Resisting Iran’s Theocracy

On September 16, 2022, a young woman from the Kurdish town of Saqez in northwest Iran travelled to Tehran. Shortly after her arrival, she was arrested for wearing an “improper hijab” and later died while in the custody of the “Morality Police.” Her tragic and unjust death sparked a series of protests and her name Zhina (Mahsa) soon became a national symbol of resistance to an oppressive, theocratic and misogynist government.