Baha’is comprise the largest religious minority in Iran, where the Baha’i religionwas founded in the 19th century. According to the 2010 U.S. State Department International Religious Freedom Report, “Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, more than 200 Baha’is have been killed, and many have faced regular raids and confiscation of property.” In October 2010, the United Nations Secretary General issued a special report on human rights in Iran, stating that “the Baha’i, who comprise the country’s largest non-Muslim religious minority, face multiple forms of discrimination and harassment, including denial of employment, Government benefits and access to higher education.”

U.S. Representative Michael Grimm (NY-13) greets Secretary of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of the U.S., Ken Bowers; CSI: Miami star Eva LaRue and her family; Iranian-American Iraj Kamalabadi, brother of an imprisoned Iranian Baha’i; and Kathryn Cameron Porter, President of Leadership Council for Human Rights.

Eva LaRue with daughter, Kaya, and husband, Joe Cappuccio