A large number of Iranian women are taking to the streets without hijabs in defiance ahead of tomorrow's second anniversary of the death of the girl Mahsa Amini in police custody, where she was because her hair was sticking out from under her headscarf.
Mass protests followed the death of Mahsa Amini.
In videos posted on social media, women are seen walking by with their hair exposed over their shoulders, especially in the evening.
There is defiance despite what UN investigators say is the spread of repressive measures by Iran's theocracy to punish unruly women.
The new reformist president Masud Pezeshkiyan promised in the election campaign that he would prevent the morality police from harassing women. But the main authority in the country is still the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who said that "revealing (parts of women's bodies) is prohibited both religiously and politically."
Mahsa Amini died in the hospital on September 16, 2022, after she was arrested and abused by the morality police because she allegedly did not wear the headscarf - "hijab" as prescribed, so her hair was sticking out. Protests over her death began with chants of "Women-life-freedom!" but soon turned into open calls for rebellion against Khamenei and the theocratic state government.
In the months-long action against the demonstrations, more than 500 people died, and more than 22.000 were detained.
Today, on the streets of Tehran, women without the "hijab" are a common sight.
Videos on the web, especially walking tours of the city's streets for those in the world who want to see life in the bustling neighborhoods of Tehran, show women going without the "hijab".
Disobedience, however, is still risky because a few months after the protests were suppressed, the morality police returned to the streets, and the government is also conducting repression against private companies in which women wear headscarves. In August, the pro-reform newspaper "Ham Mihan" reported on an unpublished survey under the supervision of the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Orientation, which showed that the "hijab" is one of the most important issues in Iran, which was not the case before.
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