Amir Omidvar left Iran during the revolutionary crisis in 1982. For twenty months after leaving his home, Amir did everything he could to cross the Atlantic ocean. While taking refuge in Spain, he made three failed attempts to enter the US; a fake passport in Heathrow, a Mexican jail, and a beating by customs officers in Milan — until a fourth and final attempt brought him to Canadian shores. Amir speaks to his daughter, Shayda, about why he decided to leave and how arriving in Canada has impacted his life and the life of his family. The Hopeful, at its core, is about the Canadian Dream. Walk side by side with Amir through his personal journey, and hear how he persevered not only through physical obstacles, but feelings of desperation, loss, and loneliness, only to find hope and happiness in his new forever home.
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Amir Omidvar left Iran during the revolutionary crisis in 1982. For twenty months after leaving his home, Amir did everything he could to cross the Atlantic ocean. While taking refuge in Spain, he made three failed attempts to enter the US; a fake passport in Heathrow, a Mexican jail, and a beating by customs officers in Milan — until a fourth and final attempt brought him to Canadian shores. Amir speaks to his daughter, Shayda, about why he decided to leave and how arriving in Canada has impacted his life and the life of his family. The Hopeful, at its core, is about the Canadian Dream. Walk side by side with Amir through his personal journey, and hear how he persevered not only through physical obstacles, but feelings of desperation, loss, and loneliness, only to find hope and happiness in his new forever home.
How do you make the decision to leave your home? Shayda takes us through the ins and outs of the Iranian Revolution (and the effects of heartbreak) to learn why her father set his sights on escape. In the midst of the Iran-Iraq war, Amir makes covert plans to cross the border into Turkey with with nothing but his passport and his life savings in gold. A series of fateful encounters takes him to Madrid and then Mexico City, but his luck runs out at the Tijuana border crossing.
The Hopeful
Amir Omidvar left Iran during the revolutionary crisis in 1982. For twenty months after leaving his home, Amir did everything he could to cross the Atlantic ocean. While taking refuge in Spain, he made three failed attempts to enter the US; a fake passport in Heathrow, a Mexican jail, and a beating by customs officers in Milan — until a fourth and final attempt brought him to Canadian shores. Amir speaks to his daughter, Shayda, about why he decided to leave and how arriving in Canada has impacted his life and the life of his family. The Hopeful, at its core, is about the Canadian Dream. Walk side by side with Amir through his personal journey, and hear how he persevered not only through physical obstacles, but feelings of desperation, loss, and loneliness, only to find hope and happiness in his new forever home.
