Asgari Grabs Hold of His Free- by Amy Rottier Ment’S Rules Violated Hell

C A LIFOR N I A S T A T E U N IVER S IT Y , F U L L E R T O N INSIDE 5 n NEWS: Children learn how to care for a garden at an Arboretum class Armed with razors tied to their ankles, n 6 SPORTS: Meet the Titan softball team roosters slash and en route to the Kia Klassic at CSUF gouge at each other to the death —see Perspectives page 4 VOLU M E 74, I SSUE 13 WEDNESDAY M ARCH 13, 2002 Asgari grabs hold of his free- BY AMY ROTTIER ment’s rules violated hell. He wanted out. a.m. on Aug. 4, 1982 but Asgari and three of In a stroke of luck, the escapees came Second in Daily Titan Editor in Chief basic human rights. His wrestling talent and bravery were his his teammates decided they would not return across a U.S.-military van that was leav- a Series Everyone was forced saviors. to serve a government they were against. ing the base. Although they did not speak Ardeshir Asgari joined the Iranian army to follow 1,500-year- Wrestling was a national sport in Iran It was risky. English, they explained, somehow, their The coach when he was 14 years old. In his country, old religious dictates – as big as baseball, basketball and football Quitting the army was not an option. The plight to the driver. The driver agreed to help it was mandatory that all citizens serve the that forbade things combined in the United States. When Asgari four knew that they faced death if they were the defectors by smuggling them out of the begins his military for two years after graduating high like going to mov- was growing up, wrestling was one of the caught and sent back to their home country. base. The group of 18 to 21-year-old men school. ies, nightclubs and five main events in the Olympics. To be an The wrestlers left their coach a note con- was dropped off in the downtown area with life in Iran. But a high school diploma would be drinking. Execution Olympic wrestling champion meant national demning the Iranian government and non- no money, no passports and no way to com- granted to those who joined the army in time was a regular punish- hero status – like Michael Jordan in America. chalantly left their hotel room around mid- municate. None of them spoke Spanish. After defect- of war, regardless if they finished school. ment for those who So, like many men, Asgari took up the sport night – five hours before they were to leave They found refuge in a hotel that night ing from the Asgari hated school so much; he joined the did not comply. The Asgari at an early age. With five years of experi- for the airport. and by the next day they knew their team Iranian army about four years early to fight new laws opened many ence under his belt, he started wrestling for The four left with nothing but the shorts was long gone. On their second day of army, he Iraq. He came from a family of wealth and problems, especially the army. He quickly became part of the and T-shirts they were wearing and wallets in defection, Asgari picked up a newspaper in high status within the government. with the younger, more independent genera- army’s national team. With that status came their pockets. They could not take anything the hotel lobby and saw their pictures on the escapes The army trained Asgari physically and tion. the opportunity to travel and his opportunity with them and risk looking suspicious. To front page. death and mentally. But, it was in Beirut, when he saw a Jew for freedom. observers, they hoped to look like they were “Hey, hey, that’s me,” Asgari said to the “If you kill seven Jews, you will go to for the first time that Asgari completely In 1982, the team traveled to Venezuela to going out for one last night on the town. man at the desk. makes his way heaven,” Asgari was told. turned against the government. The Jewish participate in the Army World Championships But the four could not just walk away. The man briskly picked up the phone As a young, boy he believed it. man looked so nice, like any other person. and after 10 days of competition, Asgari won The competition and accommodations were and in less than five minutes, 50 police cars, to America. After spending time in the military, Asgari realized that killing seven Jews would second place in his weight class. The team located on a military base and Venezuelan Asgari began to realize that the new govern- not send him to heaven; it would send him to was scheduled to fly back to Iran at about 7 military men guarded the exits. ASGARI/ 3 Women give Right of way meaning to world peace nLECTURE: Hazel Warlaumont spoke about creating new ways to to build bridges between cultures BY CONCHITA VIADO Daily Titan Staff Writer Non-violence. Safety. Living without fear. The absence of war. The definition of the word “peace” conjures many inter- pretations. It can be said in a number of ways. However, its importance is without question. In honor of Women’s History Month, the Women’s Center at Cal State Fullerton hosted a lecture Tuesday on “The Role of Women in Building a Culture of Peace.” The purpose of the lecture was to discuss involvement oppor- tunities and to hear ideas about peace-building efforts. “The United Nations has recognized women’s role in peace-building,” said Hazel “Women can Warlaumont, professor of com- munications and founder of the be highly University of Peace. “We are trying to strengthen peace cul- effective in ture, create new ways to work with each other, and to promote peace not war.” establish- Warlaumont conducted the lecture. ing global The University Women for Peace is an organization where peace.” individuals work together for peace and to build bridges of cultural understanding in the Hazel world, especially where conflict Warlaumont, or human rights violations are matters of concern. The organization does not accept any membership fees and does not make any effort to gain funds. Its purpose is to promote the idea that women can be highly effective in establishing a climate of global peace. JAIME NOLTE/Daily Titan This organization was founded in the hopes of allow- A female student sustained a possible leg fracture Tuesday evening after being hit by a white Ford Tempo at the intersection of Nutwood Avenue ing others the opportunity to recognize a woman’s role in and Langsdorf Drive, police reported. Witnesses Mark Cooper and Brian Dent, guests at the Marriott Hotel, said they were pulling out of the hotel peace building. It is a hands-on organization designed to get parking lot when they saw the student attempting to cross the intersection. She was making her way around a silver minivan that was blocking people involved. the street, when the Tempo hit her. Police were called to the accident scene at 5:29 p.m. Senior officer Craig Odom of the Fullerton Police Traffic One of the main focuses is to network with women Bureau said the injured student was coherent because he was able to speak to her while paramedics were giving her aid. She was transported from other countries in order to start a dialogue about how to St. Jude Hospital in Brea. Odom said police are still investigating the accident and a full report would not be available until later. PEACE/ 5 Youths explore fire service career n Firefighter and associate adviser The explorers each have a book subject so that every member is TRAINING: Besides John Aguirre, apprentice firefight- that teaches them about the equip- comfortable with the material. experiencing hands- ers and assistant advisers David ment and how to use it. “There’s a multitude of things Coleman and Joshua Jones oversee In addition to the hands-on train- that we do on the fire ground or on work, participants the program. Through this program, ing they receive, explorers are given in any type of rescue atmosphere. explorers practice various types of tests and quizzes. These examina- We simulate it here so they have learn discipline, unity, skills that are required for a career tions are based on the reading mate- a chance to see what we do and teamwork and honor in firefighting. rial and the various skills that are so they can see if they want to be “We roll hose,” Aguirre said. “We taught to them. One examination involved,” Aguirre said. BY CONCHITA VIADO train with self-contained breath- is given for each topic. They are It is not necessary to live in the Daily Titan Staff Writer ing apparatus. We practice forcible not graded and the explorers are not city of Brea to be considered for entry. We practice ladders and lad- penalized for wrong answers. membership. However, in order to Young men and women have der evolutions, ropes and knots and The purpose of the examinations qualify for the program, candidates the opportunity to gain training various types of rescues. We also is to show the explorers the areas that must meet three requirements. They practice with live fire.” need to be reviewed. The explorers must be between the ages of 15 courtesY OF OCFea acaDemY 2001 and experience in the fire services through the Brea Fire Department The program is affiliated with the are not given weekly assignments.

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