Protests Erupt around the World in Support of Iranian Women’s Rights

On September 16, 2022, Mahsa Amini, a twenty-two-year-old woman, was killed by morality police in Iran for not wearing her hijab (head scarf) correctly. It is believed that the morality police beat Amini to death following these accusations. In Iran, the morality police’s sole purpose is to enforce Iranian religious laws, such as women covering their entire bodies in clothing and wearing a hijab.

Since her death, protests all over the world have erupted supporting Iranian women. Some women in Iran believe the mandatory hijab is against their basic rights and they should be able to dress how they wish. Women in different cities, both in Iran and around the world, threw off or burned their headscarves to demonstrate solidarity with their fellow Iranian women.

“Women, life, freedom” has become a popular chant at protests and demonstrations. The police have been using force to suppress the uprisings, which has only led to more deaths. This is said to be the largest set of protests Iran has seen in years, specifically over women’s rights issues.

CNN reported that “Security forces have killed at least 326 people since the protests began two months ago, according to the Norway-based Iran Human Rights NGO.”

The more people killed, the stronger the protests become. Women and men all over the globe have stepped forward to show their solidarity with the women of Iran, even when faced with arrest and death threats from the Iranian government.

The US department of state released a statement regarding the internet shutdown in Iran by the government following these protests, “Millions of Iranians rely on these and other tools to connect with each other and to the outside world. By blocking, filtering, or shutting down these services, the Iranian
government is suppressing the right of peaceful assembly and freedoms of association and expression”

This shutdown of the internet has made it difficult for reporters and journalists to know exactly what is going on at these protests and how many people are being killed.

Recently, the Iranian government issued a death sentence to a protester. The court reported the protester was a part of setting a government building on fire and showed “enmity against God.” It is believed this will not be the first nor last execution of protesters in Iran.

Iranian women have fought for centuries for their rights. And these protests may go down in history as the beginning of the end of the theocratic government rule in Iran.

SOURCES
https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/14/middleeast/iran-protests-first-death-sentence-intl
https://www.state.gov/joint-statement-on-internet-shutdowns-in-iran/
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-63621330
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/26/world/middleeast/iran-protests-40-days.html