Marina Nemat is the author of two memoirs about her life growing up in Iran, serving time in Evin Prison for speaking out against the Iranian government, escaping a death sentence and finally fleeing Iran to go and live in Canada.
14 Facts About Marina Nemat
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Marina Nemat's father worked as a dance teacher, her mother as a hairdresser.
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Marina Nemat was a high school student when the secularizing monarchy of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was overthrown by Ayatollah Khomeini's Islamic Revolution.
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On 15 January 1982, at age 16, Marina Nemat was arrested and imprisoned for her views against the revolution.
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Marina Nemat was tortured in the notorious Evin Prison well known for atrocities against political inmates, and sentenced to death.
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Marina Nemat was rescued by a prison guard, who obtained commutation of her sentence to life imprisonment.
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However, after five months of imprisonment, it became clear that Ali had developed an attachment to Marina Nemat and intended to force her to marry him.
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Marina Nemat did eventually marry the guard and was released from prison; he was later assassinated.
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Marina Nemat worked at the Aurora franchise of the Swiss Chalet restaurant chain, and wrote her life story in 78,000 words.
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Marina Nemat knew that many victims did not want to talk about their fate.
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Today, Marina Nemat teaches memoir writing part-time at the University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies, and regularly speaks about her experiences in front of high-school classes, universities, libraries, and associations.
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Marina Nemat is a regular participant in the Oslo Freedom Forum.
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Marina Nemat is a graduate of the certificate program in creative writing at the School of Continuing Studies at the University of Toronto.
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Marina Nemat sits on the Board of Directors at the CCVT and Vigdis, a Norwegian charitable organization that provides legal and other forms of assistance to female political prisoners around the world.