“Skate for your life, Bart! The Iranian Police are gaining on you.”
Toys and dolls based on The Simpsons cartoon series have been banned by Iran’s Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults (also known as Kanoon). No reason has been given as to why these toys are on the blacklist, however, the state organisation often places bans on characters from Western popular culture.
Since 1996, there has been a ban on the sale of Barbie dolls. Shopkeepers in Iran have been know to sell Barbie dolls under-the-counter, due to popular demand from children. In January, Iranian police raided a number of toy shops suspected of selling Barbie dolls.
Famous American comic-book characters, such as Superman and Spiderman, are not banned because Kanoon see these characters as heros helping oppressed people. Even according to official estimates, almost a third of all toys brought to Iran from overseas are smuggled-in.
Informer: Daily Telegraph
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