Nazanin Afshin-Jam MacKay

Most Canadians know Nazanin Afshin-Jam for her outspoken activism and as the author of the celebrated book, The Tale of Two Nazanins. She is also known for her music, the songs "Someday: The Revolution Song" and " I Dance 4 U" were chart toppers but on Parliament Hill she's best known for her marriage to Ottawa's most eligible bachelor and current Defence Minister, Peter MacKay. The former beauty queen, she was chosen Miss World Canada in 2003 and finished second to Miss Ireland in the Miss World competitions, was born in Tehran and came to Canada with her family when she was just a child. Nazanin is a graduate of UBC and furthered her studies at Queen's and the Sciences Po in Paris. She has been speaking out on human rights abuses, particularly on women's and children's rights in the Middle East, at a number of prestigious venues including speeches at the United Nations, the EU and the British Parliament. She is the co-founder of Stop Child Executions and she is also a licensed pilot, flying both gliders and powered aircraft. In 2012 she married Peter MacKay at a private ceremony in Mexico. They are expecting their first child this spring. Catherine Clark spoke to Nazanin Afshin-Jam about her life Beyond Politics.