“The Rise of Opium” - Part 9 of the new Roqe Media series, The Contemporary History of Iran. How is it that opium became an extremely popular substance for the citizens of Iran in the Qajar era, and reached a zenith in consumption and production in the early 20th Century? Was opium use always a negative? And when did it shift from a medicinal product that was eaten, to a recreational and dangerous drug that is smoked? Historian Dr. Rudi Matthee, author of, “The Pursuit of Pleasure: Drugs and Stimulants in Iranian History, 1500-1900,” joins Jian Ghomeshi from the University of Delaware to shed light on the dramatic rise of Persian opium use and cultivation in the 19th Century, and the roots of the current crisis of opioid addiction in modern-day Iran.--

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