An online campaign is empowering Iranian women to remove their hijab, boldly defying the ultra-conservative regime.
Known as My Stealthy Freedom, the movement’s Facebook page is filled with images of women untying their headscarves. Now, participants are filming the rebellion, challenging the government’s allegation an uncovered woman will be subject to harassment, The Independent reports.
Iranian women have officially been required to wear the hijab since 1983, according to a report by The Middle East Institute. Punishment ranges from lashings to imprisonment. A recently uploaded video on My Stealthy Freedom’s page purportedly shows women in an Iranian police station, arrested for showing their hair.
Participants unveil for many reasons, some saying they believe in wearing the hijab as Muslim woman but don’t think it should be mandatory, BuzzFeed reports. Others insist they just want to feel the wind in their hair.
My Stealthy Freedom Facebook
The Iranian government tried to discredit its founder, journalist Masih Alinejad. State-owned media falsely reported Alinejad was raped by three men in the U.K. because she wasn’t wearing a hijab, according to The Independent.
Despite attempts to discredit the movement, it is growing increasingly popular, receiving over 800,000 likes on Facebook. Posts are accessible to an international audience, including translations from Iran’s language of Farsi into English and French.
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