Mahsa Amini's Death Sparks Long Awaited Blaze

Mahsa Amini, a 22 year old woman, was killed by Iranian morality police. Her death has sparked a long awaited blaze.

Mahsa Amini never meant to become an icon for revolution. She was one to follow the rules and never wanted to start trouble. Amini lived in the countryside of Iran, but in mid-September she and her family took a trip to Tehran (the capital of Iran) to visit an uncle. The moment Amini stepped foot in the train station in Tehran, she was doomed. Instantaneously, she was separated from her family by Iran’s morality police. A bit of hair was showing from her hijab. She screamed and cried in hope of being returned to her family. She instead was taken to a detention center and never seen alive again.

Records show that Amini died on September 16, 2022, but there is some confusion in regards to her cause of death. The Iranian government claims heart failure from a pre-existing condition. Amini’s family claims that she was completely healthy. Women who were also in the detention center claimed that Mahsa had been beaten by guards and was begging for them to spare her life. The morality police have since denied this.

Mahsa’s death captivated not only the women of Iran, but women worldwide. Shortly after, women took to the streets of cities across Iran chanting, “Woman, life, liberty.” They gathered in the cemetery where she was buried. According to the BBC, riot police began shooting at peaceful protesters who had gone to mourn Mahsa’s death. Women began cutting their hair and burning their hijabs on the streets of Tehran. These protests were said to have resulted in “hundreds of deaths and thousands of arrests,” as stated in Time Magazine.

They were faced with angry police officers, yet they persisted. According to the United Nations, at least 8 women were sentenced to death for protesting; but together, they are fighting for change. They are fighting for a government and society that values choice. This movement has been mostly championed by young women, especially school girls. They reportedly take off their hijabs and frequently voice their disdain for the government. Their bravery inspired school girls in India to sue their government for discriminating against them. India’s Supreme Court recently banned hijabs in schools, leaving Muslim students fighting for the right to freely practice Islam.

Now, none of this is actually about the hijab. Most women in Iran don’t want to ban the hijab and the women of India don’t want to force anyone into wearing the hijab. What these two groups of women want is choice. Both keen on bringing about change. Both want to give future generations one thing: free will.