Tears of Iranian Women

In mid-September, Mahsa Amini was beaten to death by the police in Iran for not wearing her hijab properly. Protests then sparked for equal rights between all sexes, many have died so far for the cause. 

Mahsa Amini’s name has been chanted in revolt against the Islamic Republic, as many mourn the death of the woman who was unfairly beaten to death by morality police. Nothing has been done in government to give the people justice and safety against the corruption. Her death was the match to light the long-lasting ebbs of hatred in Iran for treatment of women.  

 “In the past couple of weeks, what’s happening in Iran has become a serious and important question. Protests have broken out in Iran over the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who was arrested by Iran’s morality police for “wearing hijab incorrectly.” According to the police, Amini died of sudden heart failure. However, her family — along with thousands of other Iranians — disagree, arguing that she was beaten to death while detained by police,” stated What’s Happening in Iran? – Girl Spring 

Morality police in Iran have not taken kindly to getting exposed and cursed by multiple victims. The truth of the matter is the only difference between Mahsa Amini and the victims before her, wrongfully killed by the police is the name and face. Violent outbreaks are a common occurrence that happen at the women’s rights protests in Iran. 

 “Police have responded to the protestors with violence, shooting several and arresting even more. As the strikes carry on, the death toll rises. This violence has caught the attention of the United Nations, who is strongly advising the Iranian government to respect the human right to civil protest,” wrote Bella Gentry from Girl Springs magazine. 

The families of the victims are suffering, too. Their daughters, wives, mothers are being killed by the morality police for demanding change to the government so, women do not have to be killed just because they don’t want to wear a hijab. Iranian government has yet to listen nor care about the cries of the women whom the country has oppressed. 

“Iran Human Rights, a Norway-based rights organization, said Tuesday that at least 154 protesters, including nine children have been killed by security forces during the recent protests. Very little is known about most of the victims as families are pressured to stay silent if they want the bodies of their loved ones to be handed over to them,” said Maryam Sinaee from Iran International. 

It is not surprising, however, that the government does not lend an ear to its people. There is a very long discriminatory track record of sexism in Iran that is hard to wash off. Some refuse to listen to the reasoning of equal rights between men and women simply because they do not wish to hear about it, or they agree with women being the “weaker sex.” 

According to the UN expert in report to the Human Rights Council, “Women and girls continue to be treated as second class citizens in Iran, citing domestic violence, thousands of marriages of girls aged between 10 and 14 each year and continuing entrenched discrimination in law and practice.” 

Women have been killed in protests due to law that don’t protect equal rights at all. Murder and unfair detainment are a common theme for those brave enough to protest; the government uses law to protect themselves from responsibility for their horrid actions. Hopefully, the people in power come to realize that human rights should be the law of the land, rather than just a suggestion. 

According to Maryam Sinaee from Iran Primer, “Mahsa Amini is one among countless victims of the Islamic Republic’s war on women,” said Hadi Ghaemi, executive director of the Center for Human Rights in Iran. “The government is responsible for her death and decades of women being harassed, detained and otherwise harmed under the guise of this discriminatory, inhuman law.”