IRAN: We need your fingerprints

The guard behind the glass looked at my passport and frowned. I was going to take time. It was 3:40 a.m. at the Imam Khomeini international airport in Tehran; all the other passengers had cleared passport control. The guard flicked through pages, found my visa, typed numbers onto a screen, sighed, flicked through some more pages and stood up.

"Come with me."

We went to another guard who pointed us to another guard (a superior, I presumed) who pointed us to a cubicle. We stepped in. The door closed.

Tissues smudged with blue dotted the counter. It looked as if the Blue Meanies, or a family of Smurfs, had sneezed. It was hot. My guard slipped a piece of paper in front of me and opened an ink pad.

"We need fingerprints. Thumb here. Press. No, no, no. Press like this. Now the other fingers, just like this. That's good. Now the other hand."

He spoke quickly. It was awkward, but he was pleasant. I knew the drill. I was first fingerprinted upon entering Iran in 2002. It was Tehran's answer to the U.S. government, which had enacted similar measures on Iranians visiting America. A tit-for-tat game of geopolitics played out between two strangers in the wee, wee hours. There's a weary intimacy to it, like a Frank Sinatra song without the booze. It's good to have a sense of humor — the fingerprints I left were blurry attempts at following orders. The guard led me to a bathroom, pointed to a sink.

"Soap."

I washed as best I could, but my hands stayed faded blue. I dried them. The guard led me back to his counter and stamped my passport. Thunk. He smiled as another load of passengers headed toward him.

"Have a nice time in Iran," he said as I descended the escalator for my bags.

— Jeffrey Fleishman in Tehran   

Photo: Mobile NY Notary

Comments

[Shawn]

Now here another scenario for you and some food for thought,

I came to Los Angeles during 1970s, completed a BS degree in Engineering and in 1980s started to work as an engineer for one of, back then US defense company.
Through the employer I was required to become an US citizen which I gladly accepted,

I went on to complete my PhD and continuing working for American defense companies also, thought in number of Universities around the Southland, try to give back to my so called homeland of America,

JUSt bare with me,,, I was only 17 years old when I came here from Iran, now I am 51 years old,, most of my life has been here as an American …I considered my self an American,,,

I tried to return to LAX with an American Passport that shows obviously my country of birth,,, (Iran)

If you feel humiliated,, if you ever felt hatred,, if you ever felt you do not belong it was my feeling Courtesy of My American country of Homeland Security and custom agent,,,GIVE ME A BREAK WITH THESE STEREO TYPING STORIES,, open your eyes to the Extent of DISCREMINATION that exist today HERE in THE GOOD OLD USA THE FIRST IN DEMOCRECY or what they like you to believe