My Journey
I want to share a part of my journey as a woman from a different region with you, which could be similar to my experience with some women experiencing inequity and discrimination. To be empathic and united, we do not need the same language, race, or identity; we only need to try to listen to and understand each other.
Like every other woman and girl in Iran, society has always prevented me from expressing myself and my needs. Since childhood, we have learned to censor ourselves, be different in various places, and hide our views. In essence, we are taught how not to be ourselves.
In such patriarchal societies, women are under tremendous pressure to be controlled. But women like me, who rebel, who demand, who question and fight for their rights, and who disregard the norms, also experience extreme pressure, such as rejection and exclusion. While obedient women may sometimes receive validation, disobedient women face reprimands and threats.
Despite these pressures, I could never reduce myself to the submissive person they wanted me to be. My curiosity to understand more about what has happened and is happening to us, the simple questions that were always left unanswered, the shifting of boundaries that seemed inevitable but were fragile, and the effort to know myself better—these required an unwavering and hopeful spirit that could responsibly stand up for creating change.
In short, living as an independent woman in a patriarchal society is a constant battle to remind others of your human rights among relatives, in educational places, at work, and in society. It's an effort multiplied many times over to be considered equal to a man in academic tests and job positions.
Running to achieve an everyday life toward a path that stretches so far you can't even imagine the destination eventually wears you out. Think and ask yourself, why? Why do I have to throw punches in this boxing ring every day? Because if you don't under the punches and kicks of a society where discrimination against women, inequality, and the dictatorship of a sick system prevail, if you pause even for a moment, you either discard, surrender, or get crushed.
I've often wished for the day when we wake up in the morning, look at ourselves in the mirror, and no longer see the gendered face of society or experience womanhood as being second-class. A day when we don't carry the burden of daily sexual harassment in the streets, at work, in words, or the media.
When you're still a child, and they put a headscarf on you in the name of maturity, about nine years old, instead of teaching you the life skills at school, they teach you the principles of religion and dictate how you should hide yourself from men, speak, walk, and avoid laughing out loud.
Being repeatedly punished, criticized, and ostracized for not following the instructions of "learn how to be second class" and for refusing to accept oppression is a shared experience.
When you're constantly monitored at university for a strand of hair that's showing, a short dress, nails that are long or painted, socks you didn't wear—or did wear but are too short or white.
In workplaces, you're reprimanded or even denied entry because your headscarf doesn't cover your breasts enough over your dress, your dress isn't loose enough to hide the movement of your hips as you walk, or the lipstick makes your face sharp among dark colors that you should wear. Everyone feels entitled to comment on your attire and remind you how you should be. Not only do people consider bodily autonomy a taboo subject, but they also label a woman who speaks about it as a prostitute. People use sexist language against women, no matter what. You are breathing violence every moment.
Society harshly punishes independent women who have demands and openly discuss women's rights, bodily autonomy, and sexual pleasures. Society humiliates, oppresses, and creates so many problems that you become traumatized and passive. And you lose the strength to move forward.
How I found my path has a long story, which I will mention here only in line with this content. As an artist and activist, my passion for art and transformation has always motivated me. As a teenager, I explored graphics, painting, and calligraphy, and after earning a bachelor's degree in physics, I shifted my focus to art research. My career has spanned various roles in the cultural sectors, including curator, trainer, and art advisor. After obtaining a publication license, I began publishing books and leading creativity workshops, driven by my belief in the transformative power of art. To expand my efforts, I started hosting exhibitions and, after receiving my coaching certification, embraced an interdisciplinary approach that merges art with self-development to enhance awareness and resilience among women. Meanwhile, I witnessed how women’s awareness could create social change. It was understandable for me, as an actual witness to the path we are on, which was started by our mothers and grandmothers years ago against misogyny. We are slowly but determinedly working to create changes at the core of society's culture and to transform collective wisdom.
The wonder of the "Woman, Life, Freedom" protest sparked in Sep 2022 lies in this path, where we are both the starting and ending points. We did not want our bodies to become their battleground; we wanted to have our bodily autonomy. Women burnt their scarves in the street; they cut their hair and posted their pictures on media to show unity with each other and their rights on their bodies, their anger, and mourning for sisters who were killed because of hair. This increased awareness leads to greater demand and reveals human and civil rights among women, which could create a massive movement like this, a turning point from which we can never return. Women eager to change society have risen, and even part of the men's support has been won. We have a core of resistance, and this drives us forward.
The One Million Signatures Campaign, a coalition of Iranian activists, began in 2006 to reform gender-discriminatory laws that limited women's rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran and the self-immolation of Homa Darabi to the path of seeking rights that have been clung to until today by the likes of Mahsa Amini, Nika Shahkarami, and all the women who have been killed, raped, imprisoned, under torture and oppression, are in exile, are, and have had their citizenship rights stripped away. To the grieving families of those left behind, I write this in honor of all these women.
With the “Woman, Life, Freedom” Protest, my business has been affected for the third time because of shutting down the internet. I was involved in what happened in the street, which brought me a lot of difficulties, emotional hardship, and mental issues. I was broken and intolerable, so I decided not to give up and try another way. So, I was forced to leave my country and decided to take more giant steps internationally for the women of my country and to demand equality for all women. I was accepted into the Korbel School of International Studies with a Sie Fellowship in International Studies. I have been researching, educating, and overcoming my leftover traumas in this academic environment for almost a year. As I advance my advocacy for women's rights and explore the intersection of art and social change, I am pursuing international studies focusing on artivism and cultural diplomacy and practicing the journey toward freedom.
“Woman, Life, Freedom” is not only a slogan but should also be a daily practice. It brings us closer to the equal future we want for our children.
Ultimately, we should work to ensure our voices reach other women and the world, learning from each other to advance gender equality. By sharing new methods and strategies of resistance, women globally can unite in their efforts.
