How chess empowered Dorsa Derakhshani to become an advocate for freedom of expression

Reported by STLPR

When she was 19 years old, woman grandmaster Dorsa Derakhshani was barred from playing for Iran's national chess team because she refused to wear a hijab at an international tournament.

“I don't think it was rebellious,” she said. “It was just me being my authentic self and not bowing down.”

Soon after, she came to St. Louis to attend St. Louis University.

“[Chess] gave me all the opportunities that I don't know if I would have had [otherwise]. It gave me a full scholarship for my undergrad and almost a full scholarship for my medical school,” she said. “It also gave me a platform, and it helped me find my voice, use it and hopefully inspire others.”

Now a medical student at the University of Missouri-Columbia, St. Louis Chess Club instructor and U.S. citizen, Derakhshani is passionate about being an advocate for freedom of speech and expression.

“After I started not bowing down, a lot of other Iranian chess players — especially in the women's section — also realized that they have options, and they don't have to bow down if they don't want to. They started leaving the country one by one, and they started representing other countries.”

Derakhshani joined St. Louis on the Air to reflect on what it meant to leave her home country for the U.S., the parallels between the competitive chess scene and medical school and how President Trump’s new travel ban may affect people like her and her family.

On becoming a U.S. citizen

“When it was explained to me that I can't really [have] dual citizenship with an Iranian passport, that wasn't truly an issue for me. It's really sad, but with the current Iranian government, I never felt that sense of belonging, that sense of pride, because they weren't interested in improving. They weren't interested in feedback. They weren't interested in what's best for people,” Derakhshani said.

“In the U.S., that's at least an option — just because you say something that somebody doesn't like, they won't just take your head, in a sense, so you can give feedback, criticize and use your First Amendment rights. That's something that's really valuable to me. I can't even explain how much that gives me a sense of relief — to belong to a country [where] I can speak my mind and I can express myself the way that I am.” Read more.