Dr. Maziyar Ghiabi, a scholar in political sociology and Middle Eastern studies at the University of Oxford, has published a groundbreaking ethnographic study that sheds light on one of Iran’s most complex and underrepresented social issues: the everyday lives of drug users in Tehran. His article, titled “Under the Bridge in Tehran: Addiction, Poverty and Capital,” appears in the academic journal Ethnography and is the result of four years of immersive fieldwork.
This study is a landmark in urban sociology and drug policy literature, not only for its methodological depth but for its humanity. Through extensive ethnographic research between 2012 and 2016, Ghiabi offers a compelling portrait of individuals marginalized by addiction, economic instability, and urban development in Tehran. The work challenges conventional narratives and calls for a re-evaluation of how addiction is addressed, both medically and socially.
Ethnography on the Margins of Tehran
The title of the study, Under the Bridge, is both literal and symbolic. It refers to the actual locations beneath highways, overpasses, and derelict areas of Tehran where homeless drug users live, and to the broader socio-political condition of invisibility in which these individuals exist. In places like Harandi Park and Farahzad Valley, Ghiabi observed and documented the lives of hundreds of men and women who navigate addiction alongside poverty, displacement, and criminalization.
Rather than depicting these individuals as passive victims or social outcasts, Ghiabi captures them as actors—resilient and resourceful—shaped by the pressures and contradictions of modern urban life. He explores their survival strategies, moral worlds, and personal narratives, many of which counter the dominant state discourse on drug use.
Ghiabi’s study sits at the intersection of anthropology, political sociology, and critical urban studies. It provides a bottom-up view of what it means to live in Tehran’s drug-using communities and raises essential questions about the effectiveness and ethics of current drug policies.
Rethinking Addiction: Beyond the Brain Disease Model
A major theme in Ghiabi’s research is a challenge to the biomedical model of addiction, which dominates most state-sponsored drug programs in Iran. The prevailing approach, borrowed from Western frameworks, regards addiction primarily as a neurological disorder treatable through pharmacological intervention—namely, methadone maintenance therapy.
While Ghiabi does not dismiss these treatments, he demonstrates that they fall short of addressing the deeper social, emotional, and economic dimensions of drug use. His research reveals that for many, addiction is bound up with housing insecurity, unemployment, family estrangement, and decades of political marginalization. The recovery process, therefore, cannot be divorced from these realities.
His ethnography includes numerous accounts from people who define “getting better” in spiritual or communal terms rather than in clinical ones. Some speak of regaining dignity through work or prayer, others through friendship and collective care. These perspectives underline the limitations of a purely medicalized response to addiction.
The Role of Urban Planning and Displacement
Tehran’s rapid urban development has significantly shaped the landscape of addiction and recovery. As new construction projects rise across the city, spaces once occupied by homeless or drug-using communities are being demolished. Ghiabi’s research shows how this urban cleansing—often justified in the name of beautification or security—forces people into even more precarious conditions.
One striking example is Farahzad Valley, where for years an informal community of drug users coexisted with harm reduction outreach efforts. In the mid-2010s, however, the area was cleared out, and outreach services lost access. This pattern of displacement repeats across Tehran, disrupting whatever fragile networks of support exist for those at risk.
Ghiabi frames these transformations as part of a broader regime of spatial control, where urban policy intersects with public health and law enforcement. His work urges policymakers to reconsider the consequences of displacement and to incorporate inclusive, long-term strategies into urban planning.
Harm Reduction and the Ethics of Care
Another key element of Ghiabi’s study is the documentation of harm reduction efforts—both formal and informal—within these communities. In many cases, state-run centers provide methadone, HIV testing, and hygiene kits. However, Ghiabi also highlights grassroots efforts led by activists, former users, or health workers who operate in conditions of legal and political ambiguity.
The ethics of care in these environments, he writes, often conflict with official policy. For instance, outreach workers may face pressure to act as informants or to push clients into abstinence-based programs, even when such programs are unsuitable. Despite these constraints, many harm reduction actors continue their work out of a deep sense of solidarity and ethical responsibility.
This dual reality—of care and coercion—adds another layer of complexity to Iran’s drug policy landscape. It is a reminder that effective solutions cannot be implemented through law enforcement or medication alone. They require an understanding of the human relationships and social contexts that make recovery possible.
Academic Reception and Broader Impact
Since its publication, Under the Bridge in Tehran has attracted significant attention from scholars in anthropology, Middle Eastern studies, and public health. It is praised for its narrative richness, its critical stance toward dominant policy models, and its innovative ethnographic method. The article is part of Ghiabi’s broader body of work on drugs, politics, and society in the Middle East, which includes his 2019 book Drugs Politics: Managing Disorder in the Islamic Republic of Iran (Cambridge University Press).
Beyond academia, Ghiabi has shared his findings in policy forums and interdisciplinary conferences, contributing to a growing call for drug reform and social justice in Iran and elsewhere. His work invites new approaches to social medicine—ones that prioritize dignity, agency, and lived experience over punishment and pathologization.