The world has been mesmerized over the last several months by images of heroic Iranian women refusing the mandatory hijab and, along with their brothers and friends, taking to the streets to denounce an authoritarian system that denies free elections, free speech, and other basic rights to all of its citizens. The resulting crackdown by the regime has been intense, including public beatings, rapes, and executions by hanging, but the protesters are undaunted.
It is not just the people of Iran who stand to benefit from the success of this grassroots prodemocracy campaign, known as the Azadi (Freedom) movement. Freedom in Iran would make the country less threatening to its neighbors and the rest of the world, mark a huge victory for the cause of women’s rights globally, and represent a decisive break from the pattern of authoritarian expansion that Freedom House has documented for the last 16 years.
