Iran Update: A Force of Change?
Mahsa Amini
On September 16, more than 3 months ago, Mahsa Amini, an Iranian woman was arrested for not by Iran’s morality police for not wearing the compulsory headscarf. She did not make it out of prison alive. Police said she had a heart attack and fell into a coma, but her family said she did not have a previous heart condition. Allegations are floating around social media, claiming that she was beaten.
Since the Islamic Revolution in 1979, a segregated society had formed dividing men and women along distinct social lines. Deep-routed misogyny in Iran’s fundamentalist government has restricted the rights of women.
For instance:
Women are required to wear long clothes, banning shorts, ripped jeans, or anything “indecent”
Women cannot leave the house without the permission of the male household figure
Girls can legally be married at 9
Men can marry multiple women
Female murder victims receive less justice
Women cannot watch a football game
All women regardless of nationality or religion have to wear a veil to cover their hair
Specifically, in Amini’s case, the hijab become mandatory for women in 1983. Morality officers used to issue warnings before cracking down on women more than a decade ago.
Morality Police
After months of deadly protest, the theocratic government of Iran is considering making one major concession that may pave the way for change. Its oppressive mortality police are in the process of being abolished according to an Iranian official. Though, no official statement was made by the Iranian regime. Even if the mortality police were abolished, it would do little to keep demonstrators off the streets. Iranians are demanding more widespread systemic changes to their government. Their fight will not end with the termination of the morality police.
A Revolution in the Making
Iranians rose in an outcry against various issues, ranging from crippling economic sanctions to basic freedoms. Women burn their hijabs to demonstrate their frustration. The vast protests are met with live ammunition. Security forces killed at least 300 people, though, numbers are higher than reported by the Iranian government. Along with the arrest of thousands of demonstrators, famous Iranian influencers, such as Taraneh Alidoosti, Hengameh Ghaziani, and Katayoun Riahi, three famous Iranian actresses were arrested after expressing support on social media. Many Iranians would not be aware of the protests. The nation’s internet was cut in the wake of the uproar, preventing information from spreading.
Mahsa Amini: A Legacy Left on Iran
Iran’s inhumane enforcement of its strict dress code laws has been nothing but standard procedure ever since the Islamic Regime was established. If the protests are successful, women may receive equal rights with men, based on a modern interpretation of Islamic law. Amini’s death was nothing new to Iran’s women who have been dealing with it. It was her death and pent-up anger that sparked a movement, marking the beginning of women’s equality in one of the strictest strongholds of Islamic fundamentalism.
