A few questions featuring Arad, who was voted Model of the year by our readers.

Why did you want to participate in the book?

I knew that participating in the SEX = POWER = FREEDOM book would be a perfect way for me help others by telling my story of how I escaped from Iran and why obtaining political freedom was so important to me that I left all of my family behind in Iran and risked by life by escaping on foot through the snowy mountains from Iran to Turkey.   I think it is important to tell my story because most people are unaware of what it is like for most people that have to live in countries like Iran where people are denied every type of freedom and personal choice.  In Iran, I was not allowed to wear my hair the way I wanted or shave my face, or wear a t-shirt, or be a model or a body builder and people aren’t even allowed to date or have sex outside of a heterosexual marriage because everything is controlled by the government.  If I would have been identified as gay by the Iranian police or government I would have been killed. I hope the book will let me tell my story and bring awareness to the plight of those who still must live in places like Iran and those that have been imprisoned, tortured and killed simply because they were LGBT or opposed their governments.

You’ve had quite a personal experience, escaping from Iran, into Turkey and finally, the U.S. How has this aspect of your background influenced your work as an Andrew Christian model? 

When you go from living in an oppressive country like Iran to living in a free country like the United States you feel like one’s world is turned upside down.  At first, I felt very disoriented, everything was new and I didn’t speak English but I recognized that Americans have a basic respect for each other which doesn’t exist in Iran. In the United States, people smile and are generally happy.  For me freedom and happiness are contagious and I want to help spread hope to other LGBT people who must live in any oppressive environments whether it is a small town in the U.S, or with a family that isn’t accepting or in a country like Iran where people aren’t allowed even basic freedoms.   I also want to raise awareness for the plight of those who live in hostile oppressive countries and help make Americans understand that most people from the middle east are just like you and me…they want to live in peace and freedom and many good people need our assistance.

What’s the best part about working with Andrew Christian?

Andrew Christian is revolutionary!  I think the best part of working with Andrew is that there isn’t any judgment with him or the company.  Andrew Christian promotes and accepts people for who they are.  Andrew does so many amazing things for the LGBT community and this book is just one of the many good things that Andrew has done since I have known him.   Besides the overall message of freedom, one of the best parts of the book is that Andrew listed everyone name who contributed to the book on a thank you page in the back of the book so that everyone can be part of this project.  I am so proud that Andrew created this book and allowed me to be part of it because he is the only one I know who is brave enough to print a sexy 200-page photo book with a political LGBT empowerment message.

Tell us briefly about growing up in Iran, to give our reader’s an idea of your upbringing… (Although with the countries attitudes to the LGBT community). 

Living in Iran was not a happy life…people are just trying to try to survive day-to-day.  I think it is important to tell my story because most people are unaware of what it is like for most people that have to live in countries like Iran where people are denied every type of freedom, personal choice and chance to advance your life.  In Iran, I was not allowed to wear my hair the way I wanted or shave my face or wear a t-shirt, and people aren’t even allowed to date or have sex outside of a heterosexual marriage because everything is controlled by the government.  If I would have been identified as gay by the Iranian police or government I would have been killed.

What was happening in Iran before you left/during your escape? 

I was in the military in Iran but decided to leave because I knew I would not be able to have any type of life that would provide me any happiness there.  In countries like Iran people have no respect for each other and most people aren’t happy.  Obtaining political freedom was so important to me that I left all of my family behind and risked my life by escaping on foot through the snowy mountains from Iran to Turkey.  I had no passport but my family did pay a guide to take me half way through the mountains.  One I was in Turkey I was arrested for having a forged passport and imprisoned for 6 months.  During this time Turkey was getting ready to deport me back to Iran where I would have been hanged for being a military deserter.  I was able to get a message from prison to my family and they hired an attorney which contacted the United Nations refugee program.  I was only accepted into their refugee program because the U.N. knew that I would be killed if I was sent back to Iran.

How did this affect you? (Were you scared?) 

Being in a Turkish prison was horrible but I did meet other Iranian people in prison who were also trying to escape from Iran and they were the ones who told me about the United Nations refugee program that ultimately saved my life.

Tell us about your escape, and how you got to America? 

When I was in prison in Turkey I was able to get a message to my family and they hired an attorney which contacted the United Nations refugee program.  I was accepted into their refugee program because the U.N. knew that I would be killed if I was sent back to Iran.   After I was released from prison I had to stay in Turkey for three years for all of the U.N. paperwork to be finished.

What happened once you were there, and how did you end up modeling for Andrew Christian? 

After my paperwork was completed by the U.N. I was flown to Dallas Texas and I only had $300.  I did have a case manager who trying to help me with the basics of survival but it wasn’t easy. At first, I felt very disoriented, I didn’t speak English, everything was new and there were endless consumer choices.  My case worker helped me get a job at an elevator company but It didn’t pay much and had to ride my bicycle 1.5 hours each way to get to it.  The U.N. makes refugees repay their airline tickets so I spent the next year trying to pay that off…but at least I was free and I appreciated that Americans have a basic respect for each other which doesn’t exist in Iran.  I knew I needed a way to make more money so I became a gogo boy.  The first night I worked I made more money that working 4 months in Iran.  Being a gogo boy I was able to learn about the amazing work Andrew Christian is doing for LGBT empowerment and was invited to become one of Andrew’s Trophy Boys.

Had you dreamt of modeling before, or was this something new?  

I had always wanted to model but that isn’t even a choice in Iran. U unless one follows the strict religious laws you will be arrested.

Can you give any words of advice/comfort to those that are in similar situations to yours? 

I knew that participating in the SEX = POWER = FREEDOM book would be a perfect way for me help others by telling my story of how I escaped from Iran and why obtaining political freedom.  For me freedom and happiness are contagious and I want to help spread hope to other LGBT people who must live in any oppressive environments whether it is a small town in the U.S, or with a family that isn’t accepting or in a country like Iran where people aren’t allowed even basic freedoms.   I also want to raise awareness for the plight of those who live in hostile oppressive countries and help make Americans understand that most people from the middle east are just like you and me…they want to live in peace and freedom and many good people need our assistance.

Andrew Christian just released his book SEX = POWER = FREEDOM. It’s an interesting book, which I happen to have a copy of the book. It’s definitely interesting. I think the reason behind it some of you guys would find interesting. It’s not just a sex book for shock value, Andrew Christian did it for a reason. Tomorrow we will have an interview with Arad about his involvement in the book. He was voted the Best model of 2017 in our Reader Awards.

Let’s talk about SEX = POWER = FREEDOM. Why did you decide to release this kind of book?

This book has been something I have been wanting to undertake for many years to give voice to the ideals and beliefs that I hold dear to my heart. When Trump was elected President, I knew it as important to tear into the subject of how one’s openness to their own sexual identity relates to emotional freedom and how societies acceptance of equal rights for the LGBT community relates to political freedom.  When I first envisioned the book my vision of it was very simple, it was going to be a book of sexy photos of my half-naked models, as one might expect from Andrew Christian, but as the idea developed I realized that a “sexy photo book” could be so much more and could give me a platform to really express my views toward promoting LGBT empowerment.  As the idea percolated over the months it became even more clear to me that sex = power and power = freedom so I named the book SEX = POWER = FREEDOM.

Madonna got a lot of heat in the early 90s for her book “Sex.” Did you have any reservations about publishing SEX = POWER = FREEDOM? 

Growing up in Fresno California, Madonna was my hero and inspiration as she wrote her own rules and tore down all the walls that people tried to throw her up against. If people are comparing my book with Madonna’s Sex book than I am honored.  Over the years I have been lucky enough to gain a small voice in the LGBT community and I have come to appreciate that my words and voice do have meaning. If lending my voice to a cause or belief can help even one person feel better about themselves or improve their life in any meaningful way then all the work and struggle I have gone through to gain that voice has been worth it. I think it’s also about me and my company being that beacon of light to LGBT people living in small towns or countries where the LGBT community is not accepted and letting them know there is a way out and a future for them.

With the major political changes we are currently experiencing in the United States, to what extent do you think this book could change people’s opinions on sexual diversity and LGBT issues?

I am not sure it will change anyone’s opinion but hopefully, it will reinforce the overall message of my book of  LOVE!  We need to take care of each other, we need to be aware and concerned about the struggles of others and we need to teach compassion and non-judgment. These are some of the biggest lessons I have learned in my life. We all can make a conscious decision to practice this every day. Discrimination against people based on their sexual orientation is passing judgment against them and it is certainly more a reflection on the person making the judgment than the person being judged.  One message I would like readers to take away from the book is we need to love ourselves and we need to love each other.  There are many out there in the world that still believes that sexual orientation is a choice or a disease and would love the rid the world of the LGBTI community. We need to remember that we are all like-minded brothers and sisters and we need to stick up for each other no matter where we live in the world. Let’s lift each other up instead of tearing each other apart on social media about things that are petty and inconsequential; let’s spend our time thinking about important social and human rights issues that have real meaning in people’s lives and let spend our efforts helping those we can.

Many of the photos are sexually suggestive, but none actually display men engaging in intercourse. Were there any specific rules that you had to follow from the publisher?

Unfortunately, in trying to get my book printed, I had many printers reject the project.  It was clear to me that many were rejecting the project because they were homophobic and one was even more blatant as he outright laughed in my face over the subject.  When one lives in a big city like Los Angeles it is easy to forget that most of the world still doesn’t accept the LGBTI community and will do whatever they can to silence us and our advancement into mainstream society.  Although the rejection of my “homosexual” book was shocking and having people laugh in my face was even more insulting, it made me more determined than ever to see it through to print and fully execute my first amendment rights.

Where do you draw the line between risqué art and pornography?  

My artistic vision for the book was to show all facets of sexuality, without any judgment or morality. I didn’t consider anything to go too far for the book, what one person may think is pornographic and taboo another may consider totally acceptable. One important message of my book is non-judgment.

Were there any concepts that were too risqué to make the final cut?

I did have trouble finding a printer who would print the original version which went much further than the current Silver and Gold Editions that I ended up printing; but I have found a printer that is willing to produce my original, and much more risqué, Black version and I hope to release this later this year.

Who came up with the ideas for the scenes?  Do any of them represent your personal fantasies?

Although the images in the book appear overtly sexual, if you read the text you will understand it is really a political statement. I enjoyed creating this mash-up of sex and politics and wanted to present these concepts in a novel way so I chose a coffee table photo book which I hope will help further this important conversation.

The book has 200 pages of beautiful and artistic shots, but do you have that one favorite photo or scene?

I really love everything in the book, but If you look closely you will find a couple of pages of guys with the Jewish star and Christian cross tattoos kissing other guys with  Muslim symbol tattoos.  I think this speaks to the message love in the book.  Love will always win, we just have to let it and mutual support and non-judgment are the first steps.

How instrumental has INDIEGOGO been for the creation and publication of SEX = POWER = FREEDOM?

When I started this project I had a vision for the book but wasn’t sure how I would make it into a reality so I was amazed to see how involved the fans became in the Indiegogo campaign from very early on.  I was shocked and humbled that in only 60 days I raised over $105,000 with over 1,000 contributors and I was thrilled that with their help I was actually going to be able to create this book and go on this journey with them.  To show my appreciation to everyone that contributed to the project I listed their names in the book and I am so proud of each and every one of them for believing in me and my message.  The funds that we raised will allow me to take this message of LGBT empowerment on a world-wide book signing tour over this next year.  I would love to be able to meet as many people as possible that contributed to the project along with those that want to stand with me in promoting LGBT equality in the USA and around the world.

You’re about to go on a book tour starting in February. How are you preparing to travel cross country for the next few months?

We have only been booking venues for two weeks and we already have over 35 appearances confirmed so I am very excited to have the opportunity to travel around and meet the thousands of people who participated in funding the book and who shares my message of LGBTI unity and empowerment.  I am also excited to give away the Gold Limited Edition copies that I had printed as they aren’t available for purchase…anywhere…and one can only be gifted these at one of our book signing or charity events.