Free Amir Hekmati Now

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, I come to the floor today to bring up the case of my constituent, a young man by the name of Amir Hekmati. He is an American citizen, born and raised in the United States, grew up in my home town of Flint, Michigan, and served in the United States Marine Corps. He is a brother; he is a son.

Three and a half years ago, he traveled to Iran. His parents are of Iranian descent. He traveled to Iran to meet for the first time a grandmother that he had never seen, traveled under his own name, notified the government that he was going.

After just a couple of weeks, he was apprehended, disappeared; and, after a few months later, it was revealed that he had been tried and convicted and sentenced to death.

A young man, an American, traveling under his own name in Iran, who had served in the United States Marine Corps, was sentenced to death simply for being an American in Iran that had served this country. He is an innocent man, and he continues to languish in Evin Prison.

I am here to make it clear that the Congress of the United States and the American people are watching the Iranian Government. If, in fact, Iran intends, as they purport to do, to try to take steps to join the international community, they cannot hold Americans like Amir Hekmati as political prisoners.

Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle, from John Lewis to Darrell Issa, have joined in the effort to raise awareness around Amir Hekmati's case. It is important that we never let this case fade into the woodwork.

I think about Amir the same way that I would think about it if my own son were being held in a prison on the other side of the world, and I know that every other Member of Congress who has been engaged in this effort feels the same way. He is one of us; he is our son, and he needs to be reunited with his family.

As we now are considering, I think, a really important moment where there have been negotiations to try to deal with Iran's nuclear aspirations--and personally, I support this direction, I support the direction the administration has gone in creating a framework through negotiation to make for a more peaceful world. It is very difficult for many of us in Congress, especially those of us who represent those few Americans being held in an Iranian prison, to view this agreement other than through the lens of that experience.

If Iran truly intends to try to rejoin the global community, they can make a very clear demonstration of their seriousness by releasing Amir Hekmati and the other Americans that they hold. We all can play a role in making that happen. I encourage everybody out there--Members of Congress, people who want to become engaged--to get to social media. Use #freeamir or #freeamirnow.

We know that the Iranian Government does pay attention to what the American people think--the Iranian citizens certainly do--and we know that we have to keep the pressure on right now. It is, as I said, very difficult for many of us who support the direction that this administration has taken these negotiations and really hope that it bears fruit, really hope that it creates an agreement that makes the world--and particularly that region--safer.

We can only really accept Iran as a member of the global community not just by entering into this agreement, but by them joining the world community by not being a nation that can take a young man who served his country, who grew up here, was the captain of his high school hockey team, simply wanted to go to see the country that his parents were born in, and to visit the grandmother that he had never met. To hold him as a political prisoner, as a chip in a geopolitical struggle, is beyond the pale; and it is something that can't be accepted.

Please, my friends, my colleagues, join me in continuing to raise your voices to make sure that not one day passes--especially during this period where we are considering this potentially historic agreement--not one day passes where Amir Hekmati, Jason Rezaian, Pastor Abedini, Mr. Levinson, that their cases, their names, are never forgotten.

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