As the government regime in Iran continues to enforce strict social mores, citizens have taken to social media in drag as a means of supporting Iranian women.
Iranian men have taken to dressing as Iranian women to protest the government’s harsh policies restricting women from the public sphere. These unusual photos have gone viral on social media, with the Facebook page gaining nearly 80 thousand “likes” in just two weeks.
What’s most surprising about these photos is that women do not appear in any of them. In this role reversal, the men dress as seductive women, along with the slogan “secret male liberation of Iran.”
The men who appear on the page are not associated with any organization, religion or political party, and all come from various cities across Iran– thus sending the message that the concern with Iran’s theocratic rule is a national issue.
“Despite the fear of being identified, these men are demanding the freedom and liberation of men in Iran,” the official Facebook page’s administrator said. “The use of humor may give a softer dimension to this hard and tough struggle, but the issue is dead serious.”
Photos range from pictures of men with headscarves, body hair and beards to pictures of Iranian men wearing lipstick, and to pictures of men in the classic Titanic pose. But all photos are an attempt to mock the Iranian regime, which currently forces women to wear head coverings in order to promote modesty and prevent sexual temptation.
This movement comes in the wake of the arrest of several young men and women for videotaping a version of the song “Happy” by Pharrell Williams. The confluence of these two evens highlights the question of the permissibility of personal happiness and freedom of expression within the country.