Women, Life, Freedom! A Message to the Iranian Government from a Young Woman of Iranian Descent

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On September 13th, 2022, Mahsa Amini, a twenty-two-year-old young woman was taken into custody in Iran. 

On September 16th, 2022, she died after being in a coma. The new movement around the world to raise awareness about the terroristic Islamic government in Iran and teach about Mahsa Amini, as well as the movement to give a voice to young women under the oppression of a misogynistic government has been at a high in the past few weeks. 

Amini was twenty two years old when she was taken into custody because her hijab was too loose, therefore not complying with the strict Islamic dress code. After the Islamic revolution in 1981, hijabs have been mandatory throughout Iran. On her way to an ‘education center’, Amini was beaten to within an inch of her life by morality police and she landed in a coma. She died three days later. The morality police, as well as the government, called it heart failure. When her family spoke out about Amini’s abuse, they said that the bruises and wounds scattered across her body had a different story to tell about her death. 

A young woman was brutally murdered by morality police because her headcovering was too loose. As unfortunate as Mahsa Amini’s death was, it has given courage to all women and has reminded us that the fight for our rights should never stop. Her story, specifically, is igniting vicious and passionate protests, as well as the one solution, revolution movement. If oppressive and entitled men do not back down, neither will we. If they think that they can prolong the battle by worsening our situation, they’re in for a rude awakening, because women don’t stop fighting. Women around the world are protesting, from Tehran to New York City. Horrifyingly, women are still being killed by the government for speaking out for Amini. “We ask the judiciary to deal decisively with the perpetrators of these crimes and with all those who assisted in the crimes and provoked rioters,” as stated by the government in Iran. For fighting for justice, women are still dying at the hands of the Islamic regime. In the flames burning hijabs through the streets of Iran are the bodies of passionate young women who know they deserve rights. It never ends. It will not end until all women unite to fight for their rights.

I am the granddaughter of an Iranian immigrant. This article is very close to my heart, because if not for my grandfather, I would have been in the same situation as these young women fighting for their rights. Ms. Rahimzada, my Tanakh teacher and daughter of Teherani parents, spoke out about the Islamic regime and misogynistic government in Iran: “I have never really felt a negative stigma on my heritage, which I have always viewed as deeply rich and colorful, although the current circumstances in Iran make things a little bit blurry. It’s important to me to be constantly reminding myself that the current situation in Iran is directly linked to the current government, and not the country as a whole, especially the one that my ancestors knew and loved so much. The distinction helps me separate my family’s heritage and culture from the deep issues that exist in the current Islamic regime that is controlling the country.” As a young woman of Iranian descent, I do not want to view my family’s homeland as a threat to my existence because it is only the government that is willing to murder for its values. The deep and vivacious culture that my grandparents built their home on should not be forgotten because of the oppressive Islamic regime. It is sickening that a government would murder a woman without thinking twice, using their religion to justify this, and lie about their crime. Government is supposed to protect their citizens, not kill the innocent ones, and more importantly, not let the violators of the law run free. As the granddaughter of an Iranian Immigrant, I chose to play my part in the fight to bring justice to Mahsa Amini and women around the world who are constantly being crushed by the patriarchy. I love my family and the beautiful Persian culture, but the rulers of my ancestors homeland are corrupt. 

A few weeks ago, my family and I went to a rally in protest against the Iranian government. The thirty minutes I spent standing in a crowd of passionate young women was an enlightening experience, because the moment I got there, women were chanting and crying in protest of the oppressive Iranian government. It was an overwhelmingly meaningful experience for me. 

I know that the likelihood of Ebrahim Raisi, president of Iran, and the rest of his government reading this is tremendously low, but I hope he hears what I, and women around the world, have to say to him: You can take away our human rights, our lives, but no matter how hard you try, our cries for freedom will drown you. No matter how hard you try to put us down, we will never stop fighting. Our rights are just as important as anyone else’s’, including yours. If your citizens are afraid to walk down the street in fear of being harassed and murdered, you are doing something wrong. If there’s anything we can do, it’s time to raise our voices.