InIran, 530 people were killed and more than 22,000 arrested when young Iranians raised their fists in anger in the streets of Iran’s major cities over the death of a woman, Mahsa Amini in September 2022. Amini had been detained by Iranian religious police for improperly wearing a headscarf, often called a hijab.
Wearing a hijab is a legal requirement in Iran. Iranian law even dictates how to wear one. Unsurprisingly, the code of enforcement regarding its wear is enforced by angry young men who scoot around streets in motorcycles seeking out women with wardrobe malfunctions.
The key takeaway here isn’t the lunacy of forcing women into hijabs (it should be noted that many Iranian women are happy to wear them but that it should be a choice — sound familiar?). The takeaway is that this is not the first time that Iran’s youth has displayed a restive mood.