What narratives do second generation Iranian Americans use to understand their Iranian background and to situate themselves as Americans? I addressed this research question by conducting four in-depth interviews and two focus groups with women and men of Iranian descent between the ages of 18-27, who were born or have been in the U.S. since the age of 10. Through my interviews and the subsequent analysis I was able to illustrate that second generation Iranians utilize various narratives to situate themselves as Americans. In particular, three narrative themes emerged from my research. The immigrant narrative explored the processes that second generation Iranians go through in order to become Americans. The narrative of the Persian Empire and the Iranian regime allowed second generation Iranians to distance themselves from the negative connotations that are associated with the Iranian regime and the Middle East, by conjuring up the images and history that is associated with the Persian Empire. Lastly, the race narrative illustrates that second generation Iranians use a multitude of racial and cultural narratives to become a part of the white American mainstream, while simultaneously coming to terms with their “not quite white” ethnic identities. Iranian Americans use these particular narratives to understand their Iranian background and to situate themselves as Americans. Moreover, these narratives illustrate that Iranians occupy complicated subject positions in the U.S. due to the global politics that surround their identities.