Democracy Now! Mourns the Passing of Education Director Simin Farkhondeh at 61

We remember our dear colleague Simin Minou Farkhondeh, who died August 5 after a battle with cancer. She was 61 years old. Farkhondeh was a lifelong educator, filmmaker and activist who served as Democracy Now!’s education director for 13 years, helping to bring lessons on media literacy and independent journalism to thousands of students. When the COVID-19 pandemic made in-person lessons impossible, Farkhondeh used virtual online classes to expand the reach of the education program to students in countries around the world. Before joining Democracy Now!, she was part of a group from Deep Dish and Paper Tiger that produced a series in the early 1990s, before the Gulf War started, called The Gulf Crisis TV Project that challenged the rampant militarism that seemed to be leading to war. Her work has been featured at the Whitney Museum, the Museum of Modern Art and elsewhere. She is survived by her partner of 20 years, Eric Hiltner, and her daughter AnaLouisa.