Iran
Racist opinions occurred in the works of some Persian historians and geographers: so in the 982 AD, the Persian Hudud al-`alam could write:
"As regards southern countries, all their inhabitants are black on account of the heat of their climate... Most of them go naked... In all their lands and provinces, gold is found.... They are people distant from the standards of humanity." About the Zanj: "Their nature is that of wild animals. They are extremely black." About the Sudan: "Among themselves there are people who steal each other's children and sell them to the merchants when the latter arrive."
Nasīr al-Dīn al-Tūsī (1201–74), Tasawwurat (Rawdat al-taslim):
"If (all types of men) are taken, from the first, and one placed after another, like the Negro from Zanzibar, in the Southern-most countries, the Negro does not differ from an animal in anything except the fact that his hands have been lifted from the earth -in no other peculiarity or property - except for what God wished. Many have seen that the ape is more capable of being trained than the Negro, and more intelligent."
According to article 19 of the Iranian constitution:
the people of Iran belonging to whatever ethnic or tribal group shall enjoy equal rights and colour of skin, race, language and the like shall not be considered as a privilege.Iran is a signatory to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.
Read more about this topic: Racism In The Middle East
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