this year, which uses surfing to inspire social change—an organization inspired by the women of Iran.
Read more at http://www.surfermag.com/features/iran-female-surf-revolution/#lPRG3k84JPQgCEVU.99
Waves of Freedom is a voluntary-led non-profit that uses surfing as a medium for empowerment, transforming the most vulnerable and marginalized members of society, especially women and girls, into self advocates and empowered change-makers in their communities and beyond. Here's their site:
http://wavesoffreedom.org/
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Across the Middle East
Then everybody'd be surfin'
Like they do in Iran
You'd see 'em wearing their wet suits
Some closed-toe sandals too
Come on and grab a long board
Surfin' Balochistan
Thanks for sharing the story here Avalux. The photo gallery at surfermag has some awesome photos.
Surfing's a wonderful way to build camaraderie. I too feel good about those who choose peace. May these surfers enjoy great success.
https://vimeo.com/43386028#t=0s