Zan, Zendegi, Azadi: Women, life, freedom

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The Freedom From Religion Foundation’s “secular underground railroad” has given a $5,000 stipend to support the work of Faithless Hijabi. The following is an article explaining why the group was formed and what help it offers.

https://www.freethoughttoday.com/free/zan-zendegi-azadi-women-life-freedom

By Zara Kay and Nick Forbes

“Zan, Zendegi, Azadi” (“Women, Life, Freedom”) is the rallying cry that has been heard every day from Iranians following the death of Mahsa Zhina Amini, who was tortured by the morality police in Iran and died on Sept. 16. Her death has sparked national and international protests for the end of 43 years of Islamic dictatorship in Iran.

Iranian women have been taking to the streets and leading the protests, supported by men from the younger to the older generations, making it clear that they want a leadership free of religious doctrine. The hijab clamped in their fists — many marchers setting the cloth alight as an act of defiance against a regime that demands they cover their “shameful” bodies — has been monumental as a symbol of freedom. The woman’s revolution happening in Iran right now encompasses the freedom for all people to live in a secular society with the separation of mosque and state, as women revolt against the hijab: the ultimate example of a woman’s bodily autonomy being stolen. Amini’s death has given rise to resilience against religious tyranny, but this revolution also represents the resistance against all forms of fundamentalism. Over the years, the laws have tightened so far as to restrict any form of freedom by the deployment of the morality police.

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