Inside The Middle East

SHOW #58

Hosted By Ben Wedeman From Israel

EYES WIDE SHUT

A new exhibit in Jaffa features the work of unlikely photographers; seven blind photographers have been studying the art for the past two years at the Center for the Blind. The professional photographers leading the study say blind people who take pictures may sound absurd because we tend to associate photography with light, vision, focusing, looking at the result, etc.  But the teachers says their experience with the novice photographers has exposed them to another aspect of taking pictures -- a pursuit led by imagination, sentiment, and other senses. Paula Hancocks joins the blind photographers as they do what most people consider the impossible.

IRANIAN WOMEN FASHION DESIGNERS

Women's clothing in Iran has been a battlefield since the Islamic revolution in 1979, when the religious authorities in the government first required women to wear long, loose coats and cover their hair. A police corps was created to enforce the new moral codes. Dark colors were made mandatory. And the religious police have regularly cracked down on women who defy the strictures that govern appearance. Reza Sayah profiles the little-known world of Iranian female fashion designers - trying to do their part for beautifying women's dress, within the confines of Islamic tradition.

RACING FOR PEACE

Rising up out of the desert like a mirage, this race car is no dream.  It's called "Racing 4 Peace" - the brainchild of an Israeli engineer and a Palestinian race car driver bent on entering the professional leagues, together. There are no professional race tracks in Israel, so they practice in an abandoned landing strip in the Negev desert. Their biggest obstacles: skittish donkeys and territorial dogs. Atika Shubert reports from the track.