{"id":14322,"date":"2022-10-01T16:50:25","date_gmt":"2022-10-01T15:50:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cassandravoices.com\/?p=14322"},"modified":"2022-10-01T16:50:25","modified_gmt":"2022-10-01T15:50:25","slug":"shameless-women-of-iran-unite","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/casswp.eutonom.eu\/index.php\/2022\/10\/01\/shameless-women-of-iran-unite\/","title":{"rendered":"“Shameless” Women of Iran Unite"},"content":{"rendered":"

Maryam was just a child when one day her parents left her at home alone and took her younger brother to the clinic. They refused to take Maryam<\/a><\/span>, although she insisted. <\/span><\/p>\n

When they returned home, Maryam\u2019s brother was in a white skirt in his father’s arms. For some reason they were very happy and congratulated her brother. \u201cYou have become a man,\u201d they said. “Well done”. Maryam\u2019s brother was crying, and they went on and on congratulating him on something.<\/span><\/p>\n

Maryam wanted to hug her brother and calm him down, but when she approached him, Maryam\u2019s mother immediately pulled her away and said: \u201cWhat are you doing? Can’t you see he’s in pain? Don’t disturb him until he recovers.”<\/p>\n

Maryam went to her room and plugged her ears so as not to hear his crying. A little later, the whole family – aunts and uncles – came to their house with a lot of gifts and food. Everyone was celebrating and dancing. Maryam\u2019s father bought to her brother a toy car that he promised my brother a long time ago.<\/p>\n

Maryam cautiously asked her mother, \u201cIs it my brother\u2019s birthday today?\u201d<\/p>\n

Her mother answered sharply “no” and left. Maryam was left with many questions in her head: why was everyone rejoicing and congratulating her brother; why was he in a skirt; why was it impossible to approach him? Everyone just said that he had become a man. From that day on, Maryam understood what circumcision meant.<\/p>\n

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Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Shameless<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Becoming a woman for Maryam turned into a disaster. Maryam still cries when she remembers the first day of her period. That day was the worst in her life.<\/p>\n

One day, when she was returning home from school, she felt severe pain in her stomach. Maryam writhed in pain. Having somehow made it home, she went to the toilet and saw blood on her underwear. She was shaking with fear, and for some reason she felt very ashamed. Overcoming fear and embarrassment, she called her mother. Suddenly, at the moment when Maryam, trembling with fear, was talking about the blood on her underwear, her mother hit her hard in the face, uttering only the word \u201cbehaya<\/em><\/strong>\u201d.<\/p>\n

The Persian word “behaya<\/em><\/strong>” (\u0628\u06cc \u062d\u06cc\u0627) is used for those who never listen to the rules of the female role. Usually people use the word “behaya<\/em><\/strong>” when describing someone’s behaviour as shameless.<\/p>\n

Maryam was shocked and started to cry: \u201cI felt that all my pride and my personality was crushed, that the world had come crashing down on me. I thought, what did I do wrong?\u201d<\/p>\n

Her mother took her hand, “Calm down, don’t cry, it’s a family tradition to follow when a girl first reports her period.” She added that the slap in the face would stop the girl from being shameless and rebellious in future, and would help her to remain worthy and innocent.<\/p>\n

Her mother began whispering to Maryam what it means to become a woman, and that becoming a woman should be kept secret between women. She explained different ways to hide this secret, and showed how and where to hide the menstrual pad before and after using it.<\/p>\n

Moreover, sometimes, according to the assurances of the mother, the pad must be washed so that none of the men sees menstrual blood. The mother said that when Maryam had her period, the brothers and father should know nothing about it.<\/p>\n

Maryam should not behave in such a way that someone understands that she is on her period. From that day on, she learned to hide her pain for a few days each month so that no one would notice that she was on her period.<\/p>\n

That day there were no gifts, no parties, no congratulations on Maryam becoming a woman. Even that purple toy horse, which Maryam had wanted for many years, and which her parents had promised, was never presented to her.<\/p>\n

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Iranian protestors on the Keshavrz Boulvard, September, 2022.<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I don\u2019t care even if I get fired or killed<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

While Maryam was growing up she had access to the Internet, and at the same time the path to the fight. Masih Alinejad’s “White Wednesdays<\/a><\/span>” campaign on Instagram first showed her this path in 2014. Many women, including Maryam, posted photos without a veil with hashtags.<\/p>\n

Since 2015, Maryam has ventured not to wear a veil: \u201cIt was much more difficult not to wear a veil in Tehran than in other regions of Iran. I was arrested every week by the morality police in Tehran. I was molested, I was constantly called the most terrible words every day by both the police and religious people. But I didn’t give up.”<\/p>\n

In March 2018, Maryam left Iran. She now lives in Georgia<\/a><\/span> and works for World Vision and UNHCR as a community group facilitator. Now Maryam Sharifi has become a well-known human rights activist. She is one of those who tirelessly disseminate information about all the crimes of the Iranian regime abroad.<\/p>\n

Feminism and feminist activities are against the Islamic laws in Iran. Therefore, there is no organization or feminist community in Iran. Some large cities have boarding houses or women’s shelters, but these are under government control.<\/p>\n

Maryam considers the elimination of taboos against women and informing women about their rights as the first and main priority in her activism:<\/p>\n

\u201cUnfortunately, the number of women who do not even know or do not want their basic human rights in Iran is greater than the number of feminists or women who are aware of their rights. Many women have accepted the traditional, unequal role of mother or daughter in their family, and they believe in all the laws of Islam, the laws of misogyny.\u201d<\/p>\n

Before agreeing to give an interview, Maryam asked not to censor her words: \u201cI am not afraid of anything and do everything for the freedom of women. People around me are always telling me, \u201cDon’t say things like that. This is dangerous. Your life may be in danger or even fired from your job,\u201d but I don\u2019t care if I get fired or killed. I don’t care, I just want to have a better society for future generations.”<\/p>\n

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Maryam Sharifi<\/span><\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We are silenced when we start talking about Islam<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

According to Maryam, Islam and the politics of Islamic countries<\/a><\/span> in the world are resisting the struggle of women in the Middle East with all their might and using the media around the world for this, creating a positive image of Islam:<\/p>\n

\u201cIslam is dangerous for the whole world, but people in the West think that Islam only affects the Middle East and has nothing to do with them. They are even afraid of the reaction of Islamic fanatics. They go to compromise. You can see for yourself in Europe, in the West and all over the world, Muslims promote Islam and violence. The media and international forces are silent and give them space. But when we criticize Islam, we are silenced or censored.\u201d<\/p>\n

Maryam has a Muslim colleague who is a facilitator for a community vision group. At one of the meetings, Maryam recalls, her colleague publicly defended patriarchy, where discrimination was discussed, and said that men should have more rights and power because they are the heads of the family.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe even told me once that if she saw a same-gender couple expressing their love in front of her, she would want to kill them. I wonder why this woman should work for a human rights organization? They want to show that a Muslim woman in a veil can be successful, but they do not show what dangerous thoughts this woman has and what dangerous children she can raise.\u201d<\/p>\n

Maryam herself is fundamentally against wearing a veil. She is convinced that it has become a symbol of control over women, imposed around the world for millennia to control the body and role of women.<\/p>\n

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Aged 32 Doaa Baker's decision to remove the #hijab<\/a> caused a humongous stir. She courts similar public opprobrium over a decision she made during this pandemic.https:\/\/t.co\/hXopSgHFBR<\/a>@broadsheet_ie<\/a> @indepdubnrth<\/a> @DLangwallner<\/a> @liamherrick @ICCLtweet<\/a> @RositaSweetman<\/p>\n

— CassandraVoices (@VoicesCassandra) April 16, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n