Women in Iran: Pushing Through Gender Blocks

Iranian women continue to show the world that they are strong, bold and relentless— their stories and photos speak volumes & show us that they aren’t afraid to oppose the regime that wants to oppress them, strip them of rights and keep them silent.

Women in Iran have recently been shown leading the anti-government protests that followed the 2009 election, but Iranian women have been fighting the gender gap for much longer than they have received credit for. Women have been fighting for their rights since the Islamic revolution in 1979. However, there’s something different about the Iranian women today and a few factors could be the cause. There’s a new generation of women in Iran now. In fact, there’s a growing population of young women who have an insatiable hunger for social & religious freedom & women’s rights.

Women in Iran were granted right to vote in 1963. They were first admitted to Iranian universities in 1937. Since then, several women have held high-ranking posts in the government or parliament. Before the 1979 revolution, several women were appointed ministers or ambassadors. Farrokhroo Parsa was the first woman to be appointed Minister of Education in 1968 and Mahnaz Afkhami was appointed Minister for Women’s Affairs in 1976.

Women are increasingly more active in their careers & higher education. Though they are denied many basic rights, they are allowed to own their own businesses. In fact, nearly 70% of Iran’s science and engineering students are women. Regardless of how educated an Iranian woman may be, they are still face discrimination in legal realms such as inheritance, custody and court testimony. However, the women os Iran have been known to have a more prominent and vocal role in society and politics than many other Islamic countries in the Middle East. This could be the reason why Iranian women are able to make a mile out of the inch of freedom they may have.

Saudi Arabian businesswoman and blogger, Khoulod Al Fahed gave a call of action during the political unrest in Iran to all middle eastern women, “This is our time, women’s time. It is the time for women to speak up and demand the rights that have been stolen from us in the name of religion and culture.” The Iranian women have been doing just that. Neda Agha Soltan,  Marzieh Amirizadeh Esmaeilabad and Maryam Rustampoor are testaments of the boldness of the Iranian women.

Iranian girls watching the Iranian soccer team play in Dubai. Women are banned to watch soccer in stadiums in Iran.

The truth is, the Iranian women have no choice but to protest for CHANGE in IRAN. They have the most to gain. For far too long, the Iranian women have been denied basic rights that many women around the world take for granted- things like expressing themselves through fashion, attending sporting events and going on dates publicly.

Isobel Coleman, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and author of Paradise Beneath Her Feet: Women and Reform in the Middle East, has said she is “not surprised at all by the level of participation among Iranian women” in the recent protests and election. More women in Iran voted during the 2009 election than ever before.

“The desire for gender equality has grown as satellite dishes, the Internet and other technologies have allowed Iranians easier access to the outside world, he said, especially among the large youthful population in a country where the median age is 27.” -Emily Bazar of USA Today

Watch this dynamic report by WorldFocus.org on Women in Iran who are pushing through gender blocks in their society…

Read more about the history of Iranian Women here.