This past weekend there were rallies, some of them involving thousands of people, in solidarity with the women of Iran who are risking their safety in their own public protests against state and religious oppression. These bold acts of resistance were sparked by the death of a young woman named Mahsa Amini who was beaten to death by the chillingly misnamed Morality Police.
In these Iranian protests some women burn their hijabs and cut off their hair as a direct challenge to the oppressive laws which have been imposed upon women for the past 40 years or more since "church and state" became a toxic mix in the country. I know, I know -- mosque and state.
This has me thinking about the excellent 2007 animated film, Persepolis, which was nominated for an Oscar. It tells one young woman's story of experiencing the shift from relative freedom and equality to stiflling control under fundamentalist Islamic rule.
Lest we think that this isn't an issue in "enlightened" countries, consider the disturbing laws being passed in the United States concerning women's reproductive rights. Pregnant women and medical practitioners are scared that a miscarriage could be investigated as a crime. Here in Canada there are lots of right-wing Christians who expect Conservative Party members of parliament to oppose legal abortion, and some of them do. We have our own versions of the Morality Police based on misguided perceptions of the bible and they are actually immoral.
I can't believe that this slide to the right has anything to do with God's intention, however God is named. May God/Allah protect those who are seeking justice and equality in Iran.
1 comment:
The extreme right wing seems to be gaining a lot more ground in the past few years, and it is frightening, and brings back the idea of an angry, vengeful god, bent on finding and clobbering "sinners". Atheists are much kinder, in most cases !
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