As Fewer Women Wear Head Coverings, Iran's Leaders React
2023-05-19
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1More Iranian women are choosing not to wear the head covering called the hijab.
2Since the early years of Iran's Islamic Revolution, women have been required to cover their heads by law.
3Today, many public signs urge women to wear head coverings to honor their mothers.
4In recent weeks, the Iranian government has increased efforts to enforce its law requiring women to wear the hijab.
5It has closed some businesses for serving women not covering their heads.
6The government also has given warnings in public places and sent text message warnings to drivers carrying women without head coverings.
7More women have chosen not to wear the hijab after months of protests following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini.
8Amini died in September 2022 while being detained by police for wearing her hijab too loosely in public.
9Some women say they are fighting for more freedom in Iran and for a better future for their daughters.
10They also say the government will not be able to enforce the hijab law if more women refuse to wear it.
11"Do they want to close down all businesses?" said Shervin, a 23-year-old student in Tehran.
12"If I go to a police station, will they shut it down too?"
13However, the women worry about risk.
14The women who spoke to the Associated Press only gave their first names because they feared punishment.
15Vida is 29. She said a decision by her and two of her friends to stop covering their hair in public is about more than headscarves.
16"This is a message for the government, leave us alone," she said.
17Before September, it was rare to see women without hijabs.
18Today, it is common in some areas of Tehran to see women without them.
19Many Muslim women wear the hijab as a sign of respect for God and modesty in front of men outside of their families.
20Before the 1979 Revolution, many middle- and upper-class women chose not to wear the hijab.
21In 1983, head coverings in public became required by law. Punishments for breaking the hijab law include fines and up to two months in prison.
22In early April, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei declared that "removing the hijab is not Islamically or politically permissible."
23He also claimed that "enemy spies" were the ones pushing women not to wear the hijab.
24On April 25, officials closed a large shopping mall in northern Tehran for several days.
25The move came after women with their hair showing were seen spending time with men in a bowling alley.
26"It is a collective punishment," said Nodding Kasra, a 32-year-old salesman at a clothing shop in the mall.
27"They closed a mall with hundreds of workers over some customers' hair?"
28The reformist Iranian newspaper Shargh said police have shut down over 2,000 businesses across the country over admitting women not wearing the hijab.
29Some experts warn that business owners might push back against the government.
30However, there are signs the government might enforce the rules even more severely.
31Government offices no longer provide services to women not covering their hair, after some had in recent months.
32Some religious leaders said the government should use soldiers, as well as the all-volunteer Basij force of Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, to enforce the hijab law.
33Police also said cameras with "artificial intelligence" will find women not wearing their head covering.
34However, it is unclear if such a system is currently working.
35Thirty-three-year-old Sorayya said she is already fighting for a bigger goal by going without a headscarf.
36"I don't want my daughter to be under the same ideologic pressures that I and my generation lived through," she said.
37"This is for a better future for my daughter."
38I'm Andrew Smith. And I'm Jill Robbins.
1More Iranian women are choosing not to wear the head covering called the hijab. Since the early years of Iran's Islamic Revolution, women have been required to cover their heads by law. Today, many public signs urge women to wear head coverings to honor their mothers. 2In recent weeks, the Iranian government has increased efforts to enforce its law requiring women to wear the hijab. 3It has closed some businesses for serving women not covering their heads. The government also has given warnings in public places and sent text message warnings to drivers carrying women without head coverings. 4More women have chosen not to wear the hijab after months of protests following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini. Amini died in September 2022 while being detained by police for wearing her hijab too loosely in public. 5Some women say they are fighting for more freedom in Iran and for a better future for their daughters. They also say the government will not be able to enforce the hijab law if more women refuse to wear it. 6"Do they want to close down all businesses?" said Shervin, a 23-year-old student in Tehran. "If I go to a police station, will they shut it down too?" 7However, the women worry about risk. The women who spoke to the Associated Press only gave their first names because they feared punishment. 8Vida is 29. She said a decision by her and two of her friends to stop covering their hair in public is about more than headscarves. 9"This is a message for the government, leave us alone," she said. 10Before September, it was rare to see women without hijabs. Today, it is common in some areas of Tehran to see women without them. 11Many Muslim women wear the hijab as a sign of respect for God and modesty in front of men outside of their families. 12Before the 1979 Revolution, many middle- and upper-class women chose not to wear the hijab. In 1983, head coverings in public became required by law. Punishments for breaking the hijab law include fines and up to two months in prison. 13In early April, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei declared that "removing the hijab is not Islamically or politically permissible." 14He also claimed that "enemy spies" were the ones pushing women not to wear the hijab. 15On April 25, officials closed a large shopping mall in northern Tehran for several days. The move came after women with their hair showing were seen spending time with men in a bowling alley. 16"It is a collective punishment," said Nodding Kasra, a 32-year-old salesman at a clothing shop in the mall. "They closed a mall with hundreds of workers over some customers' hair?" 17The reformist Iranian newspaper Shargh said police have shut down over 2,000 businesses across the country over admitting women not wearing the hijab. 18Some experts warn that business owners might push back against the government. 19However, there are signs the government might enforce the rules even more severely. 20Government offices no longer provide services to women not covering their hair, after some had in recent months. 21Some religious leaders said the government should use soldiers, as well as the all-volunteer Basij force of Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, to enforce the hijab law. 22Police also said cameras with "artificial intelligence" will find women not wearing their head covering. However, it is unclear if such a system is currently working. 23Thirty-three-year-old Sorayya said she is already fighting for a bigger goal by going without a headscarf. 24"I don't want my daughter to be under the same ideologic pressures that I and my generation lived through," she said. "This is for a better future for my daughter." 25I'm Andrew Smith. And I'm Jill Robbins. 26Nasser Karimi and Jon Gambrell wrote this story for The Associated Press. Andrew Smith adapted it for VOA Learning English. 27___________________________________________________________________ 28Words in This Story 29headscarf (headscarves pl.) -n. a cloth covering worn on the head by women and girls 30modesty -n. the quality of being restrained in a way that observes norms; not acting in a proud or a way to get attention 31ideological -adj. related to a group of ideas that are held by a group or a political party 32____________________________________________________________________ 33We want to hear from you. 34We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 35Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.