This is a common narrative I’ve been hearing about Iran in mainstream spaces since I started following politics. What exactly is the truth here? How much of it is overblown and what a life of an average woman actually looks like in Iran?
Tehran is a very liberal city and has a lot of women who dont wear hijab.
Yup
and also she shouts: “‘Death to Israel, victory comes from Allah, Fck you Netanyahu, Fck you!’”
no. There are laws against not wearing a hijab but they have been relaxed significantly over the last couple years and they never had a death penalty attached to them. One woman died in custody a few months back but it was from complications from an existing health condition and she wasn’t being held for not wearing a hijab.
Probably not. You can see women without any head covering even in the pro-government rallies that are currently happening. Especially in the big cities it is not uncommon to see that fairly regularly.
Now, rural areas, sure they tend to be more conservative and therefore it is more likely to encounter repression there around this issue, but it’s not the government doing it, it’s the families and local community.
Ideal? No. But far from what is claimed in western propaganda.
