#MenInHijabs has gone viral, following a call for men to support women’s rights by Iranian journalist and activist Masih Alinejad. Photo: Facebook.
Men in Iran are wearing hijabs in a display of solidarity with women across the country who are forced to cover their heads in public.
Wearing a headscarf is strictly enforced by so-called ‘morality police’ in Iran and has been since the Islamic Revolution in 1979. Women who do not wear a hijab or are deemed to be wearing ‘bad hijab’ by having some of their hair showing face punishments ranging from fines to imprisonment.
State-funded adverts appearing on billboards in Iran present those who do not cover their hair as spoiled and dishonourable. Women are also told that by not complying, they are putting themselves at risk of unwanted sexual advances from men.
But women are leading protests against enforced hijab across the country and some have resorted to shaving their hair in order to appear in public without wearing a veil.
Over the last week, a number of men have appeared in photos wearing a hijab with their wife or female relative next to them who have their hair uncovered.
The images come in response to a call by Masih Alinejad, an Iranian activist and journalist living in New York, who is urging men to support her campaign against enforced hijab.
Ms Alinejad runs the My Stealthy Freedom campaign and often shares pictures of women living in Iran who have enjoyed a moment of ‘stealthy freedom’ by taking their hijab off outside of a domestic setting. She has asked men to support her campaign with the #meninhijab hashtag and by sharing pictures with their heads covered while women pose without hijabs.
Ms Alinejad has received 30 images of men wearing a hijab since issuing her call on 22 July. She told the Independent some men are also posting their images on their Instagram accounts.
This is a great example of being a good ally, and how to do solidarity in an effective manner. #MenInHijab Full story here.
This is really sweet. I know it’s important and pretty much life-and-death, too, but it’s also really, really sweet.
The “dissonance” in the pictures grabs attention.
The dude on the right looks like a natural comedian. I first thought the guy on the left was just wearing a pink hoodie.
I’ve heard some anecdotes of men ogling women’s ankles (directly) or the shape of the the body (when wind or movement pulls the chador on tighter over the hips) in Iran. That sums it up for “modest clothing”. Of course, Abrahamic authoritarianism and propertarianism makes it necessary to create a patriarchal hierarchy with the signaling of status and rank in order to make it possible for the parasitic elites preserve their privileges. Wonder if other parasites use patriarchy elsewhere to preserve their power…