Since the Muslim conquest of Iran (or Arab conquest of Iran) in 654 AD, Iranians who have been Zoroastrians for centuries were forced violently to convert to Islam. Since then, Iranians have been forced by the Islamic governments to follow Sharia law under the threat of severe punishments. One example of such a law is capital punishment for Muslims who convert to any other religion. Another is the mandatory Hijab for women from puberty (officially around 9 years old by the Sharia law). Women’s hair and beauty are considered a temptation for men to sin (and justification for all sorts of abuse), therefore to protect women from abuse and men from sin, women have to cover themselves in Hijab. Not wearing Hijab is a sin that will be severely punished in the afterlife by Allah. The history of mandatory hijab is as long as 14 centuries, except for a short period of 54 years during the Pahlavi kingdom. Since the Islamic Revolution in 1979, for more than 43 years, Sharia law has been practiced by the state, therefore mandating the Hijab for women of any religion on the state level. All women (Muslim, Christian, or any other religion or nationality) entering Iran are mandated to wear Hijab and those who don’t wear Hijab or wear it not “properly” would face punishment from the state. Morality Police have been enforced in almost every corner by the government to check on women’s Hijab (and in some cases correct men too, if they wear heavy metal t-shirts or summer shorts). Those whose Hijab is considered “not decent”, like Mahsa Amini, will be forced to go to the police station and will be held there for a while, usually, they will contact the father of the family to come to the police station. Morality Police would also demand from the women to write a letter of repentance and pledge to wear Hijab properly. The obligation of the Hijab and the brutality of the police have kept Iranian women in fear for more than 4 decades. The cases of abuse and violence by the police and the government are not new to Iranians. At the very beginning of the Islamic Revolution when Ruhollah Khomeini the leader of the revolution announced that Hijab should be mandatory for women, there were many protests by Iranian women across the country but they were brutally suppressed by the government. Participating in any political protest can lead you to years in prison, torture, or even capital punishment (if not killed or injured on the streets).

Iranian women as well as men demand their civil rights and freedom. Iranian women demand the freedom of the Hijab, the freedom to choose to wear Hijab or not. Among religious Muslim Iranian women, there are many who are against the mandatory Hijab. Iranians have been living under a middle ages religious government that shows no flexibility at all, thus leading many, like myself, to self-exile and immigrate or otherwise live under oppression. Freedom of expression, freedom of faith, and freedom of choice are all that Iranians wanted and fought for more than 4 decades. This is our fight. So long live Women, long live Life, long live Freedom, and long live Iran. This time will win over these heavily armed terrorist monsters.