Female Iranian Police Academy Graduates Are Fierce
In 2005 Abbas Kowsari was allowed to photograph the graduation ceremonies of female cadets graduating from Iran's police academy, and his images are featured in the fall issue of The Paris Review. Any small note of progress in a repressive society is a good thing, but the import of female cadets pales in comparison to the awesomeness of these photos, staged by one of Iran's hottest rising politicians. Michael Bay may have a new property.
Following in the footsteps of their Afghani predecessors (above), former Tehran police chief Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf got permission to train female cadets, and he made their graduation ceremonies count, with dramatic performances and demonstrations of gunplay. Now the mayor of Tehran, Qalibaf is half Persian, half Kurd rising star in his home country, and he has openly called for talks with Barack Obama. With this sense of style, screw the preconditions.
